Cold

Download Subtitles

Transcript

0:00:04 > 0:00:09As the earth turns and the seasons change, winter grips the planet.

0:00:11 > 0:00:16Of all the elements, cold is our deadliest enemy.

0:00:16 > 0:00:22From ice storms to avalanches, frostbite to heart attacks, cold is a killer.

0:00:22 > 0:00:28I'm Donal MacIntyre. I'm about to follow winter's advance from its home in the Arctic,

0:00:28 > 0:00:33as it brings some of the most dangerous weather on the planet.

0:00:33 > 0:00:40I'm about to be buried alive, frozen solid and plunged into the lethal, white heart of winter.

0:00:40 > 0:00:42This is Wild Weather.

0:01:05 > 0:01:11My journey with cold starts here, on the very top of the world.

0:01:14 > 0:01:20The Arctic has claimed hundreds of lives, as explorers battled the extreme elements to get here.

0:01:20 > 0:01:22But I've chosen a quicker way.

0:01:36 > 0:01:39Unconventional, I agree,

0:01:39 > 0:01:45but it gives you a bird's-eye view of the top of the WO-O-O-ORLD!

0:02:00 > 0:02:04Amazingly, this beautiful and awesome landscape

0:02:04 > 0:02:11is the source of all our cold weather in the northern hemisphere. I've come here to find out how winter begins.

0:02:12 > 0:02:17The Arctic is the area north of 66 degrees latitude.

0:02:17 > 0:02:23Frozen all year round, it's an area of harsh scenery and frozen beauty.

0:02:26 > 0:02:29This is the world's largest ice cube.

0:02:29 > 0:02:36The scale of this place is breathtaking - 16 million square kilometres of solid ice.

0:02:36 > 0:02:41That's bigger than India and China put together.

0:02:41 > 0:02:46What is strange is that there is very little weather to speak of.

0:02:46 > 0:02:50I expected blizzards and blinding snowstorms.

0:02:50 > 0:02:55It's sunny, there's a light breeze and very little snowfall.

0:02:59 > 0:03:04It's just like a desert, and in fact it is classed as one,

0:03:04 > 0:03:08but a desert that's permanently frozen.

0:03:08 > 0:03:14To find out how this place generates our winter weather, we have to know what keeps it in this state.

0:03:22 > 0:03:24We think of earth as a blue planet.

0:03:24 > 0:03:29But look at it from above and it's white - frozen solid all year round.

0:03:29 > 0:03:34That's because the planet is tilted on its axis.

0:03:34 > 0:03:38During our winter, the Arctic is turned away from the sun.

0:03:38 > 0:03:46It's always night and temperatures plummet as low as minus 50. Winter shrouds the northern hemisphere.

0:03:46 > 0:03:52As the year passes, the earth continues its orbit and the North Pole tilts towards the sun.

0:03:52 > 0:03:56The seasons change and summer returns to the north.

0:03:56 > 0:04:00Up here, the sun shines pretty much 24 hours a day,

0:04:00 > 0:04:08which is why it's called the Land of the Midnight Sun. But even this is not enough to break cold's grip.

0:04:08 > 0:04:14In the Arctic, as you can see from my shadow, the angle of the sun is so shallow

0:04:14 > 0:04:20that its rays simply bounce off the surface, reflecting its energy rather than absorbing it.

0:04:20 > 0:04:24This keeps the temperature of the surrounding atmosphere constant

0:04:24 > 0:04:26and helps perpetuate the polar climate.

0:04:30 > 0:04:35Even at the height of the Arctic summer, temperatures only creep above freezing.

0:04:35 > 0:04:38But it's not enough to melt the ice.

0:04:42 > 0:04:47Which is just as well, because I'm not standing on solid rock.

0:04:47 > 0:04:52A few metres beneath my feet is the Arctic Ocean.

0:04:54 > 0:04:59And just to prove it, I'm going to take a look,

0:04:59 > 0:05:04because this vast layer of ice holds the key to cold's grip on the poles.

0:05:06 > 0:05:10It's spectacular - a layer of ice up to ten metres thick.

0:05:10 > 0:05:13And it's all frozen fresh water.

0:05:13 > 0:05:18There's about as much salt in it as your own home freezer,

0:05:18 > 0:05:23because when sea water freezes, it locks out the salt.

0:05:23 > 0:05:30And it's this vast, freshwater ice sheet above me that's the key to winter's energy.

0:05:31 > 0:05:33It works like this -

0:05:33 > 0:05:39the ice keeps the air immediately above it at almost the same temperature.

0:05:39 > 0:05:47Above this layer, warmer air is also sinking down, which forces the colder surface air to slip south.

0:05:49 > 0:05:53This shimmering air looks just like a heat haze

0:05:53 > 0:05:58but is in fact the first wisps of the polar wind.

0:05:58 > 0:06:02This is what carries winter out of its Arctic lair.

0:06:02 > 0:06:07This icy blast accelerates the further south it travels.

0:06:07 > 0:06:14I'm going to follow the polar wind as it brings the wildest, most destructive weather into OUR world.

0:06:16 > 0:06:21This far north, east and west have little or no bearing.

0:06:21 > 0:06:25From here, all directions point south,

0:06:25 > 0:06:30which leaves me, as it does winter, only one way to go.

0:06:34 > 0:06:40Even 1,000 miles south of the North Pole, cold still grips the planet.

0:06:46 > 0:06:52And yet even here, faced with the worst extremes of cold weather, people make their homes.

0:06:55 > 0:07:01I've come to one of the most northerly inhabited settlements on the planet,

0:07:01 > 0:07:06Ittoqqortoormiit in Greenland. It's home to one of the most hardy peoples on earth - the Inuit.

0:07:06 > 0:07:11So if they can survive out here, maybe they're different from me.

0:07:11 > 0:07:16- Hi. Great to be here. - Yes. Nice to meet you.

0:07:16 > 0:07:21The weather here is among the most extreme on the planet.

0:07:23 > 0:07:27In winter, temperatures can drop to minus 40.

0:07:27 > 0:07:33Children can only play outside for ten minutes before their skin freezes solid.

0:07:33 > 0:07:37But a lifetime's exposure can prepare you for the worst.

0:07:45 > 0:07:51How do you survive out here? I've got three pairs of gloves under here AND mitts.

0:07:51 > 0:07:56- My fingers are still cold. How can you keep so warm?- When I was young

0:07:56 > 0:08:01and begin to hunt, I freeze very much.

0:08:01 > 0:08:05But I learn to use my hands even when they're very cold.

0:08:05 > 0:08:09It's...it's training.

0:08:09 > 0:08:13So the Inuit are no different from me.

0:08:13 > 0:08:18We are simply not designed for cold because we evolved in the tropics.

0:08:18 > 0:08:22Even after thousands of years of Arctic weather,

0:08:22 > 0:08:26the Inuit have remarkably few physical adaptations to the cold.

0:08:26 > 0:08:34It's our inventiveness, not evolution, that keeps us alive - clothing, shelter, heating.

0:08:37 > 0:08:43Only a madman would challenge the Arctic cold without any kind of protection.

0:08:43 > 0:08:49So, in order to see what it does to me, I've come here to a controlled environment

0:08:49 > 0:08:55to find out just what happens when the body is exposed to extreme cold.

0:08:55 > 0:09:00Not the best place to be in your underwear!

0:09:00 > 0:09:06According to cold expert Dr Frank Golden, most people can only stand this kind of cold for half an hour.

0:09:06 > 0:09:12I'll be constantly monitored and, unlike the real Arctic, I can walk out of here any time.

0:09:12 > 0:09:15- Good luck to you. - Thank you very much.

0:09:18 > 0:09:25The temperature here is minus 18. It's bloody freezing! Not the best place to be without any clothes on.

0:09:25 > 0:09:31But at least it's getting my temperature down quickly for my body to react.

0:09:31 > 0:09:38Our bodies keep our vital organs at a stable 37 degrees Celsius. It's called the core temperature.

0:09:38 > 0:09:43I'm going to have to work overtime to try and maintain it.

0:09:43 > 0:09:47He's not long in the cold, but he's beginning to shiver.

0:09:47 > 0:09:52He's shivering to try and produce more heat.

0:09:52 > 0:09:59Notice the way he keeps his arms and his elbows close to his side and his arms across his chest.

0:09:59 > 0:10:05He's trying to shut down the surface area through which heat is being lost.

0:10:09 > 0:10:15The only way to try and keep warm is just to try and move.

0:10:15 > 0:10:19He's not sure what to do with his body.

0:10:19 > 0:10:24But he knows he can't generate enough heat by shivering alone,

0:10:24 > 0:10:30so he's not sure whether he should exercise harder to produce more heat.

0:10:30 > 0:10:35His temperature's just falling. There's nothing he can do about it.

0:10:40 > 0:10:45After a very short time, my body simply can't generate enough heat

0:10:45 > 0:10:49and my temperature is on the way down.

0:10:49 > 0:10:55My core temperature has fallen two degrees, which means I am now hypothermic -

0:10:55 > 0:11:01my muscles are stiffening and my brain is cooling. If I lose my wits, I'll have no chance.

0:11:01 > 0:11:06Even shivering stops, as the muscles slow down. And now, a little test.

0:11:06 > 0:11:10Can you count down from 100, taking a seven away each time?

0:11:10 > 0:11:13100 minus 7...

0:11:13 > 0:11:16100 minus 7, OK... Uh...

0:11:17 > 0:11:19100...100 minus 7...93.

0:11:19 > 0:11:22Minus 7.

0:11:22 > 0:11:24Uh...

0:11:24 > 0:11:268...100...

0:11:26 > 0:11:29HE LAUGHS

0:11:29 > 0:11:3186.

0:11:37 > 0:11:41CHATTERING I feel like I've got the flu.

0:11:46 > 0:11:53As all the vital organs start to cool, the whole body starts to shut down. This is the critical stage.

0:11:56 > 0:12:01Then he would...he'd become tired and he'd just like to go to sleep.

0:12:01 > 0:12:08But to survive, he'd have to fight through that phase and keep determined to keep alive.

0:12:08 > 0:12:14But eventually, no matter how determined he is, the conditions will overcome him.

0:12:14 > 0:12:20His temperature will fall to a level where he'll lose consciousness and eventually he'd die.

0:12:22 > 0:12:28If my body temperature drops by six degrees I'll lose consciousness

0:12:28 > 0:12:31and death is inevitable.

0:12:33 > 0:12:35- He's in pain now.- Oh, God!

0:12:37 > 0:12:39I don't want to be here.

0:12:39 > 0:12:45The time has come to pull him out now. He's had enough.

0:12:47 > 0:12:53Come on, Donal, you've had enough. How are you feeling? God, you're bitterly cold, aren't you?

0:12:53 > 0:13:00- I...- Are your muscles stiff? - My toes feel as though they're going to fall off.- Your muscles are stiff?

0:13:00 > 0:13:02- You can hardly talk.- Oh, God.

0:13:02 > 0:13:07- Oh!- Come on, let's get you warmed up. Let me check you out.

0:13:09 > 0:13:14In the real world, we need our brains to survive.

0:13:14 > 0:13:21So if I can't last 40 minutes in minus 18, how am I going to survive out here at minus 30?

0:13:25 > 0:13:31Erik Bruin and Mads Vadel must know. They have the most extreme tour of duty in the world.

0:13:31 > 0:13:34For three months at a time,

0:13:34 > 0:13:40the Danish Sirius Patrol travel the icy wastelands of north-eastern Greenland,

0:13:40 > 0:13:45with only their training and a dog sled for protection.

0:13:45 > 0:13:51For the next 24 hours, I'm going to join them to find out how they survive in nature's freezer.

0:13:51 > 0:13:54- Hi.- Hi, I'm Donal.- Erik.- Erik, hi.

0:13:54 > 0:13:58- My partner, Mads.- Mads, hi. - Welcome to Greenland.

0:13:58 > 0:14:03- These are your dogs?- Yes. - Beautiful! They don't bite?- No.

0:14:03 > 0:14:06'It's time to go.'

0:14:06 > 0:14:12SHOUTS COMMAND Hup! ..It didn't work that time!

0:14:12 > 0:14:16LAUGHTER

0:14:18 > 0:14:22So...that's how you start?

0:14:22 > 0:14:28It's a good idea to learn to ski before you become a member of the Sirius Patrol!

0:14:29 > 0:14:31Let's go!

0:14:31 > 0:14:36It was the weather that first brought them here.

0:14:36 > 0:14:37In the Second World War,

0:14:37 > 0:14:40the Danish had to defend Greenland from the Germans,

0:14:40 > 0:14:45because if you know the weather here, you can predict the weather in Europe.

0:14:45 > 0:14:52Today, the biggest threat to their patch is from the seals and, of course, amateurs like me.

0:14:52 > 0:14:57But still, highly trained professionals like Erik, Mads and me are vigilant.

0:14:57 > 0:15:04Out here, blizzards and snowstorms can strike without warning, and the cold is a constant threat.

0:15:04 > 0:15:08Temperatures regularly fall below minus 40.

0:15:08 > 0:15:14The thing about being out in the cold is that absolutely everything freezes,

0:15:14 > 0:15:18including, in this case, my left eyelid.

0:15:18 > 0:15:23The guys have told me that if your eyelid freezes closed,

0:15:23 > 0:15:28use your hand to warm it up, then it melts and you can open it. It's dangerous to pull it open.

0:15:32 > 0:15:35Yeah, I can feel it melting.

0:15:35 > 0:15:37That's a good thing...

0:15:40 > 0:15:45Now I can truly say I feel as cold as I probably look.

0:15:47 > 0:15:49Oh! It just...

0:15:52 > 0:15:57It just shows you, you've got to be careful. The cold's a killer.

0:16:00 > 0:16:06As night falls, the temperature plummets. There's only one tent, so what happens to me?

0:16:06 > 0:16:09I'm about to be buried alive.

0:16:09 > 0:16:15Digging a hole deep into the snow can offer life-saving shelter - or so I'm told!

0:16:15 > 0:16:19- What do we have to do? - Well, we start making an entrance.

0:16:19 > 0:16:25- Then we dig in and make it as long as you are, in this direction. - A kind of ledge, OK.

0:16:25 > 0:16:30- You will lay about here. So I will dig in and start.- OK.

0:16:49 > 0:16:52- So, that's my home. - That's your home.

0:16:52 > 0:16:54Try going in.

0:17:00 > 0:17:07I can look forward to the night alone as the temperature drops below minus 30.

0:17:07 > 0:17:12I have to say, I'm a bit apprehensive about being buried alive out here.

0:17:15 > 0:17:21All I'll have to help me survive is a sleeping bag and some candles.

0:17:24 > 0:17:27It's about a metre and a half high

0:17:27 > 0:17:30by two and a half metres long...

0:17:30 > 0:17:32and...

0:17:32 > 0:17:34about...

0:17:36 > 0:17:38..a metre and a half wide.

0:17:38 > 0:17:43My entrance is there. There's always a gap for oxygen to come through.

0:17:44 > 0:17:49An emergency link with the Sirius Patrol if anything goes wrong,

0:17:49 > 0:17:54if this starts to cave in, but it shouldn't do cos it's well built.

0:17:55 > 0:18:02Hi, guys. It's Donal here, just to say - no worries and see you in the morning. Over.

0:18:12 > 0:18:14OK.

0:18:15 > 0:18:19I'll see if they respond. If not, well...

0:18:24 > 0:18:27I just hope they'd be listening if something DID go wrong!

0:18:27 > 0:18:29OK...

0:18:29 > 0:18:34It's...the middle of the night here. It's about minus 30 outside.

0:18:34 > 0:18:38There's one big problem here in the Arctic -

0:18:38 > 0:18:43any bit of exposed skin is liable to get frostbite after a few minutes.

0:18:43 > 0:18:49Which brings me to the problem of going to the toilet! I don't think so.

0:19:00 > 0:19:06Amazingly, the temperature inside the hole stayed 25 degrees warmer than outside.

0:19:06 > 0:19:11The snow works as a surprisingly good insulator.

0:19:11 > 0:19:16So, I spent the night in what, for the Arctic, was a cosy minus five degrees!

0:19:16 > 0:19:19- Morning, Donal.- Morning.

0:19:19 > 0:19:23- Morning, guys.- How are you? - Good. Good.

0:19:23 > 0:19:28- Do you want to go have a cup of coffee?- That's a great idea.

0:19:28 > 0:19:33The Sirius Patrol are trained to cope with the severe Arctic weather,

0:19:33 > 0:19:39but when it hits the places we least expect it, the consequences can be horrific.

0:19:39 > 0:19:42This isn't Greenland.

0:19:42 > 0:19:47This is New York State in early spring 1993.

0:19:51 > 0:19:57Four feet from us, our tracks were gone. We couldn't even find where we just came from.

0:19:57 > 0:20:04The wind blew us down and our eyelids froze. You had to hold your hands up here so it wouldn't sting.

0:20:04 > 0:20:09The 12th March 1993 saw the entire east coast of the US gripped

0:20:09 > 0:20:13by one of the wildest winter storms in history.

0:20:13 > 0:20:20The latest satellite shows a huge storm system coming up the coast. Very heavy snows for our region.

0:20:20 > 0:20:2512 to 24 inches for the Capital Region by midday tomorrow.

0:20:25 > 0:20:30In upstate New York, Geoff Smock and Bill Simons were relaxing after work.

0:20:30 > 0:20:36Several hundred miles away, the storm was growing and heading their way.

0:20:36 > 0:20:42Outside it started to snow. But that wasn't unusual for the time of year.

0:20:42 > 0:20:44As they set off home,

0:20:44 > 0:20:51they had no idea that they were about to be overtaken by a blizzard that would change their lives for ever.

0:20:51 > 0:20:56Full-blown blizzard conditions are over the Capital District and western New England.

0:20:56 > 0:21:00High winds and dangerous cold...

0:21:00 > 0:21:05The snowfall was extraordinary. Bill and Geoff ground to a halt half a mile from home.

0:21:05 > 0:21:10They decided to walk the last leg. That's when their nightmare began.

0:21:10 > 0:21:15You couldn't go forwards or backwards. There was no place to go.

0:21:15 > 0:21:21It was like ploughing through five foot of snow. You get to a certain point and you're exhausted.

0:21:21 > 0:21:24You'd look up and you're in a hole.

0:21:24 > 0:21:30Our original thought was we'd stay at the tree to wait for the wind to calm down

0:21:30 > 0:21:37and then start heading home. But...lo and behold, the weather just kept getting worse and worse.

0:21:37 > 0:21:42By now, the winds were gusting at 145mph,

0:21:42 > 0:21:48temperatures had plummeted way below zero and the snow was drifting as high as ten metres.

0:21:48 > 0:21:53All over the state, the blizzard was tightening its grip.

0:21:53 > 0:21:58'The death toll from the blizzard of '93 is mounting. Seven people reported dead...'

0:21:58 > 0:22:06Back at the tree, the storm was getting worse. Geoff and Bill had been stuck here for eight hours.

0:22:06 > 0:22:12I couldn't walk. Maybe about ten feet from the tree, my feet just gave out.

0:22:12 > 0:22:17I tried to stand up and couldn't. I had to crawl back here.

0:22:17 > 0:22:22- That's when I said, "Bill, no-one's looking for us." - Nobody knows we're here.- Right.

0:22:22 > 0:22:27They were trapped. As the night wore on, the temperature fell even lower,

0:22:27 > 0:22:33hitting Arctic extremes of minus 40 degrees, and still the storm raged around them.

0:22:33 > 0:22:40By the time morning came, Bill and Geoff had spent 18 hours exposed to Arctic conditions.

0:22:40 > 0:22:42Amazingly they were still alive.

0:22:42 > 0:22:47Geoff managed to struggle through the snow and raise the alarm.

0:22:47 > 0:22:52It was another six hours before the rescue services could get to Bill.

0:22:52 > 0:23:01But the cold had left a devastating legacy. They had both suffered winter's vicious touch.

0:23:01 > 0:23:03I tucked my hat in my shirt...

0:23:03 > 0:23:10and it pulled up the back of my clothes and exposed my back and the top part of my buttocks.

0:23:10 > 0:23:13I got severe frostbite. There's no feeling

0:23:13 > 0:23:18and the nerves are gone. They did skin grafts.

0:23:18 > 0:23:20Two surgeries.

0:23:20 > 0:23:23My feet, my hands, my butt...

0:23:23 > 0:23:30My knees had gotten it. The calves of my legs had it because of the way I was sitting on the ground.

0:23:30 > 0:23:34My hands were blistered, as huge as softballs.

0:23:35 > 0:23:39Deep frostbite is a one-way process.

0:23:39 > 0:23:45The cold literally freezes the skin tissue. Ice forms in the fluid in and around the cells.

0:23:45 > 0:23:50The tiny blood vessels freeze solid and no oxygen is delivered.

0:23:50 > 0:23:56But worse is to come. With no blood supply, the cells can't fight infection.

0:23:56 > 0:24:02Gangrene sets in and the affected area becomes black and starts to decompose.

0:24:02 > 0:24:05Then there is no option left but to amputate.

0:24:05 > 0:24:11After his ordeal in the freezing cold, both Geoff's feet were severely frostbitten.

0:24:13 > 0:24:18I ended up getting skin grafts done on my hands, on my butt, my legs...

0:24:18 > 0:24:24but I lost both of my feet from about four inches above the ankles. Both of them.

0:24:24 > 0:24:29A wild weather event like this is rare, unexpected,

0:24:29 > 0:24:32which is why the cost is so high.

0:24:32 > 0:24:35The key to survival is to be prepared.

0:24:41 > 0:24:44But even the professionals can get caught out.

0:24:44 > 0:24:50In the last 50 years, the Sirius Patrol have lost six men under the ice.

0:24:50 > 0:24:53Severe frostbite is always a problem,

0:24:53 > 0:25:00but they know the risks and their love of this awesome landscape far outweighs the dangers.

0:25:02 > 0:25:07Today, as the Sirius Patrol travels north into this wonderful wilderness,

0:25:07 > 0:25:09I'm on a different journey,

0:25:09 > 0:25:15travelling south with the cold, as it brings winter to the peoples of the northern hemisphere.

0:25:16 > 0:25:21I'm going to a place that gets the first blast of winter's icy grip.

0:25:24 > 0:25:30All that polar wind screaming south is about to crash into the warmer air from the equator.

0:25:30 > 0:25:34When they meet, all hell breaks loose.

0:25:34 > 0:25:37And the place right on the front line

0:25:37 > 0:25:41is the Mount Washington weather station in north-east America.

0:25:41 > 0:25:47It's here that the battle between hot and cold begins. But for now at least, all is quiet.

0:25:47 > 0:25:53Mount Washington is the highest point in the north-eastern United States.

0:25:53 > 0:25:59Although not all that high on a world scale, it's commonly known as the home of the world's worst weather.

0:25:59 > 0:26:05'This morning, the temperature outside is down to minus nine degrees

0:26:05 > 0:26:09'with wind from the north-west at 48mph.'

0:26:09 > 0:26:15Forecast for the summit today is snow showers and winds of 40 to 60mph.

0:26:15 > 0:26:21But don't hold your breath, because yet another system is approaching from the Great Lakes this afternoon.

0:26:21 > 0:26:26So how does a sun-kissed mountain like this get such a bad reputation?

0:26:26 > 0:26:32Well, the summit lies in the path of the principal storm tracks and air mass routes

0:26:32 > 0:26:35that affect the weather in the north-east,

0:26:35 > 0:26:41which makes it the perfect place to discover what happens when wind and cold combine.

0:26:41 > 0:26:46Good morning. Welcome to the summit of Mount Washington, the home of the world's worst weather.

0:26:46 > 0:26:53- Great to be here. The mountain's been very good to us today. - You should've been here yesterday.

0:26:53 > 0:26:59Just my luck - I came here to find the worst winds in the world and the weather was perfect!

0:27:01 > 0:27:07But I didn't have to wait long. A few hours later, I saw why this place gets its reputation.

0:27:07 > 0:27:13Within minutes, the blue skies turned to grey and the winds kicked up.

0:27:18 > 0:27:23The highest wind ever recorded was here at Mount Washington -

0:27:23 > 0:27:25a staggering 231mph.

0:27:25 > 0:27:31The wind now is gusting at 60mph, and already I'm getting tossed about.

0:27:31 > 0:27:34It's very difficult to stay up.

0:27:39 > 0:27:45The first thing you notice when the wind gets going is that it feels much colder.

0:27:45 > 0:27:50This effect is called the wind-chill factor.

0:27:50 > 0:27:55So, in winds of 50mph, minus five feels like minus 38.

0:27:56 > 0:28:01Wind and cold together multiply the deadly effects of winter,

0:28:01 > 0:28:09which is why the Mount Washington observatory is the best place to study the extremes of winter weather.

0:28:12 > 0:28:14That is, if the instruments don't ice up!

0:28:17 > 0:28:22When the wind and a cold fog like this meet an object, something truly amazing happens.

0:28:22 > 0:28:28The fog that surrounds me is made up of billions of water droplets.

0:28:28 > 0:28:30The strange thing is

0:28:30 > 0:28:36that they are all way below the freezing point but remain in liquid form called "supercooled",

0:28:36 > 0:28:41but when they hit an object, they freeze solid.

0:28:41 > 0:28:45These beautiful feathers of ice are called rime ice. It's as tough as nails.

0:28:52 > 0:28:56This remarkable ability of water to remain a liquid way below zero

0:28:56 > 0:29:03is the cause of one of the most extraordinary weather events on the planet - an ice storm.

0:29:03 > 0:29:10And one of the worst ice storms in history hit eastern Canada with a vengeance.

0:29:11 > 0:29:17This was the most destructive storm in Canadian history.

0:29:17 > 0:29:24We have over a century and a half of weather-keeping in Canada and there was nothing to match this.

0:29:24 > 0:29:30Ice storms are not unusual in Canada, coating the landscape with a beautiful shroud of ice.

0:29:30 > 0:29:36But in January 1998, Canada was hit by a storm that was anything but usual.

0:29:36 > 0:29:40At first, the ice storm of '98 was just as magical.

0:29:41 > 0:29:46It was really more of an exhilaration. People were not too...

0:29:46 > 0:29:51disrupted by that. School was cancelled, businesses closed,

0:29:51 > 0:29:54but it was a winter wonderland.

0:29:54 > 0:29:59It gives you that enchanted wonderland where the landscape looks so beautiful.

0:29:59 > 0:30:04On the evening of the 4th of January, winter was still on the attack.

0:30:04 > 0:30:10A bank of freezing polar air sat like a blanket over the north-east of the country.

0:30:10 > 0:30:16At the same time, a mass of warm, moist air from Texas moved in above the polar air,

0:30:16 > 0:30:22forming a wedge and trapping it beneath - perfect conditions for an ice storm.

0:30:22 > 0:30:24But in the middle of the wedge,

0:30:24 > 0:30:30rain from the warm air above doesn't have enough time to freeze solid on its way down,

0:30:30 > 0:30:33so it falls as supercooled rain.

0:30:33 > 0:30:38What happens is that the raindrop will fall through that wedge of cold air.

0:30:38 > 0:30:43The liquid raindrop begins to cool but it doesn't get quite frozen.

0:30:43 > 0:30:50It freezes to the point that it's "supercooled" - it's below freezing point, but it's still liquid.

0:30:50 > 0:30:55Because the object that it hits is below freezing, it's almost shocked.

0:30:55 > 0:31:00It makes that perfect transformation from the liquid to the solid.

0:31:00 > 0:31:05It spreads out and freezes into a little veneer of ice

0:31:05 > 0:31:10which is the toughest and most adhesive ice nature can produce.

0:31:14 > 0:31:20Ice storms can be lethal, but usually the misery only lasts a few hours.

0:31:20 > 0:31:26But the ice storm of January 1998 was different. It arrived in waves.

0:31:26 > 0:31:31For two days, the freezing rain just kept coming.

0:31:31 > 0:31:34This ice just kept building up.

0:31:34 > 0:31:40And the wires kept getting bigger and all the trees around were building up with ice.

0:31:40 > 0:31:44Look at the thickness of this ice compared to my hand.

0:31:45 > 0:31:50You could have maybe four inches of ice around a small twig,

0:31:50 > 0:31:56and, of course, that twig, that's part of a branch which is also encased in ice,

0:31:56 > 0:32:01will, all of a sudden, have a different weight and it will break.

0:32:05 > 0:32:09This condition kept up for hour after hour.

0:32:09 > 0:32:15Gradually we started to hear the trees coming down and then the lines started coming down.

0:32:15 > 0:32:21The trees were falling on the lines and the lines were falling down on their own because of the ice.

0:32:21 > 0:32:27By the evening of the third day, the rain stopped, but the icy conditions continued.

0:32:27 > 0:32:32Then satellites monitoring the storm saw another wave hit.

0:32:32 > 0:32:35Thousands of square miles came to a virtual standstill.

0:32:35 > 0:32:38Life was almost impossible.

0:32:38 > 0:32:39'The freezing rain won't let up.

0:32:39 > 0:32:45'If you do not have to go out, do not, unless it is absolutely necessary.'

0:32:45 > 0:32:47On the Friday, what we call

0:32:47 > 0:32:50the Black...the Dark Friday or the Cold Friday,

0:32:50 > 0:32:55we suddenly realised that this was more than a usual ice storm.

0:32:55 > 0:33:00Then we lost power for more than half of the province.

0:33:03 > 0:33:09The lines of cables and huge transmission towers were crumpled to the ground like paperclips.

0:33:09 > 0:33:17When you saw an electrical pylon suddenly buckle in front of your eyes,

0:33:17 > 0:33:20you knew these were major problems.

0:33:20 > 0:33:25If you can imagine, you're looking down this whole pile of poles

0:33:25 > 0:33:29and you see them coming down one after another,

0:33:29 > 0:33:33then you see the fireballs as the electricity is being cut off.

0:33:35 > 0:33:40It looked like a war zone, really, it was so devastated.

0:33:45 > 0:33:49The ice struck at the very heart of modern life.

0:33:49 > 0:33:55Every house, factory and office in an area of half a million square miles was blacked out.

0:33:55 > 0:34:00Without power and communications Montreal hit crisis point.

0:34:00 > 0:34:04A centre was set up to co-ordinate emergency efforts.

0:34:04 > 0:34:10An ice storm that's been called the worst weather crisis eastern Canada has dealt with.

0:34:10 > 0:34:15Without electricity, millions had no heating, fresh water or sanitation.

0:34:15 > 0:34:17It was fast getting out of control.

0:34:17 > 0:34:24Emergency services couldn't cope and the government was at a loss about what to do next.

0:34:24 > 0:34:26We saw desperation in people's eyes.

0:34:26 > 0:34:30Temperatures plummeted to minus 15, minus 18.

0:34:30 > 0:34:37Even after the ice storm passed, it took three weeks to restore power and get the city back to normal.

0:34:37 > 0:34:40For four million people,

0:34:40 > 0:34:46this ice storm was the weather event of their lifetime.

0:34:46 > 0:34:50They never, in fact, will probably ever endure such an event.

0:34:50 > 0:34:58In the end, 50,000 people were forced to leave their homes and take refuge in temporary shelters.

0:34:58 > 0:35:0335 people died, and many more were left in a critical condition.

0:35:03 > 0:35:09During the storm, 3,000 kilometres of power lines were destroyed

0:35:09 > 0:35:11at a cost of over 800 million.

0:35:14 > 0:35:18200 years ago, there wouldn't have been a storm.

0:35:18 > 0:35:22200 years ago, the ice would have come and the ice would have gone.

0:35:22 > 0:35:28People would have had wood in their fires, made muffins on their stoves, and it wouldn't have bothered them.

0:35:28 > 0:35:31It now all depends on electricity, so it was devastating.

0:35:31 > 0:35:39In our endless battle against the cold, the weather won and our technology was useless.

0:35:45 > 0:35:48As my journey with winter continues south,

0:35:48 > 0:35:51cold weather becomes far less extreme

0:35:51 > 0:35:54but can be even more dangerous.

0:35:54 > 0:35:58To prove it, I'm off to the cold-death capital of Europe.

0:35:58 > 0:36:00Moscow? Helsinki?

0:36:00 > 0:36:01No.

0:36:01 > 0:36:04BIG BEN CHIMES London.

0:36:04 > 0:36:06CHIMES AGAIN

0:36:06 > 0:36:12Just because you can't see the ice and snow doesn't mean that cold isn't a killer.

0:36:12 > 0:36:18In Britain, we very rarely experience the extremes that winter can bring, like ice storms and blizzards,

0:36:18 > 0:36:25so it may be surprising to learn that there are more cold-related deaths in London than anywhere else in Europe.

0:36:26 > 0:36:29In the mild climate we enjoy in Britain,

0:36:29 > 0:36:33we don't feel we need to dress up warmly against the cold,

0:36:33 > 0:36:36but even these temperatures can be deadly.

0:36:40 > 0:36:45Even in water well above freezing, say, ten degrees Celsius, that's 50 Fahrenheit,

0:36:45 > 0:36:49some one in six will be dead after just 15 minutes.

0:36:49 > 0:36:57Now, it's a cold morning and the water in this lake is nearer five degrees.

0:36:59 > 0:37:02Now... HE PANTS

0:37:02 > 0:37:04Sorry.

0:37:04 > 0:37:06Forgot that line!

0:37:08 > 0:37:12The water in this lake is nearer five degrees.

0:37:12 > 0:37:14Even a quick dip...

0:37:14 > 0:37:17Even a quick...a quick dip...

0:37:17 > 0:37:23as this heart rate monitor should show, should be enough to send my body's defences into overdrive.

0:37:25 > 0:37:27HEARTBEAT POUNDS

0:37:37 > 0:37:42'My body's progress is being monitored by Dr Rosemary Leonard.'

0:37:42 > 0:37:46Quick! Here, put the towel around you. You're shivering like crazy.

0:37:46 > 0:37:48- How do you feel?- (I'm freezing!)

0:37:48 > 0:37:53Let's just see what's happened to your pulse and your blood pressure.

0:37:53 > 0:37:58'The monitor showed my pulse was 50% faster than my normal heart rate.

0:37:58 > 0:38:02'Now for my blood pressure.'

0:38:02 > 0:38:04160 - that's high.

0:38:04 > 0:38:07160 over 100.

0:38:07 > 0:38:09What's that reading telling you?

0:38:09 > 0:38:12The blood vessels in the outer part of your skin,

0:38:12 > 0:38:16and also inside your body, are narrowing down

0:38:16 > 0:38:22to try and conserve the heat and the blood flow where it's really needed, round your heart and lungs.

0:38:22 > 0:38:24'This is the normal response.

0:38:24 > 0:38:30'As the blood vessels in my skin constrict, the blood in the rest of my body becomes thicker and stickier.

0:38:30 > 0:38:36'And it's this everyday reaction to cold that can sometimes cause a sudden and painful death.

0:38:37 > 0:38:42'It's a story that repeats itself every day across the city.

0:38:42 > 0:38:46'A cold winter's morning. A commuter hurries to the station.

0:38:46 > 0:38:51'The rush hour has begun. It could be you.'

0:38:51 > 0:38:54- Pretty cold this morning.- Yeah.

0:38:54 > 0:39:00'No hat, no scarf, no gloves. So what? It's cold, but it's not snowing.

0:39:00 > 0:39:08'As you wait for the train, your body is already shutting down the blood vessels nearest to the exposed skin.

0:39:08 > 0:39:14'As you shiver, your blood is starting to thicken and retreat back to your vital organs.

0:39:14 > 0:39:18'As it gets thicker and stickier, the nightmare scenario begins.

0:39:20 > 0:39:23'A tiny clot starts to form.

0:39:23 > 0:39:28'As you worry about being late, the clot is on time to reach your heart.

0:39:28 > 0:39:34'That night, you suffer a lethal heart attack and never make that journey again.

0:39:34 > 0:39:39'The coroner's report adds you to the statistics -

0:39:39 > 0:39:42'death by natural causes.

0:39:44 > 0:39:51'The figures show that in London over 3,000 extra deaths happen like this every winter.

0:39:51 > 0:39:55'Across the UK, the figure is closer to 20,000,

0:39:55 > 0:39:59'all victims of an invisible serial killer - cold.

0:39:59 > 0:40:04'The real tragedy is that it could so easily have been avoided.

0:40:04 > 0:40:06'My mother was right.

0:40:06 > 0:40:09'All you need is a hat and gloves.'

0:40:10 > 0:40:15Further south than London, winter's grip is even less extreme,

0:40:15 > 0:40:20unless, of course, you go up high, where cold is always with us.

0:40:20 > 0:40:27On top of the mountains or high in the clouds, there is always snow, even at the equator.

0:40:27 > 0:40:34Wherever you are in the world, there's a good chance that there'll be snow above you.

0:40:34 > 0:40:37Most of the time it falls as rain,

0:40:37 > 0:40:41but up here, at high altitude, it falls as snow.

0:40:47 > 0:40:52It's one of nature's miracles and winter's most distinctive hallmarks.

0:40:52 > 0:40:55Snowflakes start life as tiny particles in the clouds.

0:40:55 > 0:41:01Water droplets attracted to their surfaces freeze, forming ice crystals.

0:41:01 > 0:41:06More water droplets are drawn to the crystal, which grows into a snowflake,

0:41:06 > 0:41:10eventually heavy enough to fall to the ground.

0:41:10 > 0:41:17The classic six-sided snowflake is the most common, but it's only one of several different types.

0:41:20 > 0:41:22This is a plate...

0:41:24 > 0:41:27..and here, two plates are joined by a column.

0:41:27 > 0:41:32They can combine to form even more complex shapes as they fall.

0:41:36 > 0:41:41Needles, columns and plates form the basic building blocks.

0:41:47 > 0:41:49Under the electron microscope,

0:41:49 > 0:41:56extreme close-ups of snowflakes reveal their almost unbelievable complexity -

0:41:56 > 0:41:59the weather's miracle of engineering.

0:42:01 > 0:42:06Each different type of snowflake forms a different type of snow...

0:42:07 > 0:42:10..all with extraordinary properties.

0:42:10 > 0:42:12Some can be as strong as concrete,

0:42:12 > 0:42:18which is just as well if you're caught in a storm with Peter Marchand.

0:42:18 > 0:42:22Peter is a snow lover,

0:42:22 > 0:42:28a winter scientist who spends weeks researching out in the snowy hills of Colorado.

0:42:28 > 0:42:33He needs nothing out here except a few feet of loose snow.

0:42:33 > 0:42:38Ever since my father got me out on skis as a small child,

0:42:38 > 0:42:42I became interested in snow as a material.

0:42:43 > 0:42:48When snowflakes fall to the ground they don't remain soft and powdery

0:42:48 > 0:42:53but under their own weight bond together into a solid mass.

0:42:57 > 0:43:04It's this bonding process that allows nature to make these wonderful snow sculptures -

0:43:04 > 0:43:09but it's also what allows Peter Marchand to build himself a shelter.

0:43:11 > 0:43:18What I'm doing now is building a snow house. It's called a quin-zhee.

0:43:18 > 0:43:21The process is almost magical.

0:43:21 > 0:43:28Just piling up loose, powdery snow puts pressure on the surface of the snowflake.

0:43:28 > 0:43:34It melts, forming a thin layer of water which sticks the neighbouring crystals together.

0:43:34 > 0:43:38Over time the water freezes, bonding the snowflakes together.

0:43:39 > 0:43:46There! We'll give it a couple of hours to complete the process of bonding

0:43:46 > 0:43:52and we'll come back, dig it out and have ourselves a shelter for the night.

0:43:55 > 0:43:59A few hours later, the pile of loose snow has turned into a solid block

0:43:59 > 0:44:01that Peter simply hollows out

0:44:01 > 0:44:06to form a sturdy shelter against the wildest winter weather.

0:44:06 > 0:44:09It's a very strong structure.

0:44:09 > 0:44:12It seems to get stronger with time

0:44:12 > 0:44:18and can be used over and over again You can move on and come back to them.

0:44:18 > 0:44:23It's just really a beautiful material, free of charge.

0:44:26 > 0:44:31For as easy as they are to build, they're as easy to walk away from.

0:44:31 > 0:44:39You have nothing to fold up, to put on your back or on your pack animals and carry with you.

0:44:51 > 0:44:54Mark Twain said of the cold in North America,

0:44:54 > 0:45:01"If the thermometer had been an inch longer we'd all have been frozen to death."

0:45:01 > 0:45:04We complain, but winter also has its pleasures.

0:45:30 > 0:45:35The same bonding effect that built Peter's snow shelter

0:45:35 > 0:45:38makes the perfect surface for winter sports.

0:45:38 > 0:45:44But when that bonding fails, the results can be terrifying.

0:45:51 > 0:45:53THUNDEROUS CRUNCH

0:45:53 > 0:45:59Looked left, saw a big crack. Looked right, saw a big crack. "Oh - I'm in an avalanche."

0:45:59 > 0:46:02Whilst filming a TV programme,

0:46:02 > 0:46:08expert skier Nick Farquit was caught in one of cold's most powerful and frightening killers.

0:46:08 > 0:46:11Came up for one breath and got engulfed again...

0:46:11 > 0:46:15then hitting the snow at the bottom,

0:46:15 > 0:46:22and the rest of the avalanche pounding me down like a hammer - boof, boof, boof!

0:46:22 > 0:46:27He was lucky to survive. Each year, many hundreds don't.

0:46:27 > 0:46:32Snowfalls usually build up into strongly bonded layers.

0:46:32 > 0:46:35But sometimes one layer remains weak.

0:46:35 > 0:46:40Even the vibrations from a skier can cause the layer above to slide off.

0:46:40 > 0:46:49In seconds, hundreds of thousands of tonnes of snow hurtle down the mountainside at over 100mph.

0:46:49 > 0:46:57With so many people visiting ski resorts each year, avalanches are a real threat.

0:46:57 > 0:47:02Dedicated teams of Avalaunchers are locked in battle against the weather.

0:47:03 > 0:47:10Their job is to seek out potentially dangerous build-ups and overhangs of snow and dynamite them.

0:47:21 > 0:47:26Sometimes the unpredictability of the weather can catch us all by surprise.

0:47:33 > 0:47:37The little town of Galtur should have been safe from the threat of avalanches.

0:47:37 > 0:47:45But a freak combination of weather systems made it the victim of one of the deadliest in the Alps for years.

0:47:59 > 0:48:04It had been snowing heavily for several days.

0:48:04 > 0:48:08Deep snow was piling up on the mountain above Galtur.

0:48:08 > 0:48:15In addition, high winds changed direction and began to lift more snow on top of it.

0:48:15 > 0:48:22But what no-one knew was that underneath this huge mass of new snow was an unstable layer.

0:48:22 > 0:48:28A few days of warm weather had previously melted the surface, which had turned to ice.

0:48:28 > 0:48:34The new snowfall couldn't bond properly to this hard, icy layer.

0:48:34 > 0:48:36No-one knows just what triggered it

0:48:36 > 0:48:43but, in seconds, over a third of a million tonnes of snow tore down the mountain

0:48:43 > 0:48:45at a devastating 186mph.

0:48:51 > 0:48:59This monster wiped out everything in its path, and the town of Galtur was crushed under its weight.

0:49:06 > 0:49:0938 people died.

0:49:09 > 0:49:13It was the worst disaster for 30 years.

0:49:18 > 0:49:23Up here in the mountains, the weather has one more trick up its sleeve.

0:49:23 > 0:49:31The snow that brings the devastation of avalanches also creates cold's most enduring monument - a glacier.

0:49:32 > 0:49:37Well done. You can see where we've got to go, along the white ice here,

0:49:37 > 0:49:43then up into the green ice here on the glacier. A long way to go, still.

0:49:43 > 0:49:49Mountain guide Russell Bryce is taking me to the source of the Argentiere,

0:49:49 > 0:49:53one of the Alps' most impressive glaciers.

0:49:53 > 0:49:56To understand how it forms and what it does to the weather,

0:49:56 > 0:49:58we have to climb it.

0:49:58 > 0:50:01Down here at the base, it SEEMED like a good idea.

0:50:08 > 0:50:12The glacier has been here for over 10,000 years.

0:50:12 > 0:50:17It takes the ice 500 years to travel from the top to down here.

0:50:18 > 0:50:23Way above us lies the source of this great stream of ice.

0:50:23 > 0:50:26Surprisingly, it starts life as snow.

0:50:26 > 0:50:30Over time, the crystals bond together to form the ice.

0:50:30 > 0:50:34As it falls, year after year, layers of snow become crushed

0:50:34 > 0:50:37into little ice crystals that fuse together.

0:50:37 > 0:50:42The weight of new snow compresses the ice below even more,

0:50:42 > 0:50:46eventually turning it to pure, blue, glacial ice.

0:50:46 > 0:50:50When the glacier is big enough it starts to move,

0:50:50 > 0:50:55and over thousands of years a vast river of ice is formed.

0:50:55 > 0:50:59As it flows, it breaks into enormous crevasses.

0:50:59 > 0:51:03The glacier is over six miles long and two miles wide.

0:51:08 > 0:51:11- It's amazing in here.- Yep.

0:51:11 > 0:51:16It'll be quite hard to get out, though. Look how hard this ice is.

0:51:16 > 0:51:21It'll shatter... You see how it's cracked all round here?

0:51:21 > 0:51:26- How do you get a grip on that? - Well, that's what we'll have to do!

0:51:26 > 0:51:29What is it that makes this extraordinary thing?

0:51:29 > 0:51:33- So smooth, and with all these layers.- Sheer weight.

0:51:33 > 0:51:38The weight of the ice on itself. If you take a handful of snow...

0:51:38 > 0:51:41and you squeeze it and squeeze it...

0:51:41 > 0:51:48- If you squeeze that really hard, you'll make it ice.- The amount of pressure that's created that!

0:51:49 > 0:51:52How are we going to climb that, now?!

0:51:56 > 0:51:59Quite hard ice here at the moment...

0:52:01 > 0:52:04Quite delicate, really, isn't it?

0:52:11 > 0:52:13Climbing!

0:52:14 > 0:52:18- I need a little slack.- Got it.

0:52:18 > 0:52:23- Yeah, that's good.- It just seems impossible to get a grip.- That's it!

0:52:23 > 0:52:26- Keep me tight. - Can you get your ice-axe in?

0:52:26 > 0:52:29OW!

0:52:29 > 0:52:31- You OK? - TIRED LAUGH

0:52:31 > 0:52:34- How are you doing?- OK...!

0:52:34 > 0:52:37Just to the left, there.

0:52:39 > 0:52:41- Oh, what a relief.- Yeah.

0:52:44 > 0:52:49- Excellent. - Not very graceful!- It's good.

0:52:56 > 0:53:01For every 100 metres we climb, the temperature drops half a degree.

0:53:01 > 0:53:08It's the mix between the cold air up here and the warm air blown up into the mountains from below

0:53:08 > 0:53:11that can make the weather so ferocious.

0:53:11 > 0:53:15But it's also what creates the snow which makes the glacier.

0:53:20 > 0:53:25'Finally, the peak of the mountain! This is where it all begins.'

0:53:27 > 0:53:30Here we are - the old Holy Grail.

0:53:30 > 0:53:34- You see the neve in here?- Yeah. - This is the collection area.

0:53:34 > 0:53:42- This is what actually collects all the ice and snow.- Where a glacier would actually start.

0:53:42 > 0:53:49This is truly one of the most spectacular, beautiful sights I've seen in my work on this programme.

0:53:49 > 0:53:54It also is one of the coldest and one of the most terrifying sights.

0:53:54 > 0:54:00To see those crevasses down there... How big and how deep are they?

0:54:00 > 0:54:05- Those, maybe 50 metres deep. - If somebody fell in there, you haven't a chance.

0:54:05 > 0:54:08You'd die. For sure.

0:54:09 > 0:54:12Just...a staggering landscape.

0:54:14 > 0:54:18But this wonderful landscape is changing.

0:54:18 > 0:54:24Across the whole Alps, almost half the ice has melted, and 100 glaciers have disappeared altogether.

0:54:24 > 0:54:28And all this in the last 150 years.

0:54:28 > 0:54:31Why?

0:54:31 > 0:54:35Global warming. And if it continues,

0:54:35 > 0:54:42by 2050, ice cover will be just 20% of what it was a century and a half ago.

0:54:45 > 0:54:47All across the world, the story is the same.

0:54:47 > 0:54:52From the Andes to the Himalayas, glaciers are on the retreat,

0:54:52 > 0:54:57melting faster than the snows can replenish them.

0:55:00 > 0:55:04But the real problem is here at the poles.

0:55:07 > 0:55:11If the ice - north and south, including the glaciers - all melted,

0:55:11 > 0:55:18the sea level would rise by 20 feet, submerging low-lying cities like London, New York and Tokyo.

0:55:23 > 0:55:30The irony is that cold, our greatest enemy, is also preserving the world as we know it.

0:55:32 > 0:55:37Back up north, in winter's lair, my journey is at an end.

0:55:37 > 0:55:42I've learned to respect nature's most powerful weapon.

0:55:42 > 0:55:49I've seen the devastation cold brings in all its forms - ice, snow and freezing rain -

0:55:49 > 0:55:51and how powerless we are against it.

0:55:51 > 0:55:59Like all weather, winter and the cold it brings is uncontrollable and unpredictable.

0:55:59 > 0:56:05We must learn to live with it and prepare for the worst it has to offer.

0:56:05 > 0:56:09I for one will never take cold for granted again.

0:56:14 > 0:56:20'In the next programme, I'll follow the violent journey heat takes

0:56:20 > 0:56:24'from the steaming jungles of the equator,

0:56:24 > 0:56:29'through the blinding heat of the deserts

0:56:29 > 0:56:31'and on into an uncertain future.

0:56:33 > 0:56:37'Our world is warming up and our weather is getting wilder.

0:56:37 > 0:56:41'I'll try and find out what the future holds.'

0:56:41 > 0:56:42Oh, my God!