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A video making the rounds on social media shows an alleged secret base in Antarctica. The video uses suspenseful music and Google Earth to zoom in on the station. While the video isn’t totally accurate, the base is real, but there’s nothing secret about it.
The video zooms in on the Antarctic Peninsula, which is south of Chile and a long arm that sticks out into the ocean. The map continues to zoom in to an area known as Port Lockroy. The clip then cuts to a base with a large satellite dish-looking contraption and several other buildings. The video uses “street view” to go inside the base.
Port Lockroy does have a base on it, but it’s not the one shown in the video. The buildings in the clip are the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station. The two areas are an incredible distance from one another. And despite the ominous music in the TikTok video, there’s nothing sinister about either station.
Base A in Port Lockroy
The United Kingdom oversees what’s known as Base A in Port Lockroy. The area is known as a safe harbor, so it made sense to build there. The country built the base in 1944, during World War II.
Base A in Port Lockroy. (Source: UK Antarctic Heritage Trust)
The Not So Secret Base in Antarctica: Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station
Meanwhile, the United States runs the base in the video, Amundsen-Scott. This base sits at the geographical South Pole. The station is at an elevation of 9,306 feet and is primarily used for scientific research. Astronomy and astrophysics are some of the main focuses of the station.
As you can imagine, a base that far south stays cold most of the year. Temperatures usually hover somewhere around -56 degrees Fahrenheit. So if you ever visit, be sure to bring a jacket.
