Grownups, Wondery Plus subscribers can listen to Wow in the World early and ad-free right now. Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app or Wondery Kids Plus on Apple Podcasts. Hey, Wowzer fans, Mindy here. And before we start the show... Oh, sorry about that. I forgot to put it on silent. Hey, wait a second. It's an email from us.
Check it out, Reg. Let's see here. It says, we've got episode recommendations, free STEM activities to try out at home, the latest news about what's happening at Tinkercad, Pretty bonker balls, huh? Here, I'll help you sign up. So you and the grown-ups will just go to tinkercast.com slash email and put in your first and last names and email.
email address. Wait, Reggie, I just realized I don't know your last name. Really? Is that with a silent G or a silent Q? Huh, who knew? Let's see here. Oh, and you're not a robot, right? Sorry, just had to double check. Okay, you are all signed up. Grownups, you can sign up for our Tinkercast newsletter, too. It's full of ideas on how to get some extra wow to your family's life. Visit Tinkercast.com slash email to sign up today. That's Tinkercast.com slash email.
That's it. And now let's get on with the show. on a venture of magnificent proportion. I do not like that song. But it's your birthday. birthday song. We always sing it. Yeah! Well, I still don't like it. Well, maybe you'll like this. Oh, look at those knuckles. Or how about this? Happy birthday. It's a happy birthday. It's a birthday day.
I do not like that. Well, that's okay, Grandma G-Force. You still get one birthday wish. One wish, huh? Yeah. What would make you happy on your birthday? I don't know. We could cut the cake. Or cut a rug. Or cut... I don't want to cut nothing. OK, so no cutting. What do you want for your birthday, Grandma G-Force? Well, I want yes. As I want. Yes. I want to go to Antarctica. Oh. Right now. What? You heard me.
I said I want to go to Antarctica. I want to go where the people aren't. I think you mean, I want to go where the people aren't. It is your birthday, Grandma G-Force. And you do get one wish. Unless you use that wish to wish for more wishes. You get one wish. Well, I already said I want a wish to go down. Antarctica, I want to go to the bottom of the world. Well, Antarctica is...
the southernmost continent with the least number of people on the entire planet. But Mindy, it's also covered almost entirely by a giant sheet of ice. Do you have any idea how cold it is there? Well, first of all, I can hear you whispering to Mindy. And second of all, during its winter season, between June and August, it can get as cold as negative one.
112 degrees Fahrenheit or negative 80 degrees Celsius. See, Mindy? Wait, Grandma G-Force, how did you... I know about things, boy. And don't worry... about the cold gyros, we'll wear coats and mittens. Here, coats and mittens. Here you go. Here you go. Mindy, we're going to need more than... Good thinking, Mandy. Oh, boy. To Antarctica we go! Happy birthday, Grandma G-Force! Well, who's the belle of the birthday ball? Is it Reggie? No!
Oh, it's me. I'm special. Think you could give us a ride, Reg? Great. Let's all shuffle outside then. And once we're in the air, Guy Raz and I can fill you in on some fun. facts about Antarctica. No! Yes! OK, but they better be fun. OK, I'll climb up first, and then I'll pull the rest of you up, OK? OK. Now, hold still, Reg. Birthday girl gets the rat on the pigeon's head. What? You're a girl? And the birthday girl gets what the birthday girl wants.
No, stay still, pigeon. Booyah. Here, pigeon. Put on this birthday hat. Come on, everyone. Climb aboard. Okay. All settled in. Aye, aye, Captain. Great. Because here we go. are in the upright and locked position, and that your guy phones are in pigeon plane mode. We expect to bump your ride today, so if you feel like you're gonna barf, try not to get it on your fellow passengers. Thank you and enjoy your-
So, Grandma G-Force, why the sudden interest in Antarctica? Is it the penguins or the glaciers or the southern lights? The cold! Desolate wind! The iceberg dead ahead! Bloody waterfall? T-Force, why you always gotta be so gross? It ain't gross, it's just a little revolting is all. Wait, I think I've heard of this. You're talking about... Blood Falls. No, Guy Raz, not you too. No, no, hear me out. I recently read about this in the Scientific Journal. No.
No spoilers, boy. Huh? I don't want to read about it. I want to see about it. I want to see if the bloody waterfalls drip... and spraying and spewing and sparting and oozing blood all This is your captain speaking. Oh, sorry. As we begin our final descent on Antarctica, you'll notice several research stations scattered across the continent. This is where scientists live and study all of the extreme weather conditions that Antarctica has to offer. Guy Raz! Yes? If I survive Antarctica...
Will you get me a t-shirt from the gift shop? Well, I don't see any gift shops here, but I do see... Could it be? Oh, it will be. What? I want to see. Scooch over. Let me see. Say to me. Please be sure to comment, subscribe, and rate us five stars. Okay, I'll go down first, and then I'll help the rest of you down. No way! I'm not getting off this pigeon plane. Reggie, hold me!
Dennis, come on. It's Grandma G-Force's birthday and this is her one wish. Yeah, boy. Okay, fine. It sure is cold down here. Hey, looky over there. It's a little bird in a tuxedo. There ain't no bird finger length. There's a penguin. Wow, what a fashionable bird. Actually... Penguins are aquatic, flightless birds that use their wings more like flippers. Neat. I already know that. Everyone, you're missing the main attraction. Look down there.
a glacier over there. Whoa. Look at that. Let there be mud. I don't like it. You think it's real blood, Gyros? Yes, it's real blood. And don't nobody tell me otherwise. Well, why don't we walk over there and take a closer look, and then I can tell you everything I read about Blood Falls in this scientific journal, Frontiers in Astronomy and Space Sciences. No, no, I don't want to do that. Come on, everyone, this could be interesting. Interesting. Yeah, it is interesting. Okay, bye.
Go ahead, Guy Raz. Okay, well, from what we know, Antarctica's Blood Falls was first discovered by the Australian geologist Griffith Taylor while on an expedition all the way back in the year 19... Oh, wow. That's over a hundred years ago. That was also the year G-Force was first discovered. Hush your mouth, fingerling. I'm only a teenager. Now, as Griffith Taylor observed this five-story waterfall of angry, blood-red waters, he believed it to be the result of red algae in the water.
Boy, by golly, all of this blood water must be the result of too much red algae in the water. Why are you talking like that, Thomas Fingerling? I ain't Thomas Fingerling, mate. I'm Australian geologist. Griffith Taylor, I am. You sound terrible. Yeah. Quit interrupting. I'm theorizing about too much red algae in the water. But as time went on... theory of red algae in the water was proven to be false. Ah, dingoes. Sorry, Mr. Geologist boy.
But you're wrong like Donkey Kong. Over time, new theories from new researchers began to emerge. Hello, yes, I'm a new researcher, and I believe this red water is probably... just a bunch of red iron in the subglacial lake that feeds this waterfall. Wait, wait, wait. I don't get it. Where would someone put an iron in a lake? I thought I was the only one who did that. What? Oh, no, no. See, iron is a kind of metal, and when it comes in contact with water and air...
a chemical reaction occurs. And that chemical reaction, called oxidation, causes the iron to slowly break down and form a reddish-brown substance called rust. Rusty, just like Fingerling's knees. What? I don't have rusty knees. Oh, huh. I guess they are a little rusty. Never mind. Okay, so... Ross, are you saying that this bloody waterfall is nothing but a bunch of iron rust mixed with water? Well, if you'll allow me to get back to my story. Oh, right, the story. Sorry. Blade continues.
For many, many years, it was widely believed that oxidized or rusty iron was the cause of the blood-red waterfalls. But fast forward to 2023. when a team of researchers from The Ohio State University decided to dive in a little deeper. Deeper into the bloody waters. One of the first things the team did was analyze and measure the amount of iron in the water.
And while they expected to find quite a bit, in the end, they were able to determine that the waterfall only contained a teeny tiny amount of iron. Huh, who knows I? Proving that the theory that it's just a bunch of rusty iron water is false. And proving that it's real blood. Wait, is it real blood for real? I know that was real blood. I want a birthday blood back. Come here, you old waterfall. No, no, Grandma G-Force, please, I'm not finished with the story. Well...
Oh, hurry up. I'm tired of this story. I'm not tired of this story, Guy. Yeah, me neither, Guy Raz. Yeah, me neither. Okay, good. So, as I was saying... While this team of researchers did not discover massive amounts of iron in the water, what they did discover with the help of a super-powered microscope were...
iron-rich nanospheres in the water. Wow! Super nanny whirlospheres! No, Dennis! Nanospheres! Nanospheres are tea- tiny particles so tiny that they can be 100 times smaller than the red blood cells in our body so we're talking small tiny can't even see them and when the iron in the nanospheres oxidizes. Does anyone remember what happens when something oxidizes?
Nope, I do not. I remember, Guy. Oxidation is a chemical reaction that can happen when a metal like iron is mixed with water and air. Wow, Dennis, that's great. You're really paying attention. Hooray! Compli- Now, as I was saying, when the teeny tiny nanoscopic iron-rich nanospheres oxidize, they give the water flowing into blood balls its bloody rich color. Oh, wow! Well, that is a very disappointing conclusion. I wanted it to be blood.
But there's more to this mystery. There is? There is. See, the lake that feeds into Blood Falls is unlike most other lakes in that it's subglacial. Why are we gasping? You're gasping because subglacial means that this lake is hidden under the ice. Well, I'll be a hidden lake. A secret lake. A lake. Where are the people at? That's right. This subglacial lake can't even be seen from the surface. You're right, Mindy. I can't see a lake anywhere. That's because it's hidden under snow and ice.
And what makes this lake even more of a mystery is that it's home to teeny tiny microscopic life even though it's super salty, super dark, And there's no oxygen. No oxygen? What is this, Mars? Well, it's funny that you should mention Mars, Grandma G-Force. Mars. Because this subglacial lake and Mars actually have a lot in common. They're both rusty? Well, yes. They're both red and rich in iron particles. And they're both cold and salty like G-Force here. Excuse me? Can't argue with that.
And you're not going to find very much oxygen in either place. Well, there is a tiny bit of oxygen on Mars, but not enough to catch a breath. And these similarities have researchers wondering if microscopic life can live for millions of years in the harsh conditions of a subglacial lake, well, could it also... live on Mars. Could there be life on Mars?
Well, there's only one way to find out. Yeah, we gotta go to Mars for my birthday to see for ourselves. No, no, no. Huzzah! Life on Mars! Life on Mars! We are not going to Mars. What? What I mean is, this clue tells us that... There's so much more to discover. And it's going to take a lot of brain power and a lot of experiments and a lot of technology that hasn't been invented yet to discover it.
Okay. But what's amazing about this is that we might be one step closer to a major scientific discovery. Hooray! One step closer! Thank you very much, garage. Now I'm gonna go find that secret lake. Well, it's a subglacial lake and you're never gonna find it. Says you. Right behind you, Granny G. Well, I guess I'll go to Olay! Ah, let them have their fun, Gairaz. For now, I just want to enjoy the beauty of these bloody red waterfalls. It is pretty gross looking. Yeah, let's go home. Yeah.
message is for you. That's it. Back to the show. My wow is that right now there are billions of invisible ghost particles called neutrinos zooming through your body. There's a lab two kilometers under Settlebury, Ontario devoted to studying neutrinos. Say hello to Thomas Fingerling. Grandma G for an extra hello to Dennis. Hi, my name is Bowie. I live in Calgary, Alberta, and my wow in the world is vanilla flavoring.
is produced by a goo from a beaver's rear end. Hi, I'm Gavin. I live in Calgary, Alberta. that thousands of years ago, a black bear-sized beaver roamed Canada. Hey Mindy and Guy Raz, this is Edward calling in from New Jersey. Did you know that lanternflies are an invasive species and kill trees? Bye. Hi, I'm Henry from Canada, and I want to say that a group of sharks is called a shiver. Bye. Hi, my name is Darwin.
I'm eight years old and live in Crested Butte, Colorado. My wow in the world is that the Maribel stork can swallow 2.2 pounds of meat in one goat. Say hi to Reggie and Dennis for me. Hi, amazing girls. My name is Izzy and I'm seven years old. I live in California. My wow in the world is ring-tailed lemurs have stink in their tails and use it for stink fights. Say hi to Reggie. Bucky, the annoying dentist, and the sleigh cats for me. Bye. Close your show. End of messages. Grown-ups.
If you like wow in the world, you can listen early and add. free right now on Wondery Plus. Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app or on Wondery Kids Plus on Apple Podcasts. Prime members can listen ad free on Amazon Music. And before you go, tell us about yourself by... filling out a short survey at wondery.com slash survey.
Wow in the World is written by Mindy Thomas and Tom Van Kalken with help from me, Guy Raz. Original sound design and music editing is done by our supervising producer Jed Anderson and Tyler Tholl. You can also hear Jed Anderson in the voices of Dennis, Thomas Fingerling, Reggie, and many of the other silly characters you hear on our show. Jessica Bode keeps her facts straight as our fact checker, and Meredith Halpern ran... The Pop-Ups. Find them at thepopups.com
Special thanks to Steph Sosa, Henry Moskell, Ruth Morrison, Rebecca Caban, Kit Ballinger, Sana Ali Mohamed, Anna Zagorski, and all of the other tinkerers at Tinkercast HQ. To keep the wows rolling, visit us at Tinkercast HQ. podcast.com there you can learn more about becoming an official member of the world organization of wowsers learn about upcoming events shop our wow shop Find our best-selling books and learn about all of our other amazing podcasts from Tinkercast.
Grownups, you can follow Wow in the World on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter at wowintheworld. And our email address is hello at tinkercast.com. And if you're a kid with a big wow to share with us... Call us at 1-888-7-WOW-WOW for a chance to be featured at the end of our show or an upcoming episode of Two What's in a Wow. Thanks again for listening. And until next time, be fun wowing. This world was made by Tinkercast and sent to you by Wondery.