1 00:00:37,040 --> 00:00:41,040 The polar regions are more hostile to life than any other part of the Earth. 2 00:00:46,630 --> 00:00:51,070 Human beings have little natural protection against the cold, 3 00:00:53,270 --> 00:00:56,070 so why, for thousands of years, 4 00:00:56,070 --> 00:00:58,870 have we endured the hardships that come from living here? 5 00:01:00,870 --> 00:01:03,380 And what keeps us coming back today, 6 00:01:03,380 --> 00:01:05,980 to the farthest extremes of our planet? 7 00:01:23,570 --> 00:01:27,770 Winter in the most northerly town on Earth, Longyearbyen. 8 00:01:29,730 --> 00:01:33,450 Here, for three months of the year, the sun never rises. 9 00:01:36,250 --> 00:01:40,290 Only the full moon, which never sets as far north as this, 10 00:01:40,290 --> 00:01:42,690 sheds any light into the darkness. 11 00:01:56,520 --> 00:01:59,000 This town was built here in Svalbard, 12 00:01:59,000 --> 00:02:03,320 only 700 miles from the North Pole, to support a mine. 13 00:02:05,030 --> 00:02:08,270 The Arctic is rich in coal, oil and minerals. 14 00:02:15,310 --> 00:02:17,690 In Siberia, the Russian Arctic, the mineral 15 00:02:17,690 --> 00:02:20,070 wealth has given rise to large cities. 16 00:02:26,220 --> 00:02:29,860 This is Norilsk, the coldest city on Earth. 17 00:02:33,380 --> 00:02:38,780 Temperatures regularly drop to below minus 50 degrees Centigrade. 18 00:02:38,780 --> 00:02:41,440 Fuel freezes in the tanks of the trucks, and 19 00:02:41,440 --> 00:02:44,100 has to be melted in a rather alarming way. 20 00:02:50,650 --> 00:02:54,210 Ships are frozen into the rivers for nine months of the year. 21 00:02:56,010 --> 00:02:58,650 The ice must be cut away from their hulls 22 00:02:58,650 --> 00:03:03,250 because steel becomes brittle and vulnerable to the thickening ice. 23 00:03:06,080 --> 00:03:09,260 Like all Arctic cities, Norilsk depends on a 24 00:03:09,260 --> 00:03:12,440 power plant which heats everybody's home. 25 00:03:13,480 --> 00:03:18,680 Waste heat from the plant even keeps a lake ice-free all winter. 26 00:03:18,680 --> 00:03:21,820 Even at air temperatures of minus 50, the 27 00:03:21,820 --> 00:03:24,960 Norilsk Walrus Club come here every day. 28 00:03:40,190 --> 00:03:44,910 There is evidence that a dip in cold water is good for the immune system, 29 00:03:44,900 --> 00:03:47,780 but when the water is a degree above freezing, 30 00:03:47,780 --> 00:03:51,580 it's hard to imagine that the benefits could outweigh the pain. 31 00:04:05,610 --> 00:04:08,750 Today's Arctic city dwellers can lead an 32 00:04:08,750 --> 00:04:11,890 almost normal existence thanks to technology. 33 00:04:13,050 --> 00:04:18,410 But towns and cities are very recent arrivals in the polar landscape. 34 00:04:20,810 --> 00:04:24,730 The polar regions are the least populated part of our planet. 35 00:04:24,720 --> 00:04:29,080 Most of the Arctic remains empty of human beings. 36 00:04:33,240 --> 00:04:37,640 In the north, the Pole itself is covered by a freezing ocean. 37 00:04:40,400 --> 00:04:44,840 Around it lie vast lands, of which Siberia is the largest and coldest. 38 00:05:00,270 --> 00:05:04,190 Human beings first ventured onto the great plains of Siberia, 39 00:05:04,180 --> 00:05:08,300 the tundra, thousands of years ago, and some live here still. 40 00:05:18,380 --> 00:05:23,260 The Dolgan are one of the few tribes who still live in much the same way 41 00:05:23,260 --> 00:05:25,620 as those first Arctic pioneers. 42 00:05:34,410 --> 00:05:36,330 They are reindeer people. 43 00:05:36,330 --> 00:05:42,290 Reindeer are one of few animals that can endure these bitterly cold conditions, 44 00:05:42,290 --> 00:05:46,370 scraping a living by nibbling tiny plants that survive beneath the snow. 45 00:05:51,200 --> 00:05:53,880 Nobody has ever totally tamed reindeer, 46 00:05:53,880 --> 00:05:57,640 but today's animals are docile enough to allow the Dolgan 47 00:05:57,640 --> 00:06:01,840 to drive them across the tundra in an everlasting search for their food. 48 00:06:19,710 --> 00:06:25,110 This is a typical Dolgan village, home to just two extended families. 49 00:06:36,980 --> 00:06:40,980 Here, in the coldest part of Arctic, the only way to get water 50 00:06:40,980 --> 00:06:44,900 for nine months of the year is to melt ice from the frozen rivers. 51 00:06:51,130 --> 00:06:55,050 At least there's no problem preventing food from decay. 52 00:06:55,050 --> 00:06:57,250 Outside is one big deep-freeze. 53 00:07:01,010 --> 00:07:03,520 Survival is only possible because of reindeer fur. 54 00:07:03,530 --> 00:07:06,800 It makes wonderfully warm clothing, 55 00:07:06,800 --> 00:07:09,200 though small children still have to be sewn into 56 00:07:09,200 --> 00:07:11,600 their clothes to prevent instant frostbite. 57 00:07:14,760 --> 00:07:18,840 The Dolgan even use reindeer fur to insulate their huts. 58 00:07:21,880 --> 00:07:25,640 This is living at its most communal. 59 00:07:26,790 --> 00:07:29,590 Good relations with the in-laws are essential. 60 00:07:31,870 --> 00:07:34,670 Reindeer are so valuable that the people 61 00:07:34,670 --> 00:07:37,470 only eat them if they have no other choice. 62 00:07:37,470 --> 00:07:41,270 Their favourite food is raw fish from the frozen rivers. 63 00:07:44,340 --> 00:07:47,080 Every week or so, these families have to travel 64 00:07:47,080 --> 00:07:49,820 to find new feeding grounds for their herds. 65 00:07:52,700 --> 00:07:55,700 First, they round up their strongest animals with lassoes, 66 00:07:55,700 --> 00:07:58,200 a skill that their ancestors brought with 67 00:07:58,200 --> 00:08:00,700 them when they came north from Central Asia. 68 00:08:08,490 --> 00:08:11,810 And then, literally, they move house. 69 00:08:28,520 --> 00:08:32,120 A whole Dolgan village can move on in just a few hours. 70 00:08:32,120 --> 00:08:37,760 Over the year, they travel hundreds of miles like this across the vast tundra. 71 00:08:58,510 --> 00:09:02,790 It was the herds of reindeer, wandering over the lands of the Arctic, 72 00:09:02,790 --> 00:09:05,100 that brought the first Dolgan here. 73 00:09:05,100 --> 00:09:09,620 Other people, however, took on an even greater challenge. 74 00:09:09,620 --> 00:09:13,980 They left the land and looked for their food out on the frozen sea. 75 00:09:21,260 --> 00:09:26,380 Here in the shifting world of the sea ice, they found sea mammals. 76 00:10:00,520 --> 00:10:03,220 Pasha leads a group of Inuit men in Chukotka, 77 00:10:03,220 --> 00:10:05,920 the North Eastern corner of Russia. 78 00:10:08,990 --> 00:10:12,510 The men have travelled many hours from home in the bitter cold, 79 00:10:12,510 --> 00:10:14,870 fighting their way through a dangerous maze. 80 00:10:19,670 --> 00:10:24,430 These hundred tonne ice floes could crush their small boats like eggshells. 81 00:10:40,660 --> 00:10:45,820 The men have big families, and this is the only way they have of feeding them. 82 00:10:49,290 --> 00:10:53,250 Pasha is looking for the puffs of steamy air produced by their quarry. 83 00:10:54,810 --> 00:10:57,330 An animal that is bigger than many Arctic whales. 84 00:11:05,000 --> 00:11:07,720 A two tonne seal with formidable tusks. 85 00:11:14,040 --> 00:11:15,680 A walrus. 86 00:11:15,680 --> 00:11:19,720 It's heading for open water. They must reach it before it dives. 87 00:11:25,590 --> 00:11:28,670 An angry walrus could easily overturn the boats. 88 00:11:36,710 --> 00:11:39,990 The harpoon sticks firmly in the walrus's thick layer of blubber, 89 00:11:39,990 --> 00:11:43,230 and floats attached to it prevent the animal from diving. 90 00:12:01,140 --> 00:12:05,820 Pasha wants to kill quickly with a single clean shot. 91 00:12:18,490 --> 00:12:21,430 The hunters are exhausted after a long day, 92 00:12:21,430 --> 00:12:24,370 but they still have a lot more work to do. 93 00:12:26,320 --> 00:12:31,080 This enormous prize will feed everyone's family for weeks. 94 00:12:36,840 --> 00:12:41,080 It will take many hours to butcher. Nothing will go to waste. 95 00:12:49,510 --> 00:12:52,950 The meat is parcelled up in bags made of the animal's skin. 96 00:12:59,910 --> 00:13:02,710 It's midnight, but the sun is still up. 97 00:13:03,870 --> 00:13:05,670 Summer is almost here. 98 00:13:12,060 --> 00:13:15,260 This far north, the seasons change fast, 99 00:13:15,260 --> 00:13:20,020 the sun is rising higher and growing warmer with each passing day. 100 00:13:38,370 --> 00:13:42,410 The transformation from winter to summer is so dramatic 101 00:13:42,410 --> 00:13:45,890 that it dominates the lives of all who live here. 102 00:13:48,760 --> 00:13:51,960 The ice around the coast has almost disappeared, 103 00:13:51,960 --> 00:13:56,440 and gone are the seals and walrus that Pasha and his men relied on. 104 00:13:58,840 --> 00:14:01,720 They set off on another search for food. 105 00:14:07,430 --> 00:14:10,270 Their destination is an island in the bay. 106 00:14:17,550 --> 00:14:20,510 Their walrus skin boat is an ancient design, 107 00:14:20,510 --> 00:14:24,510 light enough to carry high up the beach so it doesn't drift away. 108 00:14:36,420 --> 00:14:39,780 Once again, the men will have to work as a team, 109 00:14:39,780 --> 00:14:43,500 but one of them will be taking very serious risks. 110 00:14:48,730 --> 00:14:54,050 The lightest man in the group, Kolya, is also the oldest. 111 00:14:54,050 --> 00:14:56,690 He will trust his life to a length of old 112 00:14:56,690 --> 00:14:59,330 nylon rope and the strength of his friends. 113 00:15:15,280 --> 00:15:20,560 These 100 metre high cliffs are home to thousands of guillemots, 114 00:15:20,560 --> 00:15:22,600 and Kolya is after their eggs. 115 00:15:27,430 --> 00:15:30,710 He relies on the men above to lower him to the right place. 116 00:15:34,550 --> 00:15:38,630 Kolya is tough but his stress is obvious. 117 00:15:45,750 --> 00:15:48,380 The men lower Kolya down to the bottom of the cliff, 118 00:15:48,380 --> 00:15:51,340 and from there, he works his way back up the crumbling rock face. 119 00:16:08,890 --> 00:16:09,970 Stop! 120 00:16:23,690 --> 00:16:26,730 This mission will produce no more than about 50 eggs, 121 00:16:26,720 --> 00:16:30,000 but at least there's no need to carry a packed lunch. 122 00:16:44,760 --> 00:16:49,240 Over the years, many men have fallen to their deaths collecting seabird eggs. 123 00:16:51,270 --> 00:16:53,630 This is truly dangerous work. 124 00:17:05,030 --> 00:17:07,980 These Arctic peoples can't grow crops. 125 00:17:07,980 --> 00:17:12,220 The frozen ground never thaws to allow them to do so. 126 00:17:12,220 --> 00:17:16,580 They rely on animals for their food so the chance to collect a few 127 00:17:16,580 --> 00:17:20,820 dozen eggs has to be taken, even if it means risking your life. 128 00:17:37,370 --> 00:17:42,210 The change of season has transformed the Arctic's coastline 129 00:17:42,210 --> 00:17:44,690 and inland, the difference is just as extreme. 130 00:17:49,400 --> 00:17:52,120 July temperatures on the tundra can be 131 00:17:52,120 --> 00:17:54,840 surprisingly high, over 30 degrees centigrade. 132 00:17:58,960 --> 00:18:02,320 Reindeer now move not just to find fresh pasture, 133 00:18:02,320 --> 00:18:06,320 but also to avoid the summer swarms of blood sucking flies. 134 00:18:08,870 --> 00:18:13,710 To keep their animals healthy, the local herders are driving them to the sea. 135 00:18:16,070 --> 00:18:20,750 The cooler conditions on the coast bring relief to the herds 136 00:18:20,750 --> 00:18:23,310 and the chance, every year, for different tribes to meet. 137 00:18:26,740 --> 00:18:29,200 Pasha and his hunters live close by. 138 00:18:29,200 --> 00:18:31,660 They've had word of the herders' arrival. 139 00:18:37,660 --> 00:18:42,460 The hunters' cargo is highly prized for the winter ahead, 140 00:18:42,460 --> 00:18:44,860 fat-rich walrus meat that's been fermenting 141 00:18:44,860 --> 00:18:47,260 in the skin bags for two months. 142 00:18:49,170 --> 00:18:53,850 Today will see an exchange that has taken place every summer for centuries. 143 00:18:55,370 --> 00:18:59,370 The herders barter reindeer skins for walrus meat. 144 00:18:59,370 --> 00:19:04,930 Pooling their resources has helped these communities to survive for so long. 145 00:19:10,480 --> 00:19:15,160 A fry-up of guillemot eggs is all the better when shared with old friends. 146 00:19:18,400 --> 00:19:23,000 Summer brings a brief chance for isolated peoples to meet. 147 00:19:23,000 --> 00:19:26,840 This is an opportunity to exchange news, arrange weddings, 148 00:19:26,830 --> 00:19:29,790 and tell the latest jokes. 149 00:19:38,750 --> 00:19:41,630 By August, the summer is over. 150 00:19:41,630 --> 00:19:45,510 Winter arrives only too swiftly, but the peoples of the Arctic, 151 00:19:45,510 --> 00:19:49,540 who came here originally to hunt, have devised ways to deal with 152 00:19:49,540 --> 00:19:53,260 the hostile and changing conditions that have stood the test of time. 153 00:19:56,380 --> 00:19:59,060 Today, there's a new draw to the Arctic. 154 00:20:06,570 --> 00:20:09,530 This is Greenland, a territory of Denmark now 155 00:20:09,530 --> 00:20:12,490 known to be rich in oil and precious metals. 156 00:20:24,610 --> 00:20:28,330 This sled team is part of the Danish Special Forces. 157 00:20:30,280 --> 00:20:33,720 They're on one of the world's toughest journeys, a 2,000 mile patrol 158 00:20:33,720 --> 00:20:37,600 to maintain Denmark's claim to this valuable wilderness. 159 00:20:42,160 --> 00:20:45,140 But the patrol's mission is only possible with 160 00:20:45,140 --> 00:20:48,120 the help of man's oldest Arctic companion. 161 00:20:55,790 --> 00:20:58,270 Rasmus and Roland have spent the summer months training 162 00:20:58,270 --> 00:21:02,030 and getting to know their team of Greenland huskies. 163 00:21:02,030 --> 00:21:06,230 They need to have a very close bond with every single dog. 164 00:21:06,230 --> 00:21:10,020 This is Roger and Armstrong, 165 00:21:10,020 --> 00:21:15,100 actually the oldest dog in the whole patrol, but he's still going strong. 166 00:21:17,860 --> 00:21:21,740 The men are totally dependent on the stamina of their dogs, 167 00:21:21,740 --> 00:21:26,340 which will keep on running all through the bitter cold of the winter. 168 00:21:31,610 --> 00:21:36,130 This is the last time the team will see the sun for two months. 169 00:21:41,050 --> 00:21:43,770 The most intelligent dogs always lead, 170 00:21:43,770 --> 00:21:48,010 choosing the safest route, feeling for hidden crevasses and thin ice. 171 00:21:58,560 --> 00:22:03,120 This is one of six teams that patrol the whole of northeast Greenland, 172 00:22:03,120 --> 00:22:05,900 the only people in an empty wilderness that is 173 00:22:05,900 --> 00:22:08,680 larger than France and Great Britain combined. 174 00:22:12,790 --> 00:22:17,270 Conditions here are too extreme for current mining technology, 175 00:22:17,270 --> 00:22:21,230 but some day, ways will be found of digging out the huge mineral treasures 176 00:22:21,230 --> 00:22:23,470 that lie hidden within these mountains. 177 00:22:26,190 --> 00:22:31,990 The patrol secures Denmark's claim to do so simply by being here. 178 00:22:43,380 --> 00:22:45,780 But it's not the prospect of getting rich 179 00:22:45,780 --> 00:22:48,170 that makes men sign up for this patrol, 180 00:22:48,170 --> 00:22:50,610 it's the chance for the journey of a lifetime. 181 00:22:51,650 --> 00:22:54,430 The team travel over the ice for six 182 00:22:54,430 --> 00:22:57,210 months, covering up to 40 miles in a day. 183 00:23:01,130 --> 00:23:04,650 Friendship and teamwork are essential if they're to succeed. 184 00:23:06,650 --> 00:23:11,280 Their dogs can sleep outside no matter how cold it gets. 185 00:23:11,280 --> 00:23:14,680 Rasmus and Roland have a nice cosy tent. 186 00:23:18,800 --> 00:23:22,240 They have a few modern conveniences, including a radio, 187 00:23:22,240 --> 00:23:26,560 with which they report their position back to headquarters in Denmark 188 00:23:26,560 --> 00:23:28,600 and catch up on the latest news. 189 00:23:32,390 --> 00:23:34,630 Right now it's the section of money, 190 00:23:34,630 --> 00:23:39,390 what's new in the economy in Denmark, the financial crisis 191 00:23:39,390 --> 00:23:42,870 and all the other things that we actually don't care about out here. 192 00:23:44,350 --> 00:23:46,830 If you can cope with the conditions, then 193 00:23:46,830 --> 00:23:49,300 winter in the Arctic can be magical, 194 00:23:49,300 --> 00:23:53,500 especially when the greatest light show on Earth is overhead. 195 00:24:03,140 --> 00:24:06,820 The first humans in the Arctic believed the Northern Lights, 196 00:24:06,820 --> 00:24:10,650 or aurora borealis, were dancing spirits. 197 00:24:10,650 --> 00:24:13,590 Now we know the lights are caused by electrically 198 00:24:13,590 --> 00:24:16,530 charged particles streaming from the sun, 199 00:24:16,530 --> 00:24:19,890 attracted by the magnetic pull of the earth's poles. 200 00:24:32,600 --> 00:24:37,080 A big aurora storm contains enough energy to knock out satellite 201 00:24:37,080 --> 00:24:41,480 communications and power supplies across the northern hemisphere, 202 00:24:41,480 --> 00:24:44,840 so understanding the aurora is vital. 203 00:24:50,710 --> 00:24:53,990 In Alaska, rockets are used to study the Lights. 204 00:24:56,510 --> 00:24:59,990 A hundred miles up, at the edge of outer space, the rockets 205 00:24:59,990 --> 00:25:03,630 release a cloud of glowing smoke that's visible from earth. 206 00:25:08,740 --> 00:25:12,980 The smoke is blown by fierce winds which are generated by the aurora. 207 00:25:16,940 --> 00:25:20,740 Mapping the movement of the smoke helps scientists to understand 208 00:25:20,740 --> 00:25:24,620 how this unearthly spectacle affects our atmosphere. 209 00:25:45,610 --> 00:25:50,690 They constantly monitor the aurora to help protect us 210 00:25:50,680 --> 00:25:53,840 from its effects, so the rest of us can simply enjoy the magic, 211 00:25:53,840 --> 00:25:57,800 just as the Arctic's first people must have done, thousands of years ago. 212 00:26:13,670 --> 00:26:16,390 For all the many peoples of the Arctic, 213 00:26:16,390 --> 00:26:19,030 the aurora is a reminder of the sun's 214 00:26:19,030 --> 00:26:21,670 presence throughout the dark days of winter. 215 00:26:26,310 --> 00:26:29,180 But when the sun is below the horizon in the north, 216 00:26:29,180 --> 00:26:31,980 it's above it at the southern end of our planet. 217 00:26:35,260 --> 00:26:38,020 Here, humanity's history has been very different. 218 00:26:43,740 --> 00:26:47,180 Antarctica is far colder than the Arctic, 219 00:26:47,180 --> 00:26:51,900 and 99% of its land is permanently blanketed by ice. 220 00:26:53,690 --> 00:26:57,210 Antarctica is so utterly remote 221 00:26:57,210 --> 00:26:59,890 and inhospitable that no people ever settled here. 222 00:27:03,450 --> 00:27:07,050 It was only 200 years ago that the first human beings 223 00:27:07,050 --> 00:27:09,570 even glimpsed the vast continent. 224 00:27:17,280 --> 00:27:20,480 The first people who crossed the Southern Ocean did 225 00:27:20,480 --> 00:27:24,480 so for the same reason that the first people went to the Arctic Ocean, 226 00:27:24,480 --> 00:27:26,800 to hunt sea mammals. 227 00:27:39,310 --> 00:27:43,470 The populations of whales and seals are only now beginning to 228 00:27:43,470 --> 00:27:47,110 recover from 150 years of intensive hunting. 229 00:28:02,460 --> 00:28:05,320 But none of those hunters ever tried to venture into 230 00:28:05,320 --> 00:28:08,180 the frigid interior of the Antarctic continent. 231 00:28:10,170 --> 00:28:15,330 The first successful attempt to do that was made only a hundred years ago. 232 00:28:17,530 --> 00:28:20,130 This hut was the base for one of the most 233 00:28:20,130 --> 00:28:22,730 famous expeditions in polar history. 234 00:28:29,560 --> 00:28:34,040 It was from here in 1911 that Captain Scott and his team 235 00:28:34,040 --> 00:28:38,480 launched their attempt to be the first people to reach the South Pole. 236 00:28:42,920 --> 00:28:45,520 The cold, dry conditions have preserved the interior 237 00:28:45,520 --> 00:28:50,000 of the hut almost exactly as the expedition members left it. 238 00:28:55,630 --> 00:28:58,510 Expedition photographer Herbert Ponting 239 00:28:58,510 --> 00:29:01,390 captured the spirit of the age of exploration. 240 00:29:06,470 --> 00:29:10,990 These first explorers borrowed the techniques of the Arctic peoples. 241 00:29:12,220 --> 00:29:17,540 They wore fur gloves and boots and burned seal blubber to keep warm. 242 00:29:19,620 --> 00:29:23,900 They built sleds based on a traditional Inuit design. 243 00:29:29,740 --> 00:29:33,580 They even made their sleeping bags from reindeer hide. 244 00:29:39,690 --> 00:29:45,330 Scott and his men sought the glory of discovery in an untouched wilderness, 245 00:29:45,330 --> 00:29:48,010 and died in the attempt. 246 00:29:48,010 --> 00:29:51,760 But he, and those who followed him, were the first to reveal 247 00:29:51,760 --> 00:29:54,920 the splendour of Antarctica to the rest of the world. 248 00:30:03,080 --> 00:30:07,360 The lure of adventure still draws intrepid travellers today. 249 00:30:07,360 --> 00:30:09,840 Like the first explorers, 250 00:30:09,830 --> 00:30:14,950 most modern visitors come during the brief summer when the cold relents 251 00:30:14,950 --> 00:30:20,270 enough for the toughest icebreakers to reach the edge of the continent, 252 00:30:20,270 --> 00:30:22,750 but most still need a helicopter to go further. 253 00:30:31,900 --> 00:30:35,740 The scenery in Antarctica is magnificent and dramatic, 254 00:30:35,740 --> 00:30:39,780 but what really attracts people here is the wildlife. 255 00:30:42,100 --> 00:30:45,020 An emperor penguin colony is a particular highlight. 256 00:30:49,380 --> 00:30:51,660 Because human beings didn't arrive in the 257 00:30:51,660 --> 00:30:53,930 Antarctic until the past few centuries, 258 00:30:53,930 --> 00:30:56,530 the animals have never developed a fear of man. 259 00:31:00,810 --> 00:31:05,530 But very strict regulations govern how close people can approach any wildlife. 260 00:31:07,410 --> 00:31:09,610 And when visitors leave, they must take 261 00:31:09,610 --> 00:31:11,810 every trace of their visit away with them. 262 00:31:39,590 --> 00:31:45,110 Since 1959, the whole of Antarctica has been protected by international treaty. 263 00:31:46,910 --> 00:31:51,270 The nations of the world have agreed that no country can claim Antarctica, 264 00:31:51,260 --> 00:31:53,420 or prospect for its oil or minerals. 265 00:31:56,500 --> 00:32:00,300 The only significant human activities allowed here are those that 266 00:32:00,300 --> 00:32:03,060 extend our scientific knowledge. 267 00:32:07,100 --> 00:32:10,900 But unlocking Antarctica's secrets requires some unusual tools. 268 00:32:29,130 --> 00:32:33,000 This brand new robot submarine has been designed to go 269 00:32:33,000 --> 00:32:35,560 far beyond the limits of any human. 270 00:32:48,000 --> 00:32:50,820 Today, this diver is putting the sub through 271 00:32:50,820 --> 00:32:53,630 its paces on one of its very first dives. 272 00:32:54,950 --> 00:32:58,670 It's designed to be small and nimble enough 273 00:32:58,670 --> 00:33:02,630 to explore the Antarctic seabed without damaging it. 274 00:33:16,980 --> 00:33:21,340 The submarine's mission, as it journeys into the unknown, 275 00:33:21,340 --> 00:33:24,700 is to map the seafloor and look for species new to science. 276 00:33:40,250 --> 00:33:43,150 The seawater here is a degree below zero, so even 277 00:33:43,150 --> 00:33:46,050 the toughest human diver can't stay down for long. 278 00:33:49,650 --> 00:33:54,770 The submarine will explore deeper under the ice than anyone has gone before. 279 00:33:59,400 --> 00:34:04,360 From the depths of the ocean to the highest peaks of the land, 280 00:34:04,360 --> 00:34:07,140 new discoveries are being made even in places 281 00:34:07,140 --> 00:34:09,920 which were first visited over a century ago. 282 00:34:22,350 --> 00:34:25,130 Mount Erebus was an irresistible draw to 283 00:34:25,130 --> 00:34:27,910 the legendary explorer Ernest Shackleton. 284 00:34:29,110 --> 00:34:34,580 In 1908, his men became the first to climb this active volcano. 285 00:34:34,580 --> 00:34:39,380 They soon discovered that this is the coldest place on the Antarctic coast. 286 00:34:40,380 --> 00:34:42,500 Today's explorers still have to guard 287 00:34:42,500 --> 00:34:44,620 against frostbite in the height of summer 288 00:34:44,620 --> 00:34:48,300 when temperatures rarely creep above minus 30 degrees centigrade. 289 00:34:54,250 --> 00:34:59,050 Shackleton's men had no idea of the extraordinary spectacle 290 00:34:59,050 --> 00:35:01,370 that lay beneath their feet. 291 00:35:06,850 --> 00:35:09,450 Yep, OK, up on the wall there somewhere now. Yeah. 292 00:35:09,450 --> 00:35:12,880 Under the ice and snow is a network of caves, 293 00:35:12,880 --> 00:35:17,840 which only a handful of expert cavers have ever dared to enter. 294 00:35:24,200 --> 00:35:29,400 This is the first scientific expedition to explore them in detail. 295 00:35:34,830 --> 00:35:39,550 Here, there are ice formations that occur nowhere else on Earth. 296 00:35:42,350 --> 00:35:46,470 Each cave contains its own unique collection of structures. 297 00:36:13,970 --> 00:36:19,730 The team is mapping the caves to see how their shape changes over the years. 298 00:36:19,730 --> 00:36:22,330 OK, flat side to here. 299 00:36:30,480 --> 00:36:35,520 That's 126.8 degrees for the angle. 300 00:36:35,520 --> 00:36:37,080 126.8. Correct. 301 00:36:37,080 --> 00:36:41,680 The steam leaking from vents in the side of the volcano 302 00:36:41,680 --> 00:36:45,960 is constantly sculpting this labyrinth that extends deep under the ice. 303 00:36:47,960 --> 00:36:51,720 When the hot breath of the volcano hits the icy walls, 304 00:36:51,720 --> 00:36:55,440 the moisture in the air freezes into beautiful shapes. 305 00:37:08,910 --> 00:37:13,670 Some of the crystals are so unusual that the cavers are investigating 306 00:37:13,660 --> 00:37:17,140 a remote but tantalising possibility about their formation. 307 00:37:19,820 --> 00:37:22,980 Could it be that some of these extraordinary crystal shapes 308 00:37:22,980 --> 00:37:27,780 are formed by highly specialised bacteria, living in the ice? 309 00:37:43,530 --> 00:37:45,890 Nobody yet knows the answer. 310 00:37:45,890 --> 00:37:49,730 This is just one of the many strange mysteries that draw people to 311 00:37:49,730 --> 00:37:52,890 work in a place that is so hostile to human life. 312 00:38:00,440 --> 00:38:05,280 While some scientists come to Erebus to explore its bizarre ice caves, 313 00:38:05,280 --> 00:38:10,560 others visit the volcano to study the innermost workings of our planet. 314 00:38:16,350 --> 00:38:20,230 Erebus is one of the most active volcanoes on Earth, 315 00:38:20,230 --> 00:38:24,830 but even so, volcanologists work on the very rim of its crater. 316 00:38:26,510 --> 00:38:31,310 They stand in the bitter cold, while 100 metres below them 317 00:38:31,310 --> 00:38:34,790 is a lava lake where temperatures are over a thousand degrees centigrade. 318 00:38:38,620 --> 00:38:41,500 This is a rare glimpse of the molten rock 319 00:38:41,500 --> 00:38:44,380 that lies beneath the earth's crust. 320 00:38:59,050 --> 00:39:02,530 But research here is looking up as well as down, 321 00:39:02,530 --> 00:39:06,170 measuring how the gases that bubble out of the volcano 322 00:39:06,170 --> 00:39:09,210 influence the make-up of the air we breathe. 323 00:39:12,480 --> 00:39:17,720 Antarctica is the best place to measure any changes in our atmosphere 324 00:39:17,720 --> 00:39:21,280 because it has the least polluted air on Earth. 325 00:39:22,440 --> 00:39:27,480 It's also the perfect place to launch more outward-looking missions. 326 00:39:33,310 --> 00:39:37,790 This balloon, made of material no thicker than Clingfilm, 327 00:39:37,790 --> 00:39:40,790 will eventually grow to be 300 metres tall. 328 00:39:43,910 --> 00:39:47,790 It will carry a device for detecting cosmic rays, 329 00:39:47,790 --> 00:39:52,990 tiny particles from the beginning of time that are only now reaching earth. 330 00:40:03,820 --> 00:40:08,820 The balloon will travel to the very edge of outer space 331 00:40:08,820 --> 00:40:12,900 to gather clues about the formation of the universe. 332 00:40:21,410 --> 00:40:26,330 Even today, very few ever make the journey inland from the coast. 333 00:40:27,530 --> 00:40:31,970 We still know remarkably little about the interior of the continent. 334 00:40:33,640 --> 00:40:38,880 The people on this plane are trying to answer one of the fundamental questions. 335 00:40:38,880 --> 00:40:41,240 How much ice is there in Antarctica? 336 00:40:47,840 --> 00:40:50,200 They measure the depth of the ice sheet, 337 00:40:50,200 --> 00:40:54,200 which is over 4,000 metres in places, using radar. 338 00:40:56,110 --> 00:40:59,150 Their work will enable us to see 339 00:40:59,150 --> 00:41:02,430 how the volume of Antarctica's ice changes in the future. 340 00:41:03,630 --> 00:41:07,150 It also makes it possible to map a hidden landscape. 341 00:41:20,460 --> 00:41:26,140 This plane is following the same route through the Trans-Antarctic Mountains 342 00:41:26,140 --> 00:41:29,260 that Captain Scott took a hundred years ago. 343 00:41:29,260 --> 00:41:32,040 His team hauled their sleds over a hundred 344 00:41:32,040 --> 00:41:34,820 miles up this glacier, the Beardmore. 345 00:41:41,850 --> 00:41:46,170 Skirting seemingly endless crevasses, with no map to guide them 346 00:41:46,170 --> 00:41:51,170 and no idea of what lay ahead, it was a journey of extraordinary suffering. 347 00:42:02,200 --> 00:42:04,640 Their target lay beyond the mountains, 348 00:42:04,640 --> 00:42:10,000 over 3,000 metres above sea level, on the Antarctic Plateau. 349 00:42:16,590 --> 00:42:20,230 An unbroken sheet of ice, larger than Western Europe, 350 00:42:20,230 --> 00:42:24,830 this is the coldest, the windiest, the most lifeless place on Earth. 351 00:42:29,710 --> 00:42:34,070 Roald Amundsen's team narrowly defeated Scott's to become 352 00:42:34,060 --> 00:42:40,300 the first people to reach the South Pole on the 14th of December 1911. 353 00:42:41,460 --> 00:42:47,060 Nobody else successfully completed the journey for nearly 50 years after that. 354 00:42:51,300 --> 00:42:55,890 But, since 1957, there has been a permanent base at the South Pole. 355 00:42:55,890 --> 00:42:58,530 You can even land a plane on the ice runway. 356 00:43:01,730 --> 00:43:04,550 The early explorers would be astounded by 357 00:43:04,550 --> 00:43:07,370 the facilities at the South Pole today. 358 00:43:10,650 --> 00:43:13,490 Construction work isn't easy when the average 359 00:43:13,490 --> 00:43:16,320 summer temperature is minus 25 degrees Centigrade. 360 00:43:17,640 --> 00:43:21,200 But, despite the difficulties, the most high-tech scientific research 361 00:43:21,200 --> 00:43:25,600 station ever built was unveiled here in 2006. 362 00:43:31,360 --> 00:43:35,630 The brand new Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station is designed to 363 00:43:35,630 --> 00:43:39,790 cope with the World's most extreme conditions. 364 00:43:39,790 --> 00:43:45,150 The building's sloping edge deflects the prevailing wind. 365 00:43:45,150 --> 00:43:48,710 Beneath, there are stilts that can raise the whole building 366 00:43:48,710 --> 00:43:51,750 a further eight metres to keep it above the accumulating snow. 367 00:44:00,540 --> 00:44:06,220 Living inside is as close to being on a space-station as you can find on Earth. 368 00:44:06,220 --> 00:44:10,700 This base is totally self-sufficient, the people are completely 369 00:44:10,700 --> 00:44:15,260 cut off from the outside world for more than half the year over winter. 370 00:44:22,410 --> 00:44:26,770 The total darkness makes this the perfect place to study the night sky. 371 00:44:34,760 --> 00:44:38,840 The group of star gazers will be the most isolated community on our 372 00:44:38,840 --> 00:44:42,160 planet, but they will have all their needs catered for. 373 00:44:47,760 --> 00:44:51,920 There is even a greenhouse where fresh vegetables grow under 374 00:44:51,920 --> 00:44:56,600 artificial light all through the darkest, coldest winter anywhere. 375 00:45:13,180 --> 00:45:18,140 The sun sets in March at the South Pole, and won't rise again for six months. 376 00:45:24,260 --> 00:45:29,220 For a few days at this time of year, high altitude clouds of ice crystals 377 00:45:29,220 --> 00:45:31,600 continue to catch the sunlight, even when 378 00:45:31,600 --> 00:45:33,980 the sun itself is far below the horizon. 379 00:45:51,570 --> 00:45:54,760 But soon all trace of the sun disappears, 380 00:45:54,760 --> 00:45:59,960 and today's over-wintering scientists remember the first explorers. 381 00:46:04,320 --> 00:46:08,360 These men, who endured the winter in flimsy wooden huts, 382 00:46:08,360 --> 00:46:12,760 borrowed knowledge from the Arctic pioneers before them, 383 00:46:12,760 --> 00:46:18,470 but they came here to study and explore, rather than to hunt or exploit. 384 00:46:18,470 --> 00:46:23,470 They embodied the human spirit that has enabled us to survive at the poles. 385 00:46:29,310 --> 00:46:32,990 Here, we are pushed to our limits, but in being pushed, humanity has 386 00:46:34,700 --> 00:46:40,300 achieved the extraordinary and opened up the last frontier.