What Do You Eat in Antarctica? | Antarctic Extremes
If you’re a penguin or other seabird in Antarctica, there’s plenty of fish (and some seal placenta) to go around. But what do the people eat?
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Generally, an adult human consumes around 1,600 to 3,000 calories daily. But in colder climates, people need to eat more: Keeping our warm-blooded bodies warm requires a lot of energy. It’s so cold in Antarctica that the average person needs to consume 3,200 to 5,000 calories a day (watch out, Michael Phelps). And because the continent is frozen, no food grows there naturally.
So how do the hundreds of scientists and support personnel who visit Antarctica’s McMurdo Station each year stay fed?
Throughout their one-month stay in Antarctica, hosts Caitlin Saks and Arlo Pérez discover the secret sauce of Antarctic cooking from experts at McMurdo’s galley (Hint: Need to reconstitute a meal? Just add cheese! Need to keep that cheese beyond its expiration date? That’s what freezers are for) and scientists at remote research sites. They glimpse the early days of Antarctic food storage at a long-preserved hut from theTerra Nova Expedition that began in 1910.
Along the way, Caitlin and Arlo discover the glory of 24/7 pizza and “freshies,” the cardboard-like texture of a protein bar several years past its expiration date, and the true meaning of “eat your vegetables.”
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Hosted by Caitlin Saks and Arlo Pérez
Editor/Digital Associate Producer: Arlo Pérez
Producer: Caitlin Saks
Field Director/Cinematographer: Zachary Fink
Executive Producer: Julia Cort
Coordinating Producer: Elizabeth Benjes
Project Director: Pamela Rosenstein
Production Assistance: Matthew Buckley, Emily Pattison, Sean Cuddihy, Hanna Ali
Audio Mix: Heart Punch Studio
Director of Audience Development: Dante Graves
Senior Digital Producer: Ari Daniel
Audience Engagement Editor: Sukee Bennett
Outreach Manager: Gina Varamo
Special thanks to the United States Antarctic Program
Archival:
Alasdair Turner, Elizabeth Delaquess / NSF, Matthew Siegfried, National Science Foundation, POND5, Storyblocks
Music: APM
National corporate funding for NOVA is provided by Draper. Major funding for NOVA is provided by the David H. Koch Fund for Science, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and PBS viewers. Additional funding is provided by the NOVA Science Trust.
Major funding for this project is provided by the National Science Foundation. Additional funding is provided by the Heising-Simons Foundation, The Kendeda Fund, the George D. Smith Fund, and the Richard Saltonstall Charitable Foundation.
This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. 1713552. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.
© WGBH Educational Foundation 2020
Hi Terra, Caitlin and Arlo here. We have some sad news to share: Bija Sass, who is featured in this video, passed away. Bija was a wonderful person who, even in the short time we met her, left a very positive impression on us. In honor of her memory, we wanted to share this short article celebrating her life: to.pbs.org/3Y9tInd
RIP ❤
Thank you for the sad update. Rest in peace.
Lots of grape in Antarctica, it’s lawless
RIP🤲❤️
Oh my goodness I just came back to this video :( Rest in peace
The fact that you have to heat refrigerators in Antarctica is amusing me
When you use the fridge to keep the food warm.
My kitchen, in my old farmhouse in Ireland, is so cold that my fridge freezer doesn't work in the winter. My options are heat the kitchen, turn the fridge dial to the max and have it running all the time, or blast a heater into the fridge compartment a few times a day to force it to turn on.
@Genesis 2.0 the light bulbs turn off when you shut the door lol
What's amusing to me is eating someone's food they give you. I've seen people poisoned from laxatives to straight up poison by supposed "friends"
In that case would it still be a fridge?
“We caught a bird feasting on a placenta of a newborn seal.” *... that’s so metal.*
Band name: "CARRION BIRTH"
They couldve left that part out tbh
@@yc_030 Don’t knock it before you try it.
Most metal thing is them eating expired foods
That's brutal
I spent 378 days at the South Pole in 2019 thru 2020 and can confirm expiration dates are completely ignored. Granted, all the food down there is stored at -50F so it never really goes bad. I ate Nilla Wafers that expired in 2011, and they tasted exactly like a fresh box, amongst many other things. Unfortunately the ice cream had a diesel funk because the fuel arch was right next to the end of the food storage arch and the ice cream was closest. I think the only thing we had during our Winterover that wasn't expired was alcohol. That's brought in fresh each year. Priorities...
alcohol is the best way to keep warm, anyway. Also i don't think alcohol really have an expiration day
Considering I don’t drink at all, I agree with the disdain for that priority. But to be fair, when I used to bounce, watching drunk people was and still can be very entertaining.
@@dieptrieu6564alcohol is absolutely not the best way to keep warm. Alcohol only makes you FEEL warmer while actually making you colder.
Why in the world would there be Nilla Wafers there that had expired nine years earlier?
@@CoolcartingCan't exactly just toss them away.
I'm surprised at how many people and how much infrastructure is down there, I thought it was just that lab on stilts!
That's south pole
Timothy Smith Call the thick, but, well, yeah I'm thick. South Pole being the middley bit and that town near the coast? I'm a mong, thank you! 😂👌
McMurdo is the furthest south they can bring ships in. It’s surrounded by sea ice but they contract Russian ice breaks to make a channel. Because they can bring cargo in it’s where they handle all then logistics for the dozens of field camps and the South Pole station. It’s basically one big warehouse
Timothy Smith That's awesome, cheers for the insight!
Sameee
As someone who spent 13.5 months in Antarctica.... "freshies" as we called them, were always very desireable. We did have a small greenhouse that produced enough greens for salad once a week. Never looked forward to salad so much in all my life.
@yabghus 🤦♂️
@yabghus this response is far too ignorant for me to waste any more time with this... 🤦♂️ thanks, lol. 😆
@yabghus you are fucking clueless 🙄
@yabghus I feel like the word "liberal" goes through your mind way too often, like to an unhealthy degree.
@yabghus orange sherbet?
I had a friend who was a McMurdo cook for many years, and he even got to cook for a few weeks at the South Pole station. He was going to help me get a job there, too, but I still had my wisdom teeth (you have to have those removed before living in Antarctica) and I moved to Thailand, instead. I love living in Thailand, but I really regret not taking that opportunity to live at McMurdo for a season or two.
@mVP because if you have a serious dental problem and need oral surgery, you might not have a qualified dentist at the station and due to flight schedules, they might not be able to get you to a dentist in Christchurch when you really need to.
@@robertfarmer9901 what are the other requirements / qualification needed for that ??
@@mayankrana9349 if u need to ask u already failed
@@KimoKimochii 🥲
@@mayankrana9349 it’s not a place to go for fun, everyone there is there for a scientific purpose or support role
It makes sense that Pizza would be so readily available and always fresh. Flour is VERY compressible, as is mozzarella cheese (ship it in whole logs and freeze it, keeps basically forever with little noticeable quality loss, same goes with pepperoni.
I didn’t realize there was a small town there. I thought it was just a handful of scientists living on soup and astronaut food. Thanks so much for the education this video provided.
I applied as Photographer in residence for the 2020 winter over but the cut out all non necessary positions because of coronavirus, I can’t reapply my submission for another year. Winter over crew is about a sixth of the summer crew.
@@Finallybianca Oh I see... thanks for the insight. I hope you’re able to get over there at some point!
It’s like a mini city
Follow the Ten Commandments and read Ephesians 4:29 plz. Also for anybody who does this: stop worshipping politicians and start to worship God
@@jaidenarias5912 hahahaha
Just real quick: The "recycled food" is a little better than it sounds. "Repurposed food" is more accurate. It's like this: Say there is 40 pounds of pork chops that never went out to the service line. It is properly chilled by food service standards, and then the next day utilized to make pork green chili. The "leftover" food is just an excess from a previous meal that is utilized in an appropriate way! Anything potentially dangerous would be wasted without a hesitation. In a place like this, we don't want to waste perfectly safe food since it is such a difficult process to get it down here in the first place! The more you know! Good episode guys. It was nice to host you.
Thanks for clarifying, Justin!
Thank You. What you do down there IS amazing
Justin Hudson oh so it’s still quite safe to eat it then? No upset stomach?
@@emmamorley1836The food is handled entirely by professionally trained chefs, and anything that could be considered remotely harmful is discarded without a second thought.
Restaurants have been recycling/repurposing food for ages. Often what the daily specials are...has something to do with last night's leftovers. Especially the soup of the day. Anthony Bourdain talks about it in his book "kitchen confidential' too. On a fast food note...where do you think the meat for Wendy's chili comes from? Yesterday's unsold burgers.
The reality of how important food is in a harsh environment like this is exactly the same on the opposite side of the coin! I worked in the little sandy desert in the Pilbara region of western Australia and had summer temps of 50c+ daily and the food supply was amazing . Fresh fruit and vegetables along with everyone's favourite weekly dinner were all there ,as the working conditions were terrible and the only thing you had to look forward too was dinner and beer o'clock👍 the funniest sight was a McDonald's sign that said 2300km 👇
I don’t understand why people have to lie on the internet like this
@@danceyrselfkleen L
I would think they were all vegans down there! 😆
@@danceyrselfkleen what a fucking trollolol
classic alcoa. no idea why all the yanks think you're lying lol
"Add cheese, just add cheese, that's the trick" should be the new motto of Wisconsin. That humanity can go to the most inhospitable part of the world and bake bread, make a decent pizza and serve up chicken tenders is...honestly kind of inspiring. Just like those in not so developed countries, the people researching in Antarctica learn to make do with what they have. And it definitely beats the pemmican, cocoa, and in Amundsen's case fresh dog meat to prevent scurvy that affected Scott and his expedition.
Imagine Gordon Ramsay just comes there one day and starts screaming at the chefs "ITS FUCKING FROZEN!!! ONLY THISNG THATS FRESH HERE IS THE PLACENTA ON THE SNOW!!!"
Actually that placenta is probably also frozen
Isnt frozen things still considered fresh, like fish. Ofc not stuff like Dino nuggies
@@normalnamenormalname2083 No. It's not unhealthy, but 'fresh' implies it hasn't been frozen, preserved or stored for a long time.
@@jeejbeej Freezing food preserves the nutrients more than canning and in some sense even fresh food will lose more nutrients by the time you eat it than frozen food. Although, there is certainly said to be a difference in taste and freezer burn will only amplify that.
@@goosenuggets9693 Of course thats why I said it is not unhealthy to freeze food, but it cannot be called fresh.
"I ate an embarrassing amount of pizza" There is no such thing
It's mandatory for females to say that they are eating too much even if it was one slice.
@@blava3155 yeah I’m tired of their bullshit
⏫ Ignoramuses ⏫
@@blava3155 ok neckbeard
it is if she put pineapple on it.
The situation in Antarctica is far from what I've imagined. I'm actually amazed on how there are shelters that can accommodate A LOT of people out there. Thank you for this content! I'm enlightened.
I'm most impressed by whoever built the very first structure there, that couldn't have been fun to build a structure in such extreme cold
Hot sauce has gotta be the equivalent of cigarettes in jail.
Texas Pete's was definitely currency on my ship back in the early 2000s.
it keeps well and vinegar makes it freeze resistant so better than fruit at least
It would probably be more apt to compare hot sauce at this station to ramen packs in prisons
@@shaybob1711 same on my ship in the 10s!
@@shaybob1711 whats a texas pete?
"Can you eat something pickled 100 years ago?" **Steve1989MRE already booking flight to Antarctica**
accountnamewithheld omg hahahahahahahah
'nice hiss'
is that the guy that have hospitalized once for eating war era foods? lol he might just banned from museum for trying to taste some bits of offerings foods from ancient grave
@@lqfr8813 I half expected him to have already raided a pharaoh’s tomb to get some of the stored food. *Opens jar* “Nice hiss.”
😆
This is the most interesting video I've seen in forever. I had no idea the base was so large and.... normal! It's so much more human than I thought it was. I always got the impression that it was completely clinical and alien somehow, like being on the ISS or something. I would love to experience this!
A lot of times expiry dates are more "best by" dates... in many instances it's the amount of time the company has done shelf life testing (meaning let it sit as x temperature for y amount of time and then done a taste test/checked for bacteria growth or staleness or something). If they don't have data beyond 3 years or whatever it is, they just slap that date on it rather than risk the lawsuit even if it probably would be fine for even longer.
I used to think this until I started ignoring expiration dates... then I noticed that stuff generally tastes bad after the expiration dates. Corn muffin mix, for example. Or instant potatoes. Don't even try mayonnaise -- it's disgusting.
In Europe there's a distinction on packaging between Best Before and Use Before, where the former can be mostly ignored a lot of the time. In Norway a lot of packaging these days will have Best Before dates with "But often good after" written below.
I have eaten things that had an expiration date from before I was born. It's never been an issue.
@@hxhdfjifzirstc894you say that but how many things have you eaten that didn’t taste bad so you didn’t check the expiration date. Yeah frankly I’m convinced that a lot of manufacturers slap super early expiration dates on things to one cover their ass but number two the person will probably throw it out and buy a new package. They pretty much have no incentive to extend it to the longest most accurate but a fair number of reasons to cut it short. Plus some people are will literally judge a product for having too long of an expiration date and assume it must mean it’s unhealthy
When we see the logistics of this, imagine sorting out food on Mars.
@Manek Iridius We can't even send a human to mars yet.
We dont have science station on mars yet and it would be a lot less people to feed.
@@MementoMoriGrizzly we're getting there
Memento Mori Yes you can lol, just don't have hopes of coming back if you don't like it there.
@Manek Iridius the point is that food shipped there would take 6 months to deliver, and would be very expensive as rocket ships are high maintenance
It’s kind of sad recycled and expired meals in the most isolated continent still looks better then school lunch
Well, the difference is they have actual chefs
Only good thing I had in high school was the chicken tender, just like there in Antarctica.
Oh I know I HATE it. I worked with AmeriCorps in the past with No kid Hungry in an effort to improve meal quality in the locals schools and to get more kids access to school meals and it’s terrible. Can’t not stand public schools for this reason especially when I was in primary school.
*than
I see people say this sometimes online, but I don't get it. We had tasty school lunches. I'm not sure it was always the healthiest stuff (pizzas, fiestadas, tacos, burgers etc were pretty common), but it was good and fresh. I grew up in a rural, lower-middle class, town as well. I have no clue about this gross school lunch culture I sometimes see youtube comments allude too.
Seeing those old preserved food and hearing "expiration is just a suggestion" makes me wish SteveMRE would review such food.
8:26 "..pineapple on half and anchovies on the other half..." oh no...
Yeah, that is fucking atrocious
I was today years old to realise that their was that many people on Antartica. I honestly thought it was like the thing with a few buildings and a helicopter haha.
me too. 11.000 people live in Antartica
been watching too much the thing
Most of them are researchers
The helicopter eats so much
@Da Ca this planet was fucked the minute humans became a thing
The majority of "expiration dates" are really just "best by dates". They won't kill you, but they will taste like cardboard
@@gohom3882 I diagnose you with salmonella
@@gohom3882 yeah that's not what I meant
if it’s not canned or vacuum sealed, it becomes dangerous probably about a year after the best by date
@@gohom3882 You just explained the difference between "best before" and "use before" in the best way I could imagine
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That's one happy video on life in Antarctica, when all we usually read and see is about the extremely harsh weather in what is after all a cold, cold desert. Huge establishment too.
I was just part of a conference to host Antarctic explorers from the 50's through the 90's. My phone must've listened in and recommended this. Such cool information!
I’m glad I’m not the only person amazed at the amount of people and buildings and how large the station is there. All the other documentary shows make it seem like small groups and temp shelters. This is a huge base with full service canteen. Wow!
That's McMurdo. It's the supply hub for much of Antarctica. It allows the small groups and temp shelters to happen.
@@hypothalapotamus5293 Quick Question- Does it supply to all country's station ?
@@9033384476 At times, but it's mainly the American base, supplised by U.S. Air Force flights.
I just pray to God that they never unearth a flesh-eating, shapeshifting, alien monster that could assimilate all life on earth in a matter of four years...oh come on! Somebody had to make a John Carpenter's The Thing reference here at some point!
I wonder how much they charge for tourist or one-time-visitor for a slice of pizza. I bet it’s expensive
"Food is morale". Truer words have never been spoken. Food makes us happy.
That explains why my high school had such low morale.
@@Mbrace818 oof
until we die of chronic illness....kick in a decade or so of miserable health
@@billmoyer3254 people seem to conflate tasty food with bad food. Not at all the case. Good food makes us happy AND healthy. Bad food makes us sad AND unhealthy. Good food don't cause chronic illnesses, else we would be eating bad food.
Once, during the northern expedition, I had to eat a piece of raw hazel grouse caught with snares from the emergency kit, I think a couple of stale cereal bars will even have a positive effect on health
5:40 heat the fridge 😂❤ my mind blown at that sentence, smart and easy to understand and not daily thing to hear heat your fridge
It's like a college dining hall, all expired and reheated food and the pizza is often the only good thing there.
Shoot! I was in the army. You had it nice in a college dining hall.
@@jkhoover i would imagine colleges be taking money out our pockets for shitty food y’all get free mre meals 🤤. Thank you for your service! I hope you’re eating good now
spot on!
@@ravenwraith1017 at NYU it depends on the dining hall
I'm pretty sure they crated up the leftovers from Antarctica and shipped them to my college's chow hall. : (
The only continent where Gordon Ramsay shouldn't be allowed. Officially.
They'll eat him if he shows up.
If he ever shows up, they should give him an ultimatum: "If you say ANYTHING bad about ANY of our food or drink, WE WILL BURY YOU ALIVE IN THE SNOW! " 🤣😂🤣
I bet he'd make awesome snow cones.
@@heru-deshet359 XD true
Too late kzhead.info/sun/YNupd72Zq2KAh40/bejne.html
Went to Sea World with my aunt and got to catch a glimpse of what people had to eat either in the Arctic or Antarctic. Unless you can't eat (which is bad!), absolutely NOTHING goes to waste! Needing to constantly eat to keep your energy up, sounds like a challenge, because energy is mostly lost in heat, unless you can conserve it! Can't imagine having to go on a 3,500 calorie diet, when you're struggling to keep at a 1,500 on a regular basis!
This took me by surprise. I thought this was going to explain 20 types of aquatic species that they were stuck eating all the time.
“Can’t start a fire to save her life.” “Lost his good gloves on day 2.” Mixed with the spy jazz and slow motion walking - PBS @ a real fine point.
We're giving the BBC a run for their money
This place is basically gordon ramsey's hell.
Haha that’s what I was thinking, cause it’s all frozen lmao
Matthew Derohanessian don’t forget the microwaved food
Thought I was the only one thinking about it Lmfao
IT'S FUCKIN RAW
@@MotherMonster34 True haha
My dream is to work in Antarctica as a researcher. This genuinely seems so amazing.
This is so interesting! Never would have guessed there are that many people that live there aside from scientists. Ive always loved the cold so I'd love to spend a month there just for the experience!
I was a Navy C-130 Loadmaster (the person who loads cargo and people into the LC-130 ski Hercs) from 1992-1996. I used to do a lot of shopping for my friends and friends of friends when we flew from McMurdo to Christchurch. I would buy fresh milk, bread, eggs, spices, Marmite, fruit, meat, cheese and all sorts of other kinds of food in Christchurch and haul it back to McMurdo. When the Navy ran things there was a US Navy Exchange store in Christchurch (The Exchange is the Navy's version of a Mini-Mart). Some of the Kiwi's wanted specific things from the Exchange (Pop-Tarts being one of them), Americans wanted food bought from the Kiwi supermarkets. In exchange for my shopping trips I never ask for anything - Most of the time I would get free beer. Other Loadmasters charged. As a Loadmaster one of my responsibilities was to procure the flight meals for the flight crew and the passengers. The flight meals made for the flight crew at the US Navy's "galley" in Christchurch (It was a combination Navy MWR (Morale, Welfare and Recreation club and restaurant) were awesome. You could pre-order the types of sandwiches you wanted, they always put in a couple pieces of fresh fruit, milk, chips, home made cookies, candy bars and other snacks. The passengers would also get the same type of meal, except their lunch was smaller. Before landing I had to collect the meals. I would tell the passengers to keep whatever they didn't eat and save it for later. Sometimes they took my advice, sometimes they didn't. I would try my best to collect the uneaten meals and the unopened items from the meals and put them in one bag (which I would later give to the Navy aircraft maintenance people), the rest of the opened and half eaten food items would go into trash bags. After we had unloaded the plane that food trash would go to the "garbage and recycling" collection point (we called it a Skua Pile). Within minutes of dumping it NSFA civilian and contractor personnel would be going through that trash and taking anything they could that was edible, half eaten sandwiches, fruit, anything. Food was free in Antarctica, they had breakfast, lunch, dinner and midrats (midnight meal). In McMurdo there was one club that cooked and served hamburgers and fries on Saturday night (Saturday night was called "Saturday Night Live" as we worked 12 hours on and 12 hours off 6 days a week - Nights got Saturday night off and days got Sunday day off). You had to pay for the burgers and fries.
Man that sounds awesome. How did you get in that kind of job.
People like you are STILL our favorite down here. I worked at Williams Field a few months ago, and the ANG brought me stuff from Christchurch multiple times a week! I sure miss those days. No flights now!
It shocks me civilian contractor personnel would be going through trash for food. It's not as if people are living there the same way there are those in the community anywhere else which are specifically there for a job. There aren't "low income" folks working fast food or minimum wage jobs run by single parents with 5 or 6 children and can't make ends meet. There's no homeless sleeping on the streets. First, no children live there. Second, EVERYONE is employed at research bases and I'm pretty sure they aren't charged for meals like a student would pay on a college campus. Are countries they're associated with not supplying them with enough food? Are universities and other organizations paying for research under supplying their teams? I'm just flabbergasted. I don't get this at all. And technically, the person writing this and his fellow service people weren't even to be in Antarctica, "technically" there are to be NO military bases on the continent but I think most major countries have violated it. Antarctica is to be Research ONLY and not become a militarized area where countries are setting up "their" territories and "your" territories but when do governments ever listen to rules. I'm still so shocked by this news people are rummaging through trash eating EVEN half-eaten food I don't even know what to say about it. I would REALLY like to hear why, hear more about this situation. This situation is just wrong on multiple levels.
@Ron B what has that got to do with this?
We Aussies have a brewery in Antarctica. Because off course we do.
I was lead baker at McMurdo 2005-06 and cooked at the Pole 1996-97. It was a lot of work but everyone really appreciated the cookies.
The COOKIES! We filmed a scene baking cookies with the bakers because I was a cookie FANATIC... but sadly had to cut the scene from the final episode. I was a cookie fanatic --- probably averaged about 4 a day.
So I'm about 75% serious when I say that I wanna be a baker in Antarctica at some point in my life - software. by trade, but damn good hobbyist baker - any tips on whether they'd take me?
how you get hired?? where is the place to apply to be a baker in Antarctica? - serious question from an unemployed baker :(
This was a really interesting video. I've definitely found that people who move to crazy places tend to be incredibly nice, and everyone in this seemed to be like that. Just positivity everywhere, it's so cool to see.
This is an edited video you do realize that, they’re not going to include the boring weird or negative people they interview, also people are known to commit violent acts over the winter stays in Antarctica
Wow I was there back in the day, loved the fresh seafood the chefs always prepared daily 😋 👍🏽
Crazy to believe my physics teacher spent several years here when he was in college. Fun fact: he took on a dare to go outside in just underwear and take a picture
they have colleges in antarctica?
@@vintagesparkles4289 I'm not sure about that but he was at Berkeley at the time and they had connections with a research base there.
Fun fact: the Italian crew at Concordia did that at -80°C and I hope to go there one day hahaha
Nothing to see there then not at that temperature
@@Frostayyyy that's actually normal, i've heard of russians doing a water plunge during the spring/summer
It's so wild hearing Antarctica and seeing documentaries, and movies about it, then seeing that people have created essentially a town with running electricity, heat, etc. And seeing people eating pizza of all things is mind blowing to me.
I saw the cafeteria and all the people and was like wtf. Thought there was a few dozen people there.
Thanks for explaining that freezing food makes it last longer. Nobody knew that before you told us that. I always wondered why we had freezers.
As some who is going to be going to antartica for work this video has been so useful to help learn what im getting into.
"Cool temperatures burns fat" I'll shall use my air conditioner 24/7 then
LMAO
try being canadian, youd want to be fatter for insulation lmao
Well, when it's hot you basically want to sit very still in front of the electric fan, and when it's cold you do want to move around more to stay warm. So yeah, probably will help.
ive gone to colder region in my country that the temp. is about like coldest AC, but the cold there in the morning is seeping into my bones while AC didnt lol. got my whole body shivering just thinking i have to get out from bed and shower
That'll also burn away your wallet mate
Everyone in this video seems SO friendly and I want to be friends with all of them.
Well, to survive in Antarctica you have to be *chill*
@Jemal Rankin what do you mean? She was just talking:/
@@kalina5076 stop
They all look like models, we would never fit in
Same. I want to be an Antarctican researcher
As a young cook, studying @ the CIA (Hyde Park, '79) I said I would be 1st Chef on the moon - clearly, I was ahead of NASA's plans for space colonization lol. Read about the Antarctic station a few years ago - were I even 20yrs younger, I'd sign up for kitchen detail in a heartbeat. As women in the culinary arts, we were breaking glass ceilings in late '70s and never looked back. How amazing this experience must be for all involved :)
Fascinating reporting. What a treat for you two to be able to spend some time there. Thanks for ‘taking us along’!
They must be hooking up with each other like crazy.
Ok... So I wasnt the only person thinking that
@@emmettthompson5036 same my guy. Same
they do. i remember a few years ago someone did a reddit ama on their life spent on antarctica. said people hook up an insane amount
@@Skkaaddooosshh not surprised... People get cold... Gotta warm up somehow
About like a 900 person high school
cheese doesn't expire, it gets more expensive
Thats only the ones that are already expired, they can expire more in tasty ways
I actually watched the whole video very informative no bs content that wasn't about Antarctica loved it
Thank you for the content I sure do imagine everywhere has pros and cons but this place seems more like hell the more i study it
Are we just going to ignore the fact that the dude's name is Michael Jackson
He lived afterall
Probably why he moved to Antartica
LMFAO I SCORLLED DOWN TO SEE IF ANYBODY ELSE MENTIONED THIS
I was about to say that :D
Loolll glad I wasn't the only one 🤣🤣
I spent three Navy tours at McMurdo Base, Camp Beardmore glacier, and South Pole Station in 1984-1987. I was based out of VXE-6 at NAS Point Mugu, California. We deployed to Christchurch, NZ and waited for clear weather for the flight to the ice. As a Helicopter Crewchief, I was able to get to all the old explorer huts and the ice's edge at the ocean. We were the group that transported scientific supplies including food to the outlying camps. A lot of the galley food came in from New Zealand (plus DB Brown beer!). Sundays (our only day off) were all you can eat steak and lobsters at McMurdo. I would get a soup bowl of drawn butter to go with my 5-6 lobster tails. They had beer from the late 1950s in cans for your liquor rations. If you wanted a snack, there were MREs stashed in the condominiums. Aircrew lunches were often mystery meat, but Grey Poupon saved the day. A real treat when they tossed in fried chicken... Some of the best food was found at the New Zealand base camp behind McMurdo and their campsite at freshwater Lake Vanda. Hot scones with jam and English tea made the trip to Lake Vanda even more enjoyable. If you wanted to join the Lake Vanda swim club, they would blow a hole in the ice and you had to jump in naked. Everyone showed up with cameras when we had a female on board the helicopter to join the swim club. I have three swim club patches. In January, the ice melted enough you could dive in from the shore. Very nice, especially as we were limited to only one Navy shower a week. At Camp Beardmore, I opted not to sleep in the barracks and set up a Korean era military 9-man tent by myself with a mummy sleeping bag for the 30 day deployment on the glacier. We often would take a cargo net to the leading edge of a glacier for fresh water ice chunks and fly the load back for the three clubs at McMurdo. We would set the "ice berries" in the back of a stake side truck for delivery. It's the only non-recycled water left on the planet.
Wow. Thank you for sharing. This is awesome.
Late reply, but could you tell us about your tent that you set up? Like how big was it, what was the layout, what amenities did you have etc. This is such a cool detail and I'd love to learn more if you're interested in sharing a year later!
That last sentence makes you sound like someone who is afraid of the word "chemicals" and thinks "organic" means something.
@@ev6558 The last sentence was a slogan at the three clubs in McMurdo during the mid -1980s when they were handing out drinks with glacier ice. I took 2 semesters college inorganic chemistry, 2 of organic chemistry with labs, plus human physiology in pursuit of my Master's degree, so no fear of chemicals. All life is based on chemical reactions....Check out George Carlin's stand up on "Saving the Planet". That aligns with my outlook on things.
@@flashgordon6238 ahh... the puckered penguins. I had a buddy who flew VXE-6s LC-130R. He unfortunately had a crash in I think 1987.
Honestly, the algorithm brought me here, but seeing these scientists out in Antarctica made me think of explorers on an alien planet just because of the conditions alone. Awesome vid.
“And we caught a bird feasting on a placenta of a newborn seal. You could say options are pretty limited here. So what are we, now hardened Antarctic explorers, supposed to eat?" Me without wasting a second: *THE BIRD!* I love how the refrigerator, for stuff to be thawed but not frozen, is just a room that's heated somewhat less than the living areas! Hope to visit Antarctica someday to build a base for our glorious nation
Sounds like reasonable management of food resources, same as we do at home. Expiry dates are more of a safeguard for manufacturers and an excuse to throw out food in America or leave it on the plate. The food's condition depends on the storage conditions, and it could spoil way sooner than expected in summer.
Here in Germany (well the EU really) it‘s a warranty as well. If your food goes bad before the expiration date you could technically go to the store and get it replaced.
Yup, you can tell for yourself if it's gone bad or not... The expiration date is just an approximation
Yeah expiration dates account for worst case scenarios like if you left your food open outside in the sun
if I'm not mistaken, officially expiration dates refer to the duration for the best state that the food is in. Flavor, texture, etc. these printed numbers will be the date when all that becomes less than the optimum. After that, the food is still fit for consumption for some time after it, duration may vary according to conditions. It's not bad, or in any way dangerous, just will no longer give the best experience from eating it. Bread that is past the expiry date, will grow mold and be unfit to eat. If left exposed to damp. Freeze it and toast it, voila. Month old bread that is safe to eat.
@@deeya +1
Ah, twice baked leftovers with extra cheese, just like at home.
Ive been there at McMurdo Station Antarctica in 1976 Operation Deep Freeze and I remember being served some of the best food at the Mess Hall.
I hope there is a longer video or documentary about this! It probably took you guys a long time to get there so why not make it longer? Very interesting I've always wondered how they live out there
Flat earthers be like: They live on the Ice wall.
Don't talk shit about flat earthers, we respect your dignity so respect ours
@@rickmaggie1 hahahahaha, good joke tell us another one, hahaha
Don’t disrespect flat earthers, they have members all around the globe
@@rickmaggie1 oh no hope you don't push me off the edge
@@ertbert2332 all my friends are dead
I knew Michael Jackson wasn’t dead, and was just hiding in Antartica!
So THAT'S where Elvis and Tupac went
Guess they decided to cut out their interview with Hitler 😔😔
He just got more surgery
I want to go work there. This looks like an amazing experience.
this is the type of video i that i can watch several times in one sitting
If you enjoyed this, I really recommend “encounters at the end of the world” by Documentary-maker Werner Herzog. It is a quirky and intimately beautiful piece including profoundly human conversations with the people who live and work in McMurdo in Antarctica. The questions Werner asks, and the way he captures peoples responses….. it really is special. Hope you enjoy!
I love Werner Herzog
He is too depressing for me.
@@foobarmaximus3506 Same tbh
Oh thank you so much for the recommendation, i’ll check it out for sure 😊
@@foobarmaximus3506 Have you considered perhaps that you're just a boring person? What an odd thing to say.
Dear nice lady in the yellow knit hat in the dining room, On behalf of everyone who’s ever worked in a commercial kitchen, thank you for acknowledging the hard work and effort of the staff. I’ve been cooking for my living for 30 years and I can’t imagine how difficult it must be to meal plan and cook with those kind of parameters.
Yes! Her response was so graceful and respectful; I really appreciated her insight as well.
All of the "locals" at that table were very complimentary to the kitchen staff, in spite of the jokes about bad expired food made by the two presenters. I take from that a sign of being close-knit; those 900+ people working there must have a strong sense of teamwork to survive and work in those conditions.
You guys frickn rock Heroes And you are all so chill Love it all And thank you for all you do for us on planet earth
Those first expeditions to Antartica were incredible.
This is basically my college cafeteria, only the food probably tastes better
If you can get to other bases (French, Italian, Korean, Aussie) the food is actually amazing. Mcmurdo is huge, but the others have populations around 100, and usually have a few actual chef's making meals. The staff in Mcmurdo do a great job considering they feed 10 times the people, and in multiple shifts.
Falcon Scott used our Victorian port here in Oamaru Sth island New Zealand before leaving for Antarctica. He also has a big plaque at Waitaki boys high school.
My Father Spent a little over a year in Antarctica for the Navy in Operation Deep Freeze as the senior medical doctor, its interesting to see how he lived there.
2:53 damn they got Michael Jackson in Antarctica
I was about to make that reference
Lmfao
He isnt dead he’s living in Antarctica
Michael and Jackson are pretty common first names and surnames, so there are probably a lot of older people named Michael Jackson. I’m sure few people did this after he was famous because it would probably be annoying.
He he!
"It's expired! Bloody hell!" *Makes modern restaurant out of antarctic labs* -Gordon Ramsay
the lamb sauce is still on the ship out at sea...
There’s something absolutely delightful about this video
Thank you for the educational video!! ❤️
I like to think that girl in the freezer thought this was her chance to get on TV and she gets interrupted and then overdubbed by the hosts monologue.
It's always fascinating to see how humans can thrive in even the toughest environment. Just proves that no matter what happens, we'll always have the ability to survive one way or another.
As other animals can
That's so cool, this experience must be amazing as a scientist
i live in ND. same thing in the winter lol especially 22-23. its been awful. 55 below and 100 inches of snow. but its 4/11/23 today and hit 50 above. was absolutely beautiful
Lady: "I wonder if this stuff's still edible..?" Steve1989: "Let's get this out onto a tray, NICE!" (For those who don't know, I apologize and also you're welcome for your new addiction)
That's true, I was half expecting to see the teams out at the field camps eating MREs.
Nice!
I understand this reference.
steve would be all over that cabin he would eat all of it lol
Steve1989 is probably another person banned from Antarctica, or at least from Scott's historic hut.
The comradery here is amazing! The winter i spent there we joined four long tables into one in the galley. Fourth of july party in the heavy shop playing horseshoe in a metal box surrounded by concrete. Mount erebus glacier tounge cave before sea ice melt. American night at the kiwi base. Best live music unknown to man in the Carp shop. Smoking in designated smoking boxes. Freshies! The red glow of the sun after being gone for months, what a feeling! Leaving the ice on my birthday and eating everything in newzealand. Seeing dogs and small humans, driving over 30 mph on the opposite side of a car. Amazing job and opportunities! Thank you pae for wanting me (:
I applied for a job as a sous chef there 11 years ago when I retired from the Air Force. They were going to pay me only $700 a week. It’s supposed to be for “the adventure”. I made twice that working on Alaska’s North Slope and there’s nothing to do but work!
This really makes Antarctica a fun place for holiday vacation.
"everything is supersized, look at that tub of chips" this girl has never been to a restaurant in her life
@John Galt Lol seriously
Hah I didn't even read this yet and left an identical comment! too funny.
It's so true.
Or a cafeteria
Plot twist: That's half a serving size of chips in Antarctica
They basically eat like students.
Nasty people indeed hahaha
@@Wilhelmus84Nassau why nasty people
@@cats23cats23 Cause students are
@@Wilhelmus84Nassau fair enough
@@brickman409 Hahahahaha be honest, most of them are arrogant while they're living as schweinen
Expiration dates on food are not hard stop dates where food goes bad - it's more of a reference for stock rotation and ensuring older product is "fronted" ( new product is kept in the back off the shelves or deep behind older product on shelves). Storage temperature, preservatives, salt... all increase expiration dates based on the type of product you're dealing with. When I was hospitalized and couldn't get out... I had 4 gallons of milk and a cooler of various perishables in a cooler locked outside in a snowdrift.. I had all of that out there for weeks. Made it easier for me since it was tough to get out and shop.
as an infectious disease microbiologist - I have always wanted to go to Antarctica and study extremophiles...........I bet its just so interesting
The chicken strips are no joke the best thing, and ESPECIALLY when they set out the hot sauce. They also make an Orange Chicken from time to time. They make great holiday meals too. Those bakers are always amazing. No to mention the additional options to the main line. There is burger night, Mongolian grill, and burrito night. I notice they didn't touch on drinks though... there are no sodas unless you buy them from the station store. You get water, juice, coffee, tea, hot chocolate, and usually a fruit punch, lemonade, or gatorade as choices. That said, some of the random stuff they seem to come up with isn't great. Every once in a while their repurposed food will knock it out of the park, like a post Thanksgiving casserole I had once, but usually they are pretty meh. Just don't expect to be impressed as a picky eater... you'll be eating a lot of pizza and microwave ramen noodles, which are usually available to grab in the Grab n' Go area.
what are the chances of landing a job as a kitchen hand on station .
@@amolnarawade7239 honestly, I have no idea. The worst they can do is not hire you. So, I'd say put in an application and see what happens. That said, the galley is a comparatively big work center, so there are more slots there than for other jobs.
@@justinbeauvais1409 any direction you can give where this type of job been advertised or how to connect with them. . Have worked in UK 5 yr as chef. 1 yr in USA Indian passport that's the only a big set back for my profile )
@@amolnarawade7239 this would be the best place to start looking: www.usap.gov/jobsandopportunities/?m=1 You can also check out the Antarctic programs of other nations as well, but I don't have a link for any of those. A lot of countries have research outposts across the continent.
what are so many people doing there??
I work in food service. Sometimes I dont order enough produce, meat etc. I can not imagine trying to plan that all out for that many people 18 months in advance. That kitchen staff is amazing.
In the 1970s, much of the food didn't have expiration dates. We uses the lack of zip codes on the labels or address that gave the full name of the state instead of the 2-character code (i.e., California instead of CA).
Nice to see a good wholesome pbs show
Wintered over in 1980, the food service was $6,000.00 in the hole when the winter started and we were told that we would have to make up the shortage and there were 58 of wintering over so, food was kind of basic. We could always go the the galley and find something to eat though. When we stuck in the shop due to weather we had Viet Nam era C-Rats to try to thaw out enough to eat.
I absolutely loved eating like shit in the field (paleontology, so hot not cold.) So much carbs and candy and pb&j. It's the only time I've eaten like that but we were working hard outside for 10 hrs a day at 95 degrees so it made sense. Food never tasted so good.
As Napoleon said, hunger is the best sauce.
@@DavidM-um2uk He said that? I thought it was "An army marches on it's stomach"
Great video it made me smile thx
Worked at Wendys for a while. They recycle food too jsyk. All those hamburger patties that get past the tiny time window of freshness after being cooked (about 3-5 minutes) get put into a heated container, cooled down in the next couple hours, frozen, and then reheated usually in a couple days for a bulk batch of chili. :)