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? Subscribe to Terra: https://www.youtube.com/c/pbsterra/?sub_confirmation=1 Subscribe to NOVA: https://www.youtube.com/user/NOVAonline/?sub_confirmation=1 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.” -- Stream ‘Polar Extremes’ online time learn more: https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/video/polar-extremes/ -- ***** PBS Member Stations rely on viewers like you. To support your local station, go to: http://to.pbs.org/DonateTerra ***** 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
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I'm surprised at how many people and how much infrastructure is down there, I thought it was just that lab on stilts!
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.
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.
“We caught a bird feasting on a placenta of a newborn seal.” *... that’s so metal.*
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.
Hot sauce has gotta be the equivalent of cigarettes in jail.
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!!!"
"I ate an embarrassing amount of pizza" There is no such thing
When we see the logistics of this, imagine sorting out food on Mars.
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: /3Y9tInd
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!
This place is basically gordon ramsey's hell.
The only continent where Gordon Ramsay shouldn't be allowed. Officially.
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.
"Can you eat something pickled 100 years ago?" **Steve1989MRE already booking flight to Antarctica**
They must be hooking up with each other like crazy.
It’s kind of sad recycled and expired meals in the most isolated continent still looks better then school lunch
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...
hi
Flat earthers be like: They live on the Ice wall.