The History Channel

The Mayan civilization dominated Central America for nearly 2000 years, but by the 9th century A.D., the great Mayan cities were abandoned, and the Mayan people vanished. What could have happened to this advanced culture? Might the Maya have left clues as to how they surpassed other cultures in science, mathematics, time keeping, and most importantly, astronomy? In recent years, hieroglyphs have been decoded to reveal that the Maya were able to accurately predict shifts in the Earth's axis every 26,000 years. Inscriptions on the sarcophagus of their most prominent ruler, King Pakal, tell of a journey to the Milky Way. And a sophisticated calendar foretells of the end of the world in 2012. Most striking is their belief that knowledge was passed to them by otherworldly beings who descended from the sky. Could the ancient Maya have actually conspired with extraterrestrial visitors to plan the future--and even the very end of the world?

From popes and presidents to dictators, Antichrists have been identified in all periods of recorded history and in all walks of life. Even nations, movements, and technologies have been thought by some to be the agents of the Antichrist. Throughout history, people have seen their own times as the most morally bankrupt and have recognized signs of the coming of the Apocalypse. If the end is near, what will it be like? What is the Antichrist's agenda? How does he intend to take over the world and wreak destruction? Is this escapist fantasy or inescapable fate?

Nightmarish terrors long relegated to the pages of science fiction are threatening to become a reality in the 21st Century. As science continues to evolve, the boundaries of fantasy and reality have blurred as we uncover new truths about our world and beyond. This countdown to future Apocalypse has lead everyday people to prepare for survival in the face of the looming Doomsday. Utah housewife Peggy Layton has stored years worth of food in an underground shelter and zombie researcher Matt Mogk has developed his own survival plan including a stockpile of weapons specifically chosen to fend off a zombie attack.

Mass suicides. Human sacrifices. Unholy rituals. Throughout history, people have claimed to have otherworldly knowledge, and have led followers to commit horrific acts of violence. Are they con men? Are they insane? Or might the voices in their heads really be of an extraterrestrial origin? And if so, did they simply misinterpret the messages they received? Or might there be extraterrestrials with a sinister agenda?

When millions of people all over the world vanish, a biblical prophecy that has come to be known as the Rapture will be fulfilled, and a floodgate of horrors will be opened on those who are left behind. The Apostle Paul foresaw a moment when all Christians would suddenly be caught up into the air with their Messiah. This would occur prior to the final outpouring of God's wrath upon the wicked. Even Native America Hopi predicted the faithful would be taken off the Earth in advance of a final war between good and evil. Many claim that all of the events that presage the Rapture have already happened. Does this mean that the Rapture is almost upon us? If so, we are now on the threshold of an Apocalypse.

A team of top scientists come together with one goal to create the definitive guide to Bigfoot. Does the creature exist? And if it does where is it? And how can it survive without being detected? Using a new interactive map the team has plotted more than 10,000 Bigfoot type sightings from around the world. These sightings are of an unidentified creature which walks on two legs and is covered in a thick layer of hair. Many of theses sightings date back over 100 years. With their expert knowledge of the natural world they are able to dismiss nearly 90% of the sightings, but what emerges is a series of global hotspots that cannot be explained which indicate that something is out there. The team examines these global hotspots and searches for explanations including new theories that suggest we may have been looking for the wrong creature all along?

Centuries ago the prophet Nostradamus had visions of the end of our modern world. Now, scholars decipher his mysterious predictions and learn of terrible tragedies and catastrophic events that threaten to annihilate global populations. Nostradamus has successfully predicted the rise of Hitler, the assassination of John F. Kennedy, the detonation of the atomic bomb, and countless other events. Many fear that the remaining unfulfilled prophecies of Nostradamus will manifest before our very eyes. At Radius Engineering in Texas, Walton McCarthy shows state of the art underground shelters to a concerned family and in South Florida, Billy Carson of Fort Terra Nova meets with a prospective client interested in joining an underground shelter community large enough to house over 350 people.

The Book of Revelation: the New Testament s blueprint of doom foretells the coming of the Four Horsemen of the apocalypse, heralding the end of days. These horsemen will usher in four divine judgments that promise to devastate humanity. While skeptics dismiss it as a mere allegory, every Sunday around the Christian world, church pews reverberate with its dark prophecies. With the potential for global pandemic hiding in every unchecked sneeze, worldwide hunger at an all-time high and the specter of World War III hanging over the Middle East, Revelation s followers believe its dark imagery is coming to light in modern times. Believer and prepper Ray Gano sees current events as a confirmation of the Book of Revelation s predictions and is preparing to face the divine fury of God.

Nightmarish terrors long relegated to the pages of science fiction are threatening to become a reality in the 21st Century. As science continues to evolve, the boundaries of fantasy and reality have blurred as we uncover new truths about our world and beyond. This countdown to future Apocalypse has lead everyday people to prepare for survival in the face of the looming Doomsday. Utah housewife Peggy Layton has stored years worth of food in an underground shelter and zombie researcher Matt Mogk has developed his own survival plan including a stockpile of weapons specifically chosen to fend off a zombie attack.

We're the United States, but sometimes, it's every state for itself. Nearly every state has pulled a power play that gamed the system and changed the map. How much can you get away with when it's state vs. state?

America's most iconic rivalry was more than just a feud between families. The fight between the Hatfields and McCoys nearly launched a war between two states.

England/France, September 1943--July 1944: Patton's victories in Sicily are overshadowed by the infamous "slapping incident." Instead of leading the D-Day invasion of France, Patton is assigned to command a fictitious army in England as part of a ruse to fool the Germans. The deception pays off, and the Allies land on the beaches of Normandy. Patton helps plan the break-out from the weeks-long battle, and American armored forces blast through the German lines. Patton is finally able to lead some of the lightning-fast armored assaults he is famous for.

Informational programming.

Informational programming.

Informational programming.

Informational programming.

In a country torn by bloody civil war, a young man seizes power. In his native tongue, he is called Dracula. This is not the vampire, Count Dracula, but a real historical figure: a Romanian prince. Dracula was a warlord who became known all across Europe for both his breathtaking courage and his terrifying cruelty. But he also left an enduring legacy. Not just in blood, but also in brick, mortar, and stone. He constructed palaces. He founded the city that was to become his country's capital. He also built one of Eastern Europe's most breathtaking mountaintop castles. Now, with state-of-the-art computer animation, we'll bring Dracula's lost world back to life: his birthplace in the fortified town of Sighisoara; the gothic splendor of Transylvania's Bran Castle; the sumptuous palace of Targoviste; and the real castle Dracula, Poenari.

Since Bram Stoker first published his novel Dracula in 1897, the world's most popular vampire has made his appearance in 44 languages. The vampire myth however, is much older than Count Dracula, popping up from Athens to Beijing almost 1000 years before the Transylvanian legend. Vampire legends have two things in common: drinking blood and returning from the dead. Long before Jesus urged his followers to drink his blood and eat his flesh, prehistoric man held similar rituals. From the Bible and ancient Mesopotamian history to blood drinking societies in New York, we reveal the amazing truth behind one of the most terrifying legends in history.

Was it an act of treason or patriotism? Bold in concept and challenging in execution, learn the real story behind the Valkyrie plot--a plan by a group of German officers to assassinate Adolph Hitler and take control of the government. The events leading up to July 20, 1944 are brought to life through interviews with survivors, relatives, firsthand witnesses and historians. Newsreel footage, archival photographs and re-creations are also included. Discover what the Valkyrie Legacy means to Germans and Germany, and what it says about the sometimes complex nature of heroism, and the legacy of the Resistance overall.

Our in-depth history of Hades begins with the story of a negative near-death experience, in which a man thinks he went to Hell after being declared clinically dead and before resuscitation. Following Lucifer's trail from cave paintings in France circa 6,000 BC to current portrayals in popular culture, our 2-hour exploration shows how Hell and the Devil remain powerful forces--at a church in Texas, where souls are delivered from Satan's grip; in talks with a survivor of the 1980s recovered memory craze, who "recalled" attending Witches' Sabbaths that practiced cannibalism; and at the modern Church of Satan. We review literary landmarks that expanded our ideas of the Underworld, from Dante's Inferno and Milton's Paradise Lost to Mark Twain's anti-hero, and trace development of Christian, Moslem, Jewish, and Buddhist conceptions of the afterlife.