A tour of the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station - Part 1
Here is the most thorough and complete tour of the Elevated Station that I could possibly give you (without boring you to death). In Part 1 here I cover the 2nd floor, part 2 will be the first floor.
Part 2: • A tour of the Amundsen...
Part 3 (sub-ice levels): • South Pole Station Tou...
If you're looking for something less thorough but snappier, check out my TikTok channel @ JoeSpinsTheGlobe!
Link to station map: drive.google.com/file/d/1KRtC...
00:13 - CGI intro
01:11 - Large Conference Room
02:11 - Weight Room
02:59 - Admin & Communication Center
04:56 - "Kinkgos" & Facilities Management
05:49 - Cargo / Smoking decks
06:38 - Science lab
09:06 - B1 lounges
11:56 - Connector
13:02 - Computer lab, IT, and offices
14:44 - Medical Clinic
19:16 - A1 Berthing
21:20 - Vertical Tower / Beer Can
22:15 - Galley
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This is by far, and undoubtely, the best episode of MTV Cribs I've ever watched. I wish I could spend a 'winter' here and get to know the crew.
You can apply for a job there!
Its like Disney to most. When the nice pool gets put in and rappers show up it's paradise when we cant survive anywhere else.
LOL
😉
@@m.asquino7403 I am guessing 99.9% of the people are simply not qualified to work there and the remaining 0.1% will be fiercely competing for a handful of positions.
This is the closest to living on a space station that I can imagine. It's like another world.
Truly is
Back in 1987 when I was at college at Michigan State University the Telecom department did a live "streamed" show that went out from the campus PBS station which was hosted by a bunch of science fiction authors and scientists, and featured an interview with someone at the Antarctica base and the situation was compared to living on a moon or Mars base.
Now, this is what the internet is all about - sharing information and providing glimps into worlds most of us will never see. Thanks so much for these videos. I enjoyed them very much.
No, the internet was created to share cute cat videos.
"The walk to Mordor" is brilliant 😂 Watch all three LOTR movies while walking in a treadmill. I love it.
Except for the two towers, that one's a bit of a sprint 😂, that'd be kind of cool to be honest, walk for talking and walking bits faster for when the characters are running
When you showed the game storage room, I'm not sure why my first thought was what a D&D game with a group of Antarctic scientists would look like, but now I want to know!
There was an active group, met twice a week! I heard it was fun
That's the first thing I thought too, when I saw the game room.
Imagine playing a D&D tournament, and you get into a fight with ICE GIANTS???😅
I didn’t realize how very close this is to the actual South Pole.
Yep within a few hundred meters
Dude I swear we have the same recommendations and subs, I see you everywhere.
kind of the point
@@Dionyzos you just lied you do not see him everywhere if you know the people on a lot of the KZhead channel says dude I see you everywhere
it's called "south pole station" and you are surprised that it's at the south pole? that's some galaxy brain shit right there
I bet the D&D games on this station are stellar. So many nerds in such close proximity, it's got to lead to amazing campaigns!
Just because you are a scientists doesnt mean you are a nerd ffs
@@notthisyourlight nerd isn't really an insult anymore and i'd suggest you watch the whole video, very specifically the portion of it at 10:24, before acting offended
@@Luke-bq7sd not offended at all, this Guy is just stupid
I love that you made a video of your experience at the South Pole. This is a great experience for anyone interested in science . I am now 67 years old and, have always been fascinated with science and, I wish I was much younger to have a chance to to participate in a program such as this. Thank you so much for sharing these videos ❤️
The coolest thing to me is that this base is also sort of a precursor to what we'll need on Mars; a fully self sufficient base that has an energy source, water, protection from the cold and the environment, etc. I mean, can you imagine walking out one of those doors, but instead of it being Antarctica, it's the surface of Mars? With a spacesuit of course. Lol
Yep we mentioned this to each other a few times over winter. There were many times it was colder there than the surface of Mars
Everyone has to do the total recall eyeball trick at least once on mars so no spacesuit its a new trend we just started it.😂
In 500 years maybe.
@@JoeSpinstheGlobe that's incredibly misleading. Mars can vary from -220f to +70F. I mean it's colder than the surface of Mars technically here in Texas. If we are talking Mars at the poles in the summer.
Everything you NEED on Mars? Don’t forget the large format printer for banners for events. What a joke.
Your job on the editing of this video is stellar. I love the external 3d model before you started the walk through and the overhead floor layout as you were walking around. That really helped visualize where you were in the station. Also, the parts where you'd grey out most of the video to help us narrow in on what you were trying to show us (like at 12:27), really gives a National Geographic Documentary feel!
Thank you! Glad it was appreciated 😌
Check out my fly through of the station complex if you wanna see more of that model
Neg 80 degrees outside wow
Worked at the pole back in 1995-96 as a cook. The new station was just being begun.
Was it under a dome? I read about it and it seemed like pretty rough conditions back then.
Thank you for showing us what the station looks like. I'm amazed at how big, modern and cozy it looks. The view through those windows was jaw dropping
Man, as a flight medic in Afghanistan flying in and out of FOBs in the middle of no where, thats a pretty sweet set up! Great Video!
Yeah it's wild, the setup probably more secure and better provisioned than your FOBs, but during winter this is likely more isolated in terms of delay to definitive care
These guys are doing science and not killing people. It doesn't compare to your experience at all.
Instead of getting nasty with our men that serve why don't you take up your beef with the dirty politicians and their gloablist cronies that run the war machine and make a handsome profit off of it.. @@TomUlcak
@@TomUlcak I'm sure the medic is trying to save the life of the service member and not kill. Who would have thought otherwise ?
@@kylekyle7386 He wouldn't have to save lives if the U.S. wasn't at war across the planet. Who would have thought otherwise?
I laughed when I saw the curiously shaped orange peel pinned to the community bulletin board at 24:41 Very impressive, I would've expected to see some shrinkage, especially since its so cold out!
scrolled through a few pages of comments to make sure i wasn't the only one who noticed. the way i giggled when he walked past without even acknowledging it...
But it is not cold in. The humidity is crazy low though.
I just had a look, it was probably pinned there yesterday. 😂
Within 15 seconds that first transition already sets your content apart from almost everyone else on youtube. Absolutely fantastic content mate! Keep it up
Thank you!
This brings back memories and awesome to see it now that it's completed. When I went only A and the beercan were done (and not yet cladded). The dome still stood and I did a lot of my work from in there, during my short stay (I most was at McMurdo). It'll be 20 years this year. I miss it. Some part of you does stay down there forever. EDIT: just mildly confused that you speak of winter and winter staffing, yet it's still light outside.
As far i know, the current convention is that the winter season is from station close to station open (mid feb to late Oct) and summer is the opposite. Since the sun goes down in March and returns in September, there is some winter time with 24h sunlight.
@@JoeSpinstheGlobe Heh, yeah, by the time I watched all 3 videos, I had figured you were right on the threshold!
Most of the doors in this facility appear to be walk-in-cooler style doors you'd find in any restaurant kitchen. Extremely clever idea.
Again a super tour. Thanks for pointing out the pictures of the Navy guys that wintered over there. I wintered over at McMurdo in 1965. Lets say things have changed from the underground south pole station that existed back then. Spending time on the ice - was a time in my life I will never forget. I was part of the Navy squadron VX-6 that transported all the folks and supplies all over the continent. Congrats on the upgrade of the station. Cheers
How was it different back then?
I have brother that was there in mid 60s.lived there 18 months. I remember my dad talki.g to him by Ham radio. He retired with 28 30 yrs service
As a native Antarctican, I enjoyed this video.
We need a "The thing" 2 in a massive facility like this. Would be very cool...
I was wondering if they have a weapons locker with a flamethrower Just in case 😂
As an ex-submariner. I can say we could do a tour here standing on our head ! The room, the hability, the accomidations are like a 5-star hotel in comparison.! Throw me in that brier patch !
Haha no complaints from me it's pretty comfortable!
Ok tough guy, until that first -50° blast hits you in the face 😂.
This is amazing! Always been fascinated by the thought of being on an arctic station. Seems like a tight crew and operation you have. Thanks for sharing!
This was the best tour that I’ve seen of a facility in Antarctica. Great work producing this. Im fascinated with Antarctica and eat this stuff up.
Thanks appreciate that 😊
GO BILLS
I read the book "Alone", which was Amundsen's story about the first south pole station. Spoiler alert: he almost died from carbon monoxide poisoning. What a difference with this station now. The original was a single room underground (undersnow) where they had to do things like continually clear out a breathing tube to the surface. They decided on Almunsen to stay alone because they figured two guys would end up killing each other.
That is about Admiral Byrd, not Amundsen
@@firekindler Right, sorry.
I love this video! I did summers at Pole from 2009 to 2012, plus a winter in 2013. You've done a fantastic job capturing the feel of the station, showing all the little bits that make it feel more like "home", rather than just a weird workplace. We would have been neighbors, I had a room on the right side of A1 for part of my winter. Thanks for keeping the noise down :) Also, I always thought that following the theme of calling the beer can the "vertical tower", that also meant that the hallways were technically also named the "horizontal hallways".
Have you ever had to deal with a flat Earther?
@@andreworiez8920 no. I'm not even sure they actually exist, outside of KZhead.
@@danielleussler4328 count yourself lucky. They exist 😔
Very late but just stumbled upon this vid now, what was it like living there? I moved very far north and struggle with how long the dark periods are and also weirdly the lack of trees. Wondering if you have any of the same experiences.
@@andreworiez8920 This video proves that they still claim Admiral Byrd. How honest is that?
Thank you for this video! I found you on TikTok and have watched all your southpole content as you were posting it there. I gotta say I really enjoyed watching this longer form version here. You do a fantastic job of explaining the station layout. I'm excited for the next parts. Especially the power plant! Thanks again
What a comprehensive tour of an amazing place. Thanks you for taking the time to show us
thanks so much for this. my uncle spent some time down there many many years ago. its nice to be able to see the sort of places he stayed in and did his work from. all the best.
Fascinating, entertaining, and very well done. Thank you for posting.
The KZhead algorithm is crazy I was just recommended this video on my homepage and I’m having loads of fun watching it.
3 am in the morning and BLINDING sunlight.... Awesome! Thank you for this amazing tour!
I'm blown away by how modernistic and normal it all looks given the location.
I like the triple redundancy on the power backup generators. I would like to see some signed Kurt Russel memorabilia from The Thing on display!
This is absolutely fascinating, thank you for taking the time to make it, being such a natural presenter, for the great graphics & the science. I especially liked your film about the Ice Cube neutrino experiment. I’m going to San Pedro, Atacama, Chile in March too see the stars. Now I’ve watched this also going to go to Svalbard, Norway to experience another unique environment. It’s content like yours & travel that makes me realise what an incredible planet it is & how privileged we are to be alive & aware on it.
Thank you for the tour. Now I can picture the organism you dug out of the ice assimilating you all better. Godspeed
What an amazing experience to share with us. I thoroughly enjoyed this. Well done and thank you.
Wow - really neat to see this surprisingly large, detailed station. Love to stay for a week or two!
I grew up in Montreal, Quebec (Canada) where every house has a double entryway, so you can answer the door, and maybe chat with someone, without freezing the house. I expect it's common throughout Quebec, and maybe other places in the world.
We have that in Germany too. We call it a wind catcher.
@@kerstin3267 oh what even in Germany? I know it's common in Northern Norway, but had no idea you have em that far south
Northern US here. We call that a “front hall” and “back hall.” The main function was, as you note, to reduce heat loss.
I remember seeing a video of this station under construction, and what an improvement it was over the original where all the buildings were under a dome. The whole thing used to get buried under huge snowdrifts that required caterpillar tractors to dig out. Solution: ditch the dome, and put buildings on stilts. A great update!
it's great to see this place...a place i probably would never have the change to visit...
Man someday I’ll work there in that meteorology corner! Until then I will probably watch this video over and over. Thank you for the tour!
Your tour videos have inspired me to apply to work down there. I’m hoping that within a year or so, I’ll be able to set foot on the ice!
This was fascinating & I love how you broke it all down including showing your map!
This could have been days long viewing and examining every object/picture/collectable/frame/etc. and I would have enjoyed it. What a great view of something we all thought of escaping to at one time or another, lol. Thanks Joe, please bring me if there ever is a next time.
This is really fascinating. The pods are awesome but I was a bit confused when he said it was 3 in the morning but forgot that in some places in the world the sun stays out all day for several months. That view from the clinic window was beautiful.
Yep, and I think this is at the end of his stay, so for most of it it was actually completely dark
Actually only two places where the Sun sets and rises once per yr.
Excellent tour, with plenty of interesting details! Thank you!
Wow, always wondered what that post looked like. Thanks for the tour! Very interesting
I love this. We get a peek into the world of adventurers.
Loved the tour Joe! Can't wait until Part 2! The station looks amazing! I always thought while watching your TikTok videos that it must be such a cool place to live. You have almost everything you would ever need there to have fun indoors!
Guy I worked with at a company making printed switches for Maytag and Kenmore was stationed on a US Navy Ice Breaker! Some amazing pictures he has of Antarctica and Northern Passages above Alaska and Canada! Crazy stuff!!
Very well done Joe! Thank you.
I loved the tour! Thank you! I noticed the petroleum jelly and condoms on the top shelf! 🤪🤪
Thank you for an incredibly comprehensive tour. I look forward to more.
Fantastic video, very interesting tour, amazing to see the base in such detail unique tour, so well presented! Thanks
I'm a pedi/neo RRT. Was really interested in seeing the med bay and then even more stoked when you said you were the PA of the place. Super awesome. Definitely thinking I would add this place to my bucket list. Rock on.
Thank you for the tour! It's eye-opening. People think of A-Scott station as like the dinky building in The Thing, and it looks like any commercial building in the US. Looks clean and organized. Thumbs up.
Thanks! Back when the Thing was made, it wasn't too far off from the station at the time
"Good morning and welcome to the Black Mesa Research Facility.." I kid. Thank you for this great walkthrough! I've always been curious as to what these research facilities are like - they look far bettet maintained and spacious than I had envisioned!
I'll be honest, walking up to the station the first time, i felt like Gordon Freeman
Cool video dude! What an incredible place to work. Looking forward to part two.
Fascinating!!! It's heaps bigger than I thought
That was so cool, looking forward to part 2! (also the computer with the cut out of the persons head peeking above it at 7:36 scared me lol )
Haha that's just Sasha don't worry
Great road in South Pole Station. I wish you best. Hello from Croatia. 🙃
What an epic video. Thank you for sharing. So fascinating. I would love to live/work there for a year.
AWESOME!!!!! Thanks for sharing this experience!
Thank you so much for this video tour of our base at the South Pole of the Earth. I'm a licensed physician in sunny California. Your medical capabilities and equipment looks fantastic and I am looking forward to watching more.
As an NHS GP - I would absolutely love to spend a shift here. Not sure what my urban experience can bring to the party - but I’ll be willing to learn. I was reading an account of a British GP who spent a year at the station. The isolation in event of emergency is worse than being on the ISS. Sounds incredible
I'm walking there at the moment! It's the only way I'll ever get to see a Doctor.
@@andyharpist2938 true, on the NHS. Someone else has your appt. Don’t worry- you’ll soon be able to see a Phys Associate on the NHS much more quickly. Others will be paying to see a doctor (you can thank Jeremy Hunt et al for that).
@@andyharpist2938 Come and work in Scunthorpe. Probably just as cold, a bit bleaker and more dangerous.
Thank you for the exceptional tour
It's 3 a.m. but... The Sun is up and the computer-guys are still programming. All as expected. Thanks for the tour
I expected the station to be quite 'sciency' and sterile, but this place looks genuinely cozy and welcoming to live in.
What, do you think you're just gonna stuff 32 people in a small, robotic, soulless laboratory for 9 months straight?
Some places are, but like any other, it’s exactly how you put it.
Oh how I envy you! This was my dream job - was asked (the first year they recruited for a PA,) if I wanted to interview, but I could not leave my kitty, nor take her with me (pack in, pack out issue,) so sadly declined. Thank you for what you do. BTW, we finally got the name change to Physician Associate at the AAPA meeting.
Aww you missed out! It was a great experience. So is "associate" official official now? I'm not big on the title either way, I'll have to look into what's appropriate for my state now
You declined this opportunity for a cat?!
@@jms0313 Pets are family.
@@JohnSmith-tl8pq dogs are. Cats are not. Her cat cost her an incredible opportunity. Pets are not human children. Our culture elevates them to highly
Elevates them because they are family.
I was actually impressed that you had your own room. I thought it would be four people to a room that size. Very nice tour, thank you!
Nice pace. Never felt like I didn't get a look at a room. Never got bored waiting for you to move on. Pacing is tough -- nice work.
I wonder how the first explorers to the South Pole would react, if they could see what you guys have available today, in the way of "comforts".
"ohhh this is nice" i imagine
I love to learn about history and science to think that this was named after a Norwegian explore that I might be related to since My last name is Amundsen and I’m norwegian
Thank you so much for this insight into a little known environment
Excellent tour Doctor....thank you so much.....Now...to watch the others
Very informative. Thanks for this awesome MTC cribs ;) On a serious note: as a professional photographer I'm currently looking into possibilities of getting to the South pole. I know it's not possible just like that as an outsider, but I'm traveling to Antarctica in March 2024 first for a specialised photo docu trip. Can't wait. It's a fascinating contintent and I am not at all jealous of you, Joe... *sarcasm off*
Haha yeah I'd be jealous of me too, it was a spectacular experience. But I'm assuming you're going on a trip to the coast? You'll see much more there than i did
@@JoeSpinstheGlobe True true, if the weather permits it, but I'd like the experience to be on the south pole.. It's a crazy thing, just like being at 90° NB, or Northern Iceland, Everest, Greenland... far away places, man. Far away places... But anyway: the Antarctica trip already has been planned and booked. Can't wait to go and explore at least a fraction of that amazing contintent and return home with one of a kind footage... Love your videos, bro. I truly do. Many compliments
Hey Joe - Looks like your station map link is broken. Great video, love how many details you've shared about your time on ice!
Thanks for the heads up! I think i fixed it, could you try again?
@@JoeSpinstheGlobe All fixed - tysm!
These tour videos of the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station have good detail of what this Station is like. It is interesting to see a video of a research station that I will never visit in my life.
The perfect setting fot the thing.
Very cool tour!
That's amazing! How many years did it take to build all this? How did the building materials get there? That's just incredible! Why are you leaving? Can't wait for part 2.
He’s just completed the Winter shift I guess.
Would love to watch John Carpenters The Thing in the media room. Would be so fitting.
Every year when the station closes for winter, they turn the big gym into a theater and everyone watches! Definitely a solid tradition
@@JoeSpinstheGlobe This pleases me so much. That's awesome.
That reminds me of Thule air base, Greenland. I spent a month there. I couldn’t imagine doing an entire year, my hats off to you. Great job.
Great job nice to see the other part of the world rarely seen. Thanks very informative UK
I saw a news article today about plans for the Chinese to build satellite ground infrastructure at Zhongshan Station. Then after getting lost in google maps and wikipedia for an hour learning about settlements on Antarctica, I found this video. This is so awesome man! Thank you for posting. Have you guys living there, especially in winter, ever talked about how living at the South pole must be as close to being on another planet as one can get (aside from actually going or participating in an analog)? What are your thoughts?
Joe and some others talked about that further up, it sounds so cool tbh!
Its so weird how its 3 am and the sun is just like noon. And the other half of the year is pitch black
Excellent tour, thank you so much!
Where do you keep "The Thing"?
please make a lab video, also why is the orange peel on the bulletin board
Thanks for doing this. I really enjoyed the tour. Very informative.
I LOVED every second of the getting in and out scenes. In and out of the building. I reckon that winter at the South Pole must be harsh... yet, no signs of the fact that one comes out of 20+ degrees Celsius to -80 (?). What a God, feeling no cold! I also loved the tone of his voice when explaining how happy he is that people who smoke get a miserable time, down there Oh, but then I remembered - one can be inside just as well as outside this building without feeling cold, (as shown in the vuideo), so... yeah. I am also delighted to see so brilliant minds at work, doing research for Humanity, hard research... yet, these brilliant minds have not figured out a way to not send their fellow humans outside at -80 for a smoke while inside of a modular metallic structure. One can understand the neutrinos and not be able to figure out a smoking spot inside. Something to be expected in an place with more card games than books.
Forgive me if this is a stupid question, but in July-August when temperatures dip below -109°F, does the carbon dioxide in the air freeze creating natural dry ice?
Nope that's a great question and one that i had myself when i went there. The short answer is no, it doesn't. See my next comment for the long answer.
So as you mentioned CO2 freezing from the air, you're likely aware that CO2 sublimates from solid to gas and and depositions from gas to solid under the right conditions; i.e. no liquid CO2 at earth-like pressures. For a given block of solid CO2, sublimation happens when the solid turns to gas faster than the ambient gas deposits onto the solid. For deposition, the reverse is the case. Both of these processes depend on pressure, with higher pressure favoring more deposition. That -109F number is valid for an environment where partial pressure of CO2 is 1 atmosphere (i.e. 100% of total gas @ 1 atm total pressure, 50% of total gas @ 2 atm total pressure, etc). The partial pressure of CO2 at the South Pole is 0.000278 atmospheres. At this miniscule pressure, sublimation is pretty much always favored. I can't find a phase calculator that goes to crazy low temperatures, but this holds true for at least down to -150C
A lot of sharp eyed commenters here.
That TV room was surprisingly cool. Nice set up/vibe in there.
Thanks. I am so fascinated by this place. I would love to winter over there.
6:51 how is the time determined if this is directly on the South Pole? Wouldn’t different parts of the building be in different time zones?
I think time is all based on the Prime Meridian.
we’re those modules helicoptered in or were they built on site?
Built on site with supplies flown in on a herc c-130
@@JoeSpinstheGlobe wow nice 👍🏾
Love you're video really appreciate tour's like this
What a great tour!...never had any idea what the station might be like.
What time zone is the station in? you've mentioned a couple of times that it was about 3 AM when filming, but when you're that close to the pole it seems kind of arbitrary.
It is arbitrary, but we go on New Zealand time since that's that's where our passengers/cargo come from. It makes the most sense.