It is a fireball in the sky, a bubbling, boiling, kinetic sphere of white hot plasma, exploding and erupting. Its size is almost unimaginable--one million Earths would fit within its boundaries. In this violence is born almost all the energy that makes existence on Earth possible, yet, its full mysteries are only now beginning to be understood. From Sun spots to solar eclipses, solar flares to solar storms, the birth of the sun to its potential death, discover the science and history behind this celestial object that makes life on Earth exist.

Are the rings of Saturn a real celestial phenomenon or merely a cosmic Illusion? Technology allows the experts to get closer to the furthest planet visible to the naked eye. Old questions are answered and new ones arise. Does Saturn hold the key to Earth's weather and will one of its moons supply us with all the oil we'll ever need? Cutting-edge computer graphics are used to show what life would be like on other planets and to imagine what kinds of life forms might evolve in alien atmospheres.

Once they were dreaded and thought to be dragons eating the sun--but modern science has dispelled mythology and we now look forward to total Solar Eclipses as one of the most spectacular phenomena in the heavens. Explore the complex movements of Earth, Moon and Sun that produce these unusual events and hear details why we may be the only intelligent beings in the known Universe to witness eclipses like we see on Earth. Man-made eclipses also figure into the science in the form of instruments called "coronagraphs." They blot out the sun and reveal its corona, uncovering secrets which, while enlightening, also warn of a disaster that could make our advanced technology crash and burn. Finally, travel into deep space, where the tiny eclipses caused by planets circling distant stars is now beginning to reveal hundreds more stars where "exoplanets" exist... perhaps even those in habitable zones like the Earth.

Earth may seem like the most hospitable planet in the solar system. But look again. Startling new discoveries reveal the blue planet has been plagued by more chaos and destruction than scientists once imagined. Stand on the Earth billions of years ago as a primitive planet slams into it. Shiver as our entire globe is frozen over like a gigantic snowball. Feel the heat as mammoth volcanoes scorch the landscape and darken the sky. From a cosmic gamma ray burst frying away the ozone layer to an Everest-size asteroid slamming into the ocean, we'll reveal new information about how these unparalleled events drove life to the brink of total extinction. Out of this continuous devastation, how has our planet--and life--got to where it is today? Are the worst days behind us--or lurking in the distant future?

Scientists have no idea what it is, but Dark Matter and Dark Energy make up 96% of the Universe. Dark Matter is everywhere. It passes through everything we know on earth at billions of particles every second, yet no one has ever gotten a direct detection of this mysterious dark substance. An even more bewildering force is Dark Energy, which is rapidly pushing apart our Universe. Discovered only ten years ago, scientists are struggling to comprehend its unusual characteristics and answer the ultimate question; what is the fate of our Universe? Using cutting-edge computer graphics watch as the universe is brought down to earth.

It is a fireball in the sky, a bubbling, boiling, kinetic sphere of white hot plasma, exploding and erupting. Its size is almost unimaginable--one million Earths would fit within its boundaries. In this violence is born almost all the energy that makes existence on Earth possible, yet, its full mysteries are only now beginning to be understood. From Sun spots to solar eclipses, solar flares to solar storms, the birth of the sun to its potential death, discover the science and history behind this celestial object that makes life on Earth exist.

Go on a sweeping adventure into the mystery of the history of oil. Where does it come from? When will it run out? Where is it driving us? This amazing fluid that powers our lives has made a 160 million year journey to reach our gas tanks and plastic bags. Learn about Earth's extraordinary Carbon Cycle, and the role of oil in current concerns regarding the environment. The Oil Age we now take for granted began less than a century and a half ago, and it could be over in our lifetime.

Throughout history, tidal waves have drowned us, storm surges have sunk cities, and hurricanes and cyclones--fueled by the ocean--have blown away all in their path. Today, science forecasts that the oceans are getting fiercer, rising up to reshape our coastlines and create untold devastation, social unrest and economic crisis. Track the history and evolution of the ocean's seven deadliest zones--locations that throughout history have been the direct causes of human devastation by floods, tsunamis, hurricanes, whirlpools, ice, underwater volcanoes, and shipping graveyards. Using expedition footage, 3D animation, and commentary from leading oceanographers, we'll depict the awesome cosmic and geological fluctuations that make the oceans deadly over time.

Investigates the history and symbology so prominent in the creation of the United States, and traces the intricate connections of the Founders with Freemasonry, other secret organizations and between each other. How did the trademarks of the highly secretive Masons become integrated into the Great Seal, and on the dollar bill containing the All-Seeing Eye? Did the grid design of the nation's capital--commissioned by George Washington and completed by Pierre L'Enfant--contain occult symbols embraced by the Illuminati in 1776? Did Benjamin Franklin and George Washington deliberately enlist 33 Freemason generals from France to grow the fraternal brotherhood among Masonic nations? Explore the secret (and secretly dark) sides of the men responsible for laying the foundation of the United States.

In this two-hour special historian and weapons expert Mike Loades will take us on a high energy, action filled, fact rich rampage through the medieval world. Along the way Mike will separate myth from reality and find out what it was really like to live, work, and fight through this extraordinary time.

In 1590, the governor of Roanoke returned from England to its first New World colony to find all 117 settlers missing. The only clues: five chests of books and papers buried in the sand, and the word "Croatoan", a Native-American village to the south, carved on a post. Archaeologists search for the fate of the island's colonists.

Informational programming.

Informational programming.

Informational programming.

Informational programming.

Originally, the Ten Commandments didn't mean the same things as they do today. How was adultery different in the ancient world? And what did it mean to honor your father and mother? We'll study these intriguing questions and more.

Go on a sweeping adventure into the mystery of the history of oil. Where does it come from? When will it run out? Where is it driving us? This amazing fluid that powers our lives has made a 160 million year journey to reach our gas tanks and plastic bags. Learn about Earth's extraordinary Carbon Cycle, and the role of oil in current concerns regarding the environment. The Oil Age we now take for granted began less than a century and a half ago, and it could be over in our lifetime.