WEBVTT FILE 1 00:03.200 --> 00:07.073 🎵 [music] 🎵 2 00:11.045 --> 00:14.913 KIDS: Our World! 3 00:14.915 --> 00:18.283 EVAN: Well Globey I think I’m properly prepared 4 00:18.285 --> 00:21.086 for what lies ahead. I guess you can say this coat is my 5 00:21.088 --> 00:24.123 adaptation for cold weather. 6 00:24.125 --> 00:27.826 Ah, what is an adaptation asks my trusty companion. 7 00:27.828 --> 00:32.465 An adaptation is a structure maybe a part of the body; 8 00:32.466 --> 00:35.768 or a behavior, like putting on a coat that helps a 9 00:35.770 --> 00:38.303 living thing survive in its environment. 10 00:38.305 --> 00:41.875 Some adaptations help living things meet their needs. 11 00:41.876 --> 00:45.478 Others keep them safe. Still others help living things 12 00:45.480 --> 00:48.871 live in different climates. And believe me, I’m going to 13 00:48.873 --> 00:51.138 need this adaptation where we’re headed. We’re going to 14 00:51.140 --> 00:55.055 study winter, the history of winter. 15 00:55.056 --> 01:00.760 Once a year since 2001, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center 16 01:00.761 --> 01:03.161 helps host the History of Winter Program 17 01:03.163 --> 01:06.298 in Lake Placid, New York. Lake placid is in the 18 01:06.300 --> 01:08.768 Adriondack Mountains in New York. 19 01:08.770 --> 01:11.705 This area gets the more snowfall than any other region 20 01:11.706 --> 01:14.106 in the state. That makes it a 21 01:14.108 --> 01:16.608 really good place to study winter. 22 01:16.610 --> 01:19.311 Well, you might be wondering why would NASA want 23 01:19.313 --> 01:21.413 to study winter? 24 01:21.415 --> 01:24.383 Well, because learning about what lies beneath the snow and 25 01:24.385 --> 01:27.686 ice helps us learn about what’s occurring in our world. 26 01:27.688 --> 01:31.523 An important part of NASA’s involves studying Earth. 27 01:31.525 --> 01:34.893 NASA’s very interested in what’s happening both on 28 01:34.895 --> 01:38.398 and around our home planet. 29 01:38.400 --> 01:43.101 Looking into a snow and ice biome allows scientist to study 30 01:43.103 --> 01:45.505 plants and animals that live there. 31 01:45.506 --> 01:49.808 A Biome is an area where plants and animals live. 32 01:49.810 --> 01:53.720 Winter biomes can be very harsh, so the plants and 33 01:53.721 --> 01:55.848 animals that live there may need some special 34 01:55.850 --> 02:00.120 adaptations to survive. Let’s hear more from an expert: 35 02:00.121 --> 02:02.455 MARY HINDELANG: Well it’s a different challenge during 36 02:02.456 --> 02:05.930 winter for all species to live 37 02:05.931 --> 02:08.935 and survive and find their way of making a living. 38 02:08.936 --> 02:13.400 So in the snow biomes, it gives us a different perspective on 39 02:13.401 --> 02:19.671 now difficult and how important those critical adaptations are. 40 02:19.673 --> 02:24.076 Where they have to deal in a big way in their lives in areas 41 02:24.078 --> 02:26.618 where there’s snow and ice and cold a good 42 02:26.620 --> 02:28.948 portion of the year. 43 02:28.950 --> 02:31.851 EVAN: So what kind of life can you find in the snow? 44 02:31.853 --> 02:35.155 MARY: Some of the animals that live above the snow on a 45 02:35.156 --> 02:38.358 regular basis are caribou, arctic hare. 46 02:38.360 --> 02:41.728 And then some of the animals that take advantage of living 47 02:41.730 --> 02:45.531 under the snow are things like arctic ground squirrels, 48 02:45.533 --> 02:49.668 all the little invertebrates; meto-voles are perfect at 49 02:49.670 --> 02:52.005 living under the snow. 50 02:52.006 --> 02:55.848 Some birds like Ptarmigan and Grouse, they’ll nestle 51 02:55.850 --> 02:59.378 themselves in the top of snow pack and actually stay in there 52 02:59.380 --> 03:02.181 for many days and ride out a blizzard. 53 03:02.183 --> 03:06.853 So there are a lot of animals on a regular basis do very well 54 03:06.855 --> 03:09.721 living through the winter in snow pack. 55 03:09.723 --> 03:12.591 EVAN: So some of the adaptation these animals use 56 03:12.593 --> 03:15.728 help them find shelter. What other adaptations might 57 03:15.730 --> 03:18.765 you see in a winter biome? Do these animals have to do what I 58 03:18.766 --> 03:21.100 did and pull out their winter coats? 59 03:21.101 --> 03:25.171 MARY: Some of the animals like canids, the dog species, 60 03:25.173 --> 03:29.708 wolves and fox; they put on an extra coats. 61 03:29.710 --> 03:33.515 They have an insulating long hair and they’re very 62 03:33.516 --> 03:35.781 well adapted to the winter. 63 03:35.783 --> 03:40.020 Little invertebrates and frogs create a chemical 64 03:40.021 --> 03:43.356 and can withstand from freezing solid. 65 03:43.358 --> 03:46.291 And they won’t rupture their cells because they have kind 66 03:46.293 --> 03:48.795 of like an antifreeze that we use in our cars 67 03:48.796 --> 03:51.463 to keep the cells from rupturing. 68 03:51.465 --> 03:54.833 EVAN: Frogs have a type of internal antifreeze. How ‘bout 69 03:54.835 --> 03:58.003 that! What are some other adaptive wonders of nature? 70 03:58.005 --> 04:01.173 MARY: Some important adaptations for example in 71 04:01.175 --> 04:04.476 snowshoe hare is they have very large feet. 72 04:04.478 --> 04:06.780 It’s almost like they have snow shoes on. 73 04:06.781 --> 04:09.170 It gives them a little bit extra the ability 74 04:09.171 --> 04:11.321 to be on top of the snow. EVAN: So now that we know how 75 04:11.323 --> 04:14.053 animals adapt to the cold. But I bet with a little more 76 04:14.055 --> 04:17.156 research, you could find more cool adaptations. 77 04:17.158 --> 04:19.925 But how do scientists go about studying all this? 78 04:19.926 --> 04:22.695 They build a snowpit. 79 04:22.696 --> 04:26.565 MARY: In order to study some of the different properties 80 04:26.566 --> 04:31.671 of snow, we can dig a nice smooth surface straight down 81 04:31.673 --> 04:35.508 so can actually see that it’s a record of the entire winter 82 04:35.510 --> 04:37.843 from top to bottom. 83 04:37.845 --> 04:41.246 And the top would be the most recent snow falls, and the 84 04:41.248 --> 04:43.950 bottom would be the very start of winter when the first 85 04:43.951 --> 04:47.620 snowfall fell. You might be able to see everyday, 86 04:47.621 --> 04:50.323 but it gives you a week by week, or event 87 04:50.325 --> 04:53.125 by event record of the entire winter. 88 04:53.126 --> 04:56.428 EVAN: So what can we learn from studying these snowpits? 89 04:56.430 --> 04:59.166 MARY: If you look at a snow pit, you have a whole record 90 04:59.168 --> 05:02.468 of what happened through the winter. And that gives you 91 05:02.470 --> 05:07.173 some idea of how the animals that live at the bottom can 92 05:07.175 --> 05:10.776 take advantage of that structure of snow. 93 05:10.778 --> 05:15.881 Snow pits are good not only to understand how snow falls and 94 05:15.883 --> 05:19.185 what the record is, but also to see how animals that live 95 05:19.186 --> 05:22.621 within that snow pack can make it through the winter. 96 05:22.623 --> 05:25.791 EVAN: Wow Globey. NASA’s History of Winter program 97 05:25.793 --> 05:28.226 is awesome. And anyone can get involved. 98 05:28.228 --> 05:30.963 Just got to the history of winter website. 99 05:30.965 --> 05:35.136 Just one more question. Next year, Can I come? 100 05:37.338 --> 05:40.973 ? [music] ? 101 05:45.126 --> 05:48.683 KIDS: Our World! 102 05:48.685 --> 05:55.021 .