How engineers built highways directly on Arctic ice

The shortest route between Russia and America was over the ice.

During the Cold War, long-range bombers and guided missiles transformed the Arctic into the shortest attack route between the United States and Russia. This strategic shift prompted military expeditions into extreme polar conditions.

Why the Arctic Became the Cold War's Most Dangerous Border

Building roads on ground that turns to slush.

Army engineers test novel construction methods on Arctic terrain where winter freezes ice into concrete hardness and summer thaws it into impassable slush. Their heavy equipment carves out pathfinder routes across glaciers.

The Extreme Challenge of Constructing Roads on Ice

Insulating the ice created an elevated road.

Army engineers discovered that placing two and a half feet of soil over glacial ice insulated it from melting, while surrounding uncovered ice melted away vertically. This strange process elevated the road above the landscape into a perched highway.

The Physics Trick Behind the Floating Perched Road

Blowing up hidden death traps in the Arctic ice

Engineers probe for deadly concealed crevasses, blast away unstable snow bridges with dynamite, and send a volunteer down to inspect the chasm.

Blasting Hidden Crevasses in the Arctic

Navigating blind in a polar blizzard before GPS

Military engineers developed an electrified single-wire navigation trail that allowed vehicle drivers to steer safely in total darkness and blizzards.

How Soldiers Drove Blind in Polar Blizzards

Glacial ice keeps a physical record of human history

Drilling cores deep into glacial ice reveals distinct layers that chronicle global history, from distant volcanic explosions to atomic detonations.

How Ice Cores Preserve History

Demolishing an unstable ice cliff with explosives

When hanging ice formations threaten researchers working below, engineers detonate explosive charges to blow the cliff face away in seconds.

Blasting Giant Arctic Ice Cliffs

During a single Arctic summer, a solitary soldier dug an eight-foot wide, hundred-foot deep shaft into the ice using only a hand pick and shovel.

One Soldier Dug a 100-Foot Ice Shaft Alone

Turning loose snow into solid concrete in 24 hours

Army engineers position arched steel frames over trenches and blow processed snow across the top. Within twenty-four hours, the snow recrystallizes into a rock-solid ceiling.

Turning Arctic Snow into Concrete

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Giving a Crashed Plane a 220-Mile Sled Ride

A 220-mile piggyback sled ride for a crashed plane

Engineers mount a wrecked Air Force aircraft onto giant sled runners to tow it 220 miles back to base behind heavy tractors.

[03:36] Why the Arctic Became the Cold War's Most Dangerous Border
[04:44] The Extreme Challenge of Constructing Roads on Ice
[05:49] The Physics Trick Behind the Floating Perched Road
[08:26] Blasting Hidden Crevasses in the Arctic
[09:37] How Soldiers Drove Blind in Polar Blizzards
[13:40] How Ice Cores Preserve History
[15:09] Blasting Giant Arctic Ice Cliffs
[18:04] One Soldier Dug a 100-Foot Ice Shaft Alone
[21:16] Turning Arctic Snow into Concrete
[22:53.000] Giving a Crashed Plane a 220-Mile Sled Ride

How engineers built highways directly on Arctic ice

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