The History Channel

Geologist and adventurer Scott Wolter explores a government-restricted site, and makes a startling discovery connecting the ancient Mayans with rural Georgia.

There is evidence that suggests we experienced 20th century alien contact. In 1942, the Battle of Los Angeles involved the US military and Air Defense allegedly fighting a UFO. WWII Allied Air Force planes were buzzed by balls of light that some think could have been extraterrestrial. And the alleged crash of a flying saucer in Roswell, New Mexico in 1947 propelled the world into the age of UFOs. For decades, some people have been searching for the sounds of extraterrestrial intelligence, while others have been sending messages out into deep space. What would happen if aliens answered... or came calling? What protocols exist to determine who would speak on behalf of mankind, and how might we communicate? What happens if they return? Some believe they already have.

New York's towering skyline and world-leading technology have made it the ultimate city, yet breathtaking new discoveries reveal that the blueprints for this megametropolis were in fact laid thousands of years ago. From brutal bloodsports staged in ancient Madison Square Gardens to Times Square-style celebrations at a gigantic neolithic calendar, you are about to discover that everything you thought you knew about the Big Apple comes from our distant forefathers.

Modern medicine it isn't, but at the time, it was the best that could be done--and perhaps may have new applications in our world. Examine how the leech was used as an ancient medical cure and test one on a live patient to see how much blood comes out. Travel to Spain to take a reading from a live torpedo fish and to do a pain test with the same level of electricity on a live volunteer. Investigate trepanning, the ancient Inca art of relieving pressure on the brain by cutting open a hole in the skull, as well as Roman battlefield surgery techniques and tools. Learn how snake venom was used as medicine in the ancient world--a technique that medics are re-learning today. Using replica tools and virtual surgery in the computer, see how brain surgery performed on Prince Henry V of England to remove an arrow from his skull--the first ever life-saving surgery ever performed on a historical figure.

Mt Vesuvius is the world's most dangerous volcano, and it threatens three million people. It was responsible for the most famous natural disaster of ancient history, the eruption that destroyed the Roman city of Pompeii. And its most recent blast was caught on film in 1944. Today Vesuvius is the most densely populated volcano in the world. Now recent scientific discoveries show that it is capable of an eruption larger than ever before thought possible and that hidden beneath Vesuvius there is a vast magma chamber of boiling hot rock, ready to come out.

The Atacama desert is considered the driest place on Earth. Since human records of the area began, some places have never received rain. But the records don't stop there--the Atacama is also the oldest desert in the world, and recently it has been dated to an amazing 150 million years old. Other research shows that the surface of this desert is also incredibly ancient, with boulders lying there that have not moved for over 23 million years--more than 50 times longer than it's taken for our human species to evolve. The soil is so dry, it has been used as a test bed for the Mars rovers. And though the desert was once thought to be completely lifeless, strange bacteria discovered there have given scientists new hope that they might find life on the red planet. Atacama is also home to the largest copper mine in the world. Inspect the riddle of the Atacama and uncover how this extraordinarily dry landscape was created.

Chili head alert! It's time to get hot and spicy. First we'll take you to the home of sizzling Tabasco sauce--McIlhenny Company of Louisiana, and to McCormick in Baltimore, Maryland--the leading spice manufacturer in the world. Then, head down south to see who likes it hot at the Southern Mississippi Chili Cook Off. At the Chile Pepper Institute, taste the rare "Bhut Jolokia," the hottest Chile pepper in the world, and learn about the chemical substance capsaicin, which gives the "Bhut" and other popular peppers their tongue-burning heat. At Sol Toro restaurant in Connecticut, owned by basketball great Michael Jordan, customers need to sign a waiver to dine on their sizzling dishes. Go to the manufacturers of horseradish, wasabi and mustard to find out how their roots and seeds deliver their own distinctive blazing burn. Using the same heat many savor, we'll demonstrate the powerful punch of pepper spray as a weapon.

Rubber, Plastic, Nylon, Aerosols, Resins, Solvents, and Lubricants--none can exist without oil. If we stopped driving our cars tomorrow, America would still need five million barrels of oil a day. Visit Vulcan Materials, where oil tanks are emptied into massive double-barrel mixers to make asphalt and then continue to the Rolls Royce Aerospace Facility where complex jet fuels are blended. Travel back to the 1870's to see how an unemployed whale oil salesman turned a greasy oil-drilling by-product into a household staple: Vaseline. Finally discover how cutting-edge recycling techniques can breathe new life into used motor oil, and where a number of renewable fuels and technologies take aim at oil sovereignty.

It is the bane of every suburban parent and the joy to every school kid. Born in a swirling storm cloud through a process called nucleation, the characteristics of snow flakes are threatened by pollution trapped in the clouds. We'll travel two miles into the sky, where scientists study the inner workings of clouds while perched high on a mountaintop at the Storm Peak Laboratory. Then we'll head to the finest ski resorts in Colorado to discover how they manage the snow on their slopes and how snowmaking really works. These resorts also reside in one of the most avalanche-prone regions of the world. Despite best efforts of experts, avalanches still occur. Discover the new technology that gives rescuers a critical assist to quickly find skiers buried alive when the beauty of snow quickly turns to terror. We'll also go to Buffalo, New York the "Blizzard Capital of America" to watch how a TV Weatherman forecasts blizzards and warns his viewers to prepare for the onslaught.

Did you know that the quaint custom of Christmas caroling actually began with drunk and rowdy revelers threatening people door to door looking for food and liquor? Early versions of the heartwarming legend of Santa Claus described him as a horrible devil named Krampus who beat and kidnapped naughty children. In America during the 17th and 18th Centuries, celebrating Christmas was against the law! There's a lot to tell about the history of Christmas, and a lot you may not know. Along the way, meet Ebenezer Scrooge and George Bailey, The Grinch and Rudolph, and learn the true origins of our Christmas traditions. So grab some eggnog and a slice of fruitcake as HISTORY unwraps The Real Story of Christmas.

After three years on the road, host Brian Unger is taking a different look at just how our states got their shapes. We'll hear about the unique American values that have made this country what it is today, and travel from coast to coast and everywhere in between. Along the way, Brian reveals that just as we shaped the map, it has shaped us.

Geologist and adventurer Scott Wolter explores a government-restricted site, and makes a startling discovery connecting the ancient Mayans with rural Georgia.

The jagged backbone of Europe, spanning seven countries and providing essential water to millions, the Alps is Europe's most important geographic landmark. But how did marine fossils get here, seven thousand feet above sea level? Investigators as far back as Leonardo da Vinci have attempted to fathom out how the Alps evolved, a story that takes us to the bottom of the sea, up the slopes of the infamous Eiger and Matterhorn and deep into the heart of a glacier. But these iconic peaks won't be here for long. The mountains are tumbling down, glaciers are melting and the Alps are being washed away.

Informational programming.

Informational programming.

Informational programming.

Informational programming.

The Tanakh of the Jews is an acronym that identifies the Hebrew Bible, equivalent to the Old Testament to Christians. Within the 24 books of the Tanakh (or Mikra as it was called during the period of its recording) are astounding predictions of the future. Many of the prophets who authored or appeared in the scriptures prophesied about the fate of the Jewish people and the State of Israel. We'll examine the prophecies and chronicle the birth, death, recent resurrection, and possible future of Israel. Supported by archival footage and dramatic recreations, on-camera experts representing the three major religions, and secular perspectives, we explore the most significant of these ancient prophecies. Are the prophecies real? Are they unfolding before our eyes? Who believes, who doesn't, and why?

The oldest known weapon is the staff. Watch with surprising results a comparison test between a staff and a shotgun. Learn about the ermei--a deadly Chinese underwater attack weapon. Which is more powerful, a meteor hammer or a punch? Can Chi Warriors really kill a man with a single touch? Investigate the ability of eastern warriors to withstand pain such as smashing concrete on live human heads. Finally, ancient Chinese crossbows are examined, including one small enough to fit up your sleeve.

Travel to the farthest corners of the ancient East to uncover weapons never before seen by the world at large. In India, we encounter martial artists wielding terrifying six foot long flexible steel swords, a steel projectile that can sever the limbs of any enemies, and an ancient Indian booby trap which impales its victims as they sleep. In Egypt, the ways in which a camel was turned into a weapon of war are explored and tested. Traveling further east to China, experts investigate how armor that could stop arrows were made of nothing more than paper. Finally, through painstaking research, we construct the world's first unmanned weapon that went onto the battlefield over 2000 years ago.

Many of the modern military innovations we take for granted all stem from ancient China. It was the Chinese who invented gunpowder, and in the tenth century the Chinese created a substance that allegedly powered flame throwers and ancient rockets. From automated crossbows to siege machines able to fire over 3,000 yards, we uncover the secrets of China's most awe-inspiring weaponry. Amongst many fascinating stories, we uncover insights into the legendary rotating crossbow and the Cloud Bridge Siege Engine that was used to transport hundreds of troops to the battlefield. We will recreate some of China's legendary battlefield creations to see how the designs would have fared in combat.