NOVA Season 1 Episodes

Find out where to watch Season 1 of NOVA tonight
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Season 1 Episode Guide

Episode 1 - Cuba's Cancer Hope

Can Cuba's innovative lung cancer vaccines give new hope to patients across the world?
Episode 1 - Stronger

What is the strongest material in the world? Is it iron? Are Kevlar and carbon nanotubes the way of the future, or will the powerful properties discovered in natural spider silk one day replace steel? NOVA begins the ambitious four-hour program with a quest for the world’s strongest stuff. Host David Pogue helps viewers understand what defines strength, examining everything from mollusks to a toucan’s beak and testing the world’s strongest materials. Pogue travels from the deck of a U.S. naval aircraft carrier to a demolition derby to the country’s top research labs to check in with the experts who are re-engineering what nature has given us to create the next generation of strong “stuff.”
Episode 1 - Pluto and Beyond

Since it explored Pluto in 2015, the New Horizons spacecraft has been zooming toward NASA’s most distant target yet. Join the mission team as the probe attempts to fly by Ultima Thule, an object 4 billion miles from Earth.
Episode 1 - Inner Worlds

The rocky planets were born of similar material around the same time. Yet only one of them supports life. Were Earth's neighbors always so extreme and is there somewhere else in the solar system life might flourish?
Episode 1 - What Is Space?

Space. It separates you from me, one galaxy from the next, and atoms from each other. It is everywhere in the universe. But to most of us, space is nothing, an empty void. Well, it turns out space is not what it seems.
Episode 1 - First Steps

The first program explores fresh clues about our earliest ancestors in Africa, including the stunningly complete fossil nicknamed "Lucy's Child." These three-million-year-old bones from Ethiopia reveal humanity's oldest and most telltale trait-upright walking rather than a big brain.
Episode 1 - 15 Years of Terror

Thanks in part to the documents released by Edward Snowden, the true scale of the National Security Agency's scope and power is coming to light. Besides spending billions to ingest and analyze the worlds' electronic communications, the NSA has set out to dominate a new battlefield - cyberspace. NOVA examines the science and technology behind cyber warfare and asks if we are already in the midst.
Episode 1 - Why Ships Crash

When the bow of the colossal Ever Given container ship plowed into the sandbank of the Suez Canal on March 23, 2021, international supply chains ground to a halt. The program follows the investigation into the cause of the crash and looks at other recent incidents to ask how such costly disasters might be prevented in the future.
Episode 1 - Awakening

Hidden in the red hills of Australia are clues to the mysteries of Earth’s birth, how life arose and how it transformed the planet into the world we now live in. Experts unveil the earliest forms of life: an odd assortment of bacterial slime. Life like this would flood the atmosphere with oxygen and spark the biological revolution that conquered the planet. Travel with NOVA and host Dr. Richard Smith to meet the cast in the first scenes of the great drama of life on earth.
Episode 1 - Pompeii's Secret Underworld

New archaeological finds in Pompeii are revealing that the city, hailed as a sophisticated jewel of the Roman Empire, hid a very dark side. As the evidence unfolds, a much more complex picture of the fated city comes into view. From NOVA.
Episode 1 - Zero to Infinity

Zero and infinity. These seemingly opposite, obvious and indispensable concepts are relatively recent human inventions. Discover the surprising story of how these key concepts that revolutionized mathematics came to be—not just once, but over and over again as different cultures invented and re-invented them across thousands of years.
Episode 1 - Holocaust Escape Tunnel

For centuries, the Lithuanian city of Vilnius was one of the most important Jewish centers in the world, earning the title “Jerusalem of the North,” until the Nazis destroyed it. About 95% of its Jewish population of Vilna, its name in Hebrew and Yiddish, was murdered and its synagogues and institutions were reduced to ruins. The Soviets finished the job, paving over the remnants of Vilna's famous Great Synagogue, for example, so thoroughly that few today know it ever existed. Now, an international team of archaeologists are trying to recover this lost world. They will excavate the remains of its Great Synagogue and uncover one of Vilna's greatest secrets: a lost escape tunnel dug by Jewish prisoners inside a horrific Nazi execution site.
Episode 1 - Back to the Moon

Fifty years after humans first set foot on the Moon, new scientific discoveries are fueling excitement for a return to the lunar surface - this time, to stay. Join the scientists and engineers working to make life on the Moon a reality.
Episode 1 - Origins

The epic 3 billion-year story of how our continent came to be. From the palm trees that once flourished in Alaska to titanic eruptions that nearly tore the Midwest in two, discover how forces of almost unimaginable power gave birth to North America.
Episode 2 - Einstein's Quantum Riddle

Quantum entanglement is poised to revolutionize technology from networks to code breaking–but first we need to know it’s real. Join physicists as they capture light from the universe to prove Einstein’s “spooky action at a distance.”
Episode 2 - Rebuilding Notre Dame

In April 2019, the world watched as a devastating fire almost destroyed Paris’s iconic Notre Dame Cathedral. Go behind the scenes with a team of engineers, masons and timber workers tackling the daunting challenges of restoring the historic landmark.
Episode 2 - The Illusion of Time

Time. We waste it, save it, kill it, make it. The world runs on it. Yet, ask physicists what time actually is, and the answer might shock you: They have no idea. Even more surprising, the deep sense we have of time passing from present to past may be nothing more than an illusion. How can our understanding of something so familiar be so wrong?
Episode 2 - Ice Age Footprints

Thousands of footprints stretch for miles across New Mexico’s White Sands National Park, capturing moments when Ice Age humans encountered now-extinct beasts, including enormous ground sloths and mammoths. What can these footprints reveal about the peopling of the Americas and what life was like at the end of the last Ice Age?
Episode 2 - Baltimore Bridge Collapse

On March 26, 2024, a massive container ship plowed into the Francis Scott Key Bridge, killing six highway workers and blocking the Port of Baltimore, a crucial link in the global shipping chain. How did a modern ship lose all power and propulsion? Why did the bridge fail so catastrophically? And how many other bridges around the world are at risk? From NOVA.
Episode 2 - Building Chernobyl's MegaTomb

In 1986, in the heart of the Ukraine, the Chernobyl nuclear reactor exploded, releasing 400 times more radiation than the Hiroshima Bomb. It was the world’s worst nuclear disaster. Thirty workers died. 50,000 people fled the nearest city. And radioactive fallout made an area larger than Long Island a no-go zone. Hastily, a so-called “sarcophagus” was built to contain the radioactive materials that lingered at the site after the explosion. But thirty years later, the sarcophagus is crumbling, and another disaster at Chernobyl looms. Now, an international team of engineers is racing the clock to assemble one of the most ambitious superstructures ever built… an extraordinary 40,000 ton, 1.5 billion dollar mega dome to entomb the crumbling remains of the Chernobyl nuclear reactor. Battling arctic winter weather – and lethal radiation – this is the inside story of the epic race to build Chernobyl’s MegaTomb.
Episode 2 - Life Explodes

How did life storm the beaches and dominate planet Earth? Ancient Australian fossils offer clues. While the oceans were teeming, the world above the waves remained an almost lifeless wasteland — until the Silurian period, when the conquest of the land began. Host Richard Smith introduces Earth’s forgotten pioneers: the scuttling arthropod armies that invaded the shores and the waves of green revolutionaries whose battle for the light pushed plant life across the face of a barren continent. Join NOVA’s prehistoric adventure as four-legged animals walk onto dry land, with the planet poised for disaster.
Episode 2 - Smaller

How small can we go? Could we one day have robots taking “fantastic voyages” in our bodies to kill rogue cells? The triumphs of tiny are seen all around us in the Information Age: transistors, microchips, laptops, cell phones. Now, David Pogue takes NOVA viewers to an even smaller world in Making Stuff Smaller, examining the latest in high-powered nano-circuits and micro-robots that may one day hold the key to saving lives and creating materials from the ground up, atom by atom. Pogue explores the star materials of small applications, including silicon, the stuff of computer chips, and carbon, the element now being manipulated at the atomic level to produce future technology. “Smaller” and more portable stuff has already revolutionized the way we live. The nanotechnology to come could change the face of medicine, with intelligent pills that know what medicine to release into the body and treat patients from the “inside” based on changing needs; robots that repair damaged body parts; and more.
Episode 2 - Why Bridges Collapse

In 2018, Italy’s Morandi Bridge collapsed, killing 43 people. NOVA investigates what went wrong and explores other bridge collapses across the U.S. How can new engineering techniques make bridges safer and prevent such tragedies?
Episode 2 - The Truth About Fat

Scientists are coming to understand fat as a dynamic organ--one whose size may have more to do with biological processes than personal choices. Explore the mysteries of fat, and its role in hormone production, hunger, and even pregnancy.
Episode 2 - Life

Discover the surprising intertwined story of life and the landscape in North America-from origins to iconic dinosaurs to giant marine reptiles swimming in an ancient sea that once split the continent in two.
Episode 2 - Birth of Humanity

This program tackles the mysteries of how our ancestors managed to survive in a savannah teeming with vicious predators, and when and why we first left our African cradle to colonize every corner of the Earth.
Episode 2 - Mars

Mars was once a blue water-world with active volcanoes. But when its magnetic field and protective atmosphere faded, it became the frozen desert planet we know today. With so many necessary elements in place, did life ever form on Mars?
Episode 3 - Last Human Standing

In the final program, NOVA probes a wave of dramatic new evidence, based partly on cutting-edge DNA analysis, that reveals new insights into how we became the creative and "behaviorally modern" humans of today, and what really happened to the enigmatic Neanderthals who faded into extinction.
Episode 3 - Jupiter

Jupiter’s gravitational force made it a wrecking ball when it barreled through the early solar system. But it also shaped life on Earth, delivering comets laden with water—and perhaps even the fateful asteroid that wiped out the dinosaurs.
Episode 3 - Ultimate Space Telescope

Follow the dramatic story of NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope--the most complex machine ever launched into space--in hopes of peering deeper back in time than ever before and answering some of astronomy’s biggest questions.
Episode 3 - Look Who's Driving

Tech giants and car manufacturers alike are developing self-driving cars—and some of them are already on public roads. But what must computers be capable of to truly take the wheel? And could they eventually be safer than human drivers?
Episode 3 - Monsters

Host Richard Smith comes face-to-face with the previously unknown reptilian rulers of prehistoric Australia. NOVA resurrects the giants that stalked the land and discovers that some of them were among the largest ever to have walked the Earth. Others were some of the most dangerous. In the dry desert heart, scientists unearth an ancient inland ocean, full of sea monsters. But reptiles didn’t have the world all to themselves. Mammals like the enigmatic platypus lived alongside them, ready for their day in the sun. And 65 million years ago, that day arrived.
Episode 3 - Human

Discover the human story of vast wealth—and lethal risks—hidden in North America's landscape.
Episode 3 - Revolutionary War Weapons

How did a ragtag army defeat the most powerful army in the world to win American independence? Discover the key military technologies that helped propel the colonies to victory, from the Brown Bess musket to the world’s first military submarine. From NOVA.
Episode 3 - London Super Tunnel

Thousands of engineers, technicians and workers race to build Europe’s biggest construction project–London’s new railroad, the Elizabeth Line.
Episode 3 - Cleaner

Most modern materials are dangerous to the environment, but what about cleaning up our world? Batteries grown from viruses, tires made from orange peel oil, plastics made of sugar, and solar cells that cook up hydrogen–these are just a few glimpses of a new generation of clean materials that could power devices of the future. In Making Stuff Cleaner, David Pogue explores the rapidly developing science and business of clean energy and examines alternative ways to generate it, store it, and distribute it. Is hydrogen the way to go? One scientist is even using America’s abundance of chicken feathers to create a cheap way to make hydrogen cars safer. What about lithium batteries? Does this solve an energy problem or create a new dependency–in this case, on South America for a different kind of limited resource than oil? Can scientists instead develop a process in which batteries run on molten salts found in cheap abundance in the U.S. or on genetically engineered viruses? Pogue investigates the latest developments in bio-based fuels and in harnessing solar energy for our cars, homes, and industry in a fascinating hour full of the “stuff” of a sustainable future.
Episode 3 - Eagle Power

What makes eagles so remarkable? Researchers study one special bird, revealing her exceptional strength, eyesight, and flying skills. And, in-the-nest footage of a new bald eagle family captures the drama of chicks struggling to survive.
Episode 3 - Quantum Leap

Join Brian Greene on a wild ride into the weird realm of quantum physics, which governs the universe on the tiniest of scales. Brian brings quantum mechanics to life in a nightclub like no other, where objects pop in and out of existence, and things over here can affect others over there, instantaneously-without anything crossing the space between them.
Episode 3 - Kīlauea: Hawaiʻi on Fire

Scientists journey to Kīlauea volcano to investigate the eruptions that shook Hawaiʻi in 2018.
Episode 4 - Secrets of the Forest

Can forests help cool the planet? Follow scientists working in spectacular forest landscapes in Costa Rica, Brazil, Australia, and beyond as they try to untangle complex networks of trees, fungi, and creatures large and small--all in a quest to tackle the twin threats of climate change and species extinction. From NOVA.
Episode 4 - Smarter

What can nature teach us about building smarter materials? Can we create materials that sense and respond? “When describing ‘smart materials,’ one analogy scientists give is the evolution from the first Terminator robot, a machine made of metal and circuitry, to the shape-shifting ‘liquid guy’ in Terminator 2,” said Making Stuff producer Chris Schmidt. Smarter looks into the growing number of materials that almost seem alive–able to react, change and even learn. An Army tanker truck that heals its own bullet wounds. An airplane wing that changes shape as it flies. For inspirations and ideas, scientists are turning to nature and biology and producing some innovative new developments in materials science. Knowledge and inspiration drawn from nature are showing scientists new ways to give our materials amazing new abilities. By understanding how geckos climb even smooth walls, scientists have created a gecko adhesive that let’s robots do the same. Studying the properties of skin has led to the development of self-healing protective foam. And Pogue literally goes swimming with sharks to understand a different kind of skin that is intriguing scientists. Scientists are modeling a material after sharkskin to develop an antibacterial film that, when sprayed in hospitals, could eliminate MRSA and other anti-biotic resistant bacteria. Pogue concludes “Smarter” with a visit to a scientist who has created a material that may make Harry potter’s invisibility cloak a reality!
Episode 4 - Poisoned Water

In this special report, NOVA investigates the water disaster in Flint and unravels a disturbing truth about the vulnerabilities of water systems across the country. Discover the delicate intricacies of water chemistry, the biology of lead poisoning, and the engineering challenge of replacing this ravaged infrastructure.
Episode 4 - Saving Venice

Rising sea levels and sinking land threaten to destroy Venice. Leading scientists and engineers battling the forces of nature to try to save this historic city for future generations. Discover the innovative projects and feats of engineering currently underway, including a hi-tech flood barrier, eco-projects to conserve the lagoon, and new efforts to investigate erosion beneath the city.
Episode 4 - Secret Mind of Slime

Scientists investigate the bizarre “intelligence” of slime molds, which appear to learn and make decisions--without a brain. These cunning, single-celled blobs can navigate mazes and create efficient networks. Can they redefine cognition?
Episode 4 - Universe or Multiverse?

Hard as it is to swallow, cutting-edge theories are suggesting that our universe may not be the only universe. Instead, it may be just one of an infinite number of worlds that make up the multiverse. In this show, Brian Greene takes us on a tour of this brave new theory at the frontier of physics, explaining why scientists believe it's true and showing what some of these alternate realities might be like.
Episode 4 - Saturn

NASA’s Cassini explores Saturn for 13 years, looping through its icy rings and its moons. The probe captures stunning ring-moon interactions, but when it finds the ingredients for life on the moon Enceladus, a bittersweet decision is made.
Episode 4 - Decoding the Great Pyramid

New archaeological evidence provides clues about the Egyptians who built the Great Pyramid of Giza--and how they did it. Join researchers as they delve into the logbook of a work crew and discover how the massive project transformed Egypt.
Episode 4 - Star Chasers of Senegal

A visionary astronomer in West Africa attempts a high-stakes observation of a distant asteroid vital to a NASA mission. From prehistoric ruins to Islamic skywatchers, explore the heritage and future of African astronomy.
Episode 4 - Rise of the Mammals

A major discovery shows how life came back after an asteroid wiped out the dinosaurs. With exclusive access to a fossil trove from the key first million years after impact, the film charts the rise of a new living world from the ashes.
Episode 4 - Strange Creatures

After the asteroid impact 65 million years ago — believed to have wiped out the dinosaurs — Australia was set adrift on a lonely voyage in southern seas. With host Richard Smith at the wheel, NOVA travels this walkabout continent to uncover how it became the strange island it is today. Australia’s many unusual creatures, like the kangaroo and the cassowary, tell a tale of isolation, change and resilience. Australia’s long history has seen mountains rise and fall, seas come and go, and whole kingdoms of life triumph and disappear. In this final episode, NOVA races down the last 65 million years to the present day.
Episode 5 - Ancient Builders of the Amazon

Recent discoveries in archaeology are exploding the myth of the Amazon as a primeval wilderness, revealing traces of ancient civilizations that flourished for centuries, with populations numbering in the millions.
Episode 5 - Rise of the Rockets

New technologies are making rockets cheaper and more powerful than ever before. As private companies make space more accessible, and NASA returns to crewed spaceflight, a new era of space exploration may be on the horizon.
Episode 5 - Eclipse Over America

On August 21, 2017, millions of Americans witnessed the first total solar eclipse to cross the continental United States in 99 years. As in all total solar eclipses, the moon blocked the sun and revealed its ethereal outer atmosphere - its corona - in a wondrous celestial spectacle. While hordes of citizens flocked to the eclipse's path of totality, scientists, too, staked out spots for a very different reason: to investigate the secrets of the sun's elusive atmosphere. During the eclipse's precious seconds of darkness, they gathered new clues on how our sun works, how it can produce deadly solar storms, and why its atmosphere is so hot. NOVA investigates the storied history of solar eclipse science, and joins both seasoned and citizen-scientists alike as they don their eclipse glasses, tune their telescopes, and behold the Eclipse Over America.
Episode 5 - Dead Sea Scroll Detectives

What can technology reveal about the Dead Sea Scrolls? Join scientists as they investigate suspicious, newly surfaced fragments to see if they're forfeited, and use imaging techniques to digitally unravel the charred remains of a scroll.
Episode 5 - Ending Hiv in America

Almost 40 years after the discovery of HIV, could we be on the verge of ending the AIDS epidemic in America? How did scientists and the public health community tackle one of the most elusive deadly viruses to ever infect humans? Can innovative drugs bring new infections to zero? This is the story of scientific achievement and public health work that still needs to be done to end HIV in America.
Episode 5 - Ice Worlds

In the far reaches of the solar system, Uranus and Neptune dazzle with unexpected rings, supersonic winds, and dozens of moons. And NASA’s New Horizons gets a stunning up-close view of Pluto before venturing deep into the Kuiper Belt.
Episode 5 - Nature’s Fear Factor

A bold experiment to bring rare and fierce African wild dogs back to Gorongosa National Park in Mozambique reveals how predators—and the fear they trigger—play a surprising and crucial role in keeping wild ecosystems healthy.
Episode 6 - The Next Pompeii

In the shadow of Vesuvius, a lesser-known volcano rumbles: Campi Flegrei. If it erupts, millions of lives could be at risk. Scientists explore its geology and develop a warning system that could prevent Naples becoming the next Pompeii.
Episode 6 - Death Dive to Saturn

Almost everything we know today about the beautiful giant ringed planet comes from Cassini, the NASA mission that launched in 1997 and arrived at Saturn in 2004. Since then, the space probe has been beaming home miraculous images and scientific data, revealing countless wonders about the planet, its rings and 62 moons - including some that could harbor life. As the mission approaches its final days in 2017, it attempts one last set of daring maneuvers - diving between the innermost ring and the top of Saturn's atmosphere. Aiming to skim less than 2000 miles above the cloud tops, no spacecraft has ever gone so close to Saturn, and hopes are high for incredible observations that could solve major mysteries about the planet's core. But such a daring maneuver comes with many risks and is no slam dunk. In fact, slamming into rocks in the rings is a real possibility. Join NASA engineers for the tense and triumphant moments as they find out if their bold re-programming has worked, and discover the wonders that Cassini has revealed over the years.
Episode 6 - New Eye on the Universe

Join scientists as they use NASA’s brand new James Webb Space Telescope to peer deep in time to hunt for the first stars and galaxies in our universe, and try to detect the fingerprints of life in the atmospheres of distant worlds.
Episode 6 - Computers V. Crime

In police departments and courts across the country, artificial intelligence is being used to help decide who is policed, who gets bail, how offenders should be sentenced, and who gets parole. But is it actually making our law enforcement and court systems fairer and more just? This timely investigation digs into the hidden biases, privacy risks, and design flaws of this controversial technology.
Episode 6 - Touching the Asteroid

If spacecraft OSIRIS-REx can grab a piece of an asteroid and bring it to Earth, scientists could gain insight into our planet's origins—and even how to defend against rogue asteroids. But NASA only gets three shots at collecting a sample.
Episode 6 - Decoding da Vinci

Journey to Florence to discover how Leonardo da Vinci used science, from human dissections to innovative painting techniques, to create his legendary artwork. Learn why Mona Lisa's smile is so captivating—and what it took to create it.
Episode 7 - Secrets of the Shining Knight

A knight in shining armor may sound like a character out of a storybook, but once upon a time, knighthood was serious business, and for countless medieval fighters, their armor was what stood between life and death. But what was it really like to live beneath the metal? How was that shining armor crafted and how strong was it? Could it withstand impacts from the most lethal weapons of the day, including crossbows, muskets, and primitive hand guns? NOVA challenged blacksmith Ric Furrer and master armorer Jeff Wasson to recreate parts of an elite armor originally manufactured in the Royal Workshop founded by King Henry VIII. We trace their successes and setbacks from start to finish as they rediscover centuries-old metalworking secrets, then put their new armor to the ultimate test against a period musket!
Episode 7 - The Violence Paradox

Violence is all over the news. But some say we’re living in one of the most peaceful eras in human history. Is violence actually declining? If so, why? And can we build a more peaceful future?
Episode 7 - Weathering the Future

As extreme weather in the U.S. impacts more people--with longer heat waves, more intense rainstorms, megafires and droughts--discover how Americans are fighting back by marshaling ancient wisdom and innovating new solutions.
Episode 7 - Can Psychedelics Cure?

Hallucinogenic drugs--popularly called psychedelics--have been used by human societies for thousands of years. Today, scientists are taking a second look at many of these mind-altering substances--both natural and synthetic--and discovering that they can have profoundly positive clinical impacts, helping patients struggling with a range of afflictions from addiction to depression and PTSD.
Episode 7 - Can We Cool the Planet?

As global temperatures rise, scientists are exploring solutions from planting trees to sucking carbon out of the air to geoengineering. But would they work? And what are the risks of engineering Earth's climate?
Episode 7 - Saving the Dead Sea

As the Dead Sea shrinks, engineers prepare a daring solution: connect it with the Red Sea by way of a massive desalination plant. If it works, it could stabilize the lake and ease regional tensions, but will it put the environment at risk?
Episode 8 - Inside the Megafire

The California wildfires of 2018 took a worrisome trend to a new extreme, claiming lives and over a million acres. Scientists investigate how forestry practices, climate change, and drought may contribute to the rise of deadly megafires.
Episode 8 - Saving Notre Dame

When the Notre Dame cathedral caught fire in April 2019, Paris came very close to losing over 800 years of history. Now engineers are in a different race against time: to rebuild the roof and secure the medieval structure. Underneath the charred scaffolding and vaulted ceilings of the cathedral, scientists study the components of Notre Dame’s iconic structure to puzzle out how best to repair it.
Episode 8 - Chasing Carbon Zero

The U.S. recently set an ambitious climate change goal: net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. And to achieve that, slash emissions in half by 2030. Is it possible? And what kind of technology would it take? Meet scientists and engineers who are convinced we can achieve carbon zero in time to avoid the biggest impacts of climate change.
Episode 8 - Ocean Invaders

Lionfish, long prized in home aquariums, have invaded the Atlantic, and are now one of the ocean’s most successful invasive species, wreaking havoc in waters across the globe. Join ocean explorer Danni Washington on a journey to find out how they took over, why they’re doing so much damage, and what can be done about it. And look into the impacts of invasive species in a globalized world.
Episode 8 - Ghosts of Stonehenge

Stonehenge is the grandest and most enigmatic of Europe's prehistoric monuments, and has inspired countless theories to explain who built it and why. Was it an ancient cathedral or burial place, or even a Stone Age observatory or computer? Over the last decade, fresh answers have come from an ambitious program of research, including the first scientific study of human remains - thousands of fragments of cremated men, women, and children - buried at the site 5,000 years ago. In this Stone Age detective story, archaeologists analyze the bones and piece together tantalizing details of the elite families who presided over Stonehenge. Remnants of huge feasts that fed the laborers at the site have come to light, including evidence that they traveled from far corners of the British Isles to raise the stones and celebrate the winter solstice. Yet Stonehenge's place as a centerpiece of ancient culture was not to last. Join NOVA as we reveal intimate details of the Stonehenge people and why their power began to fade soon after they raised the mighty stones.
Episode 8 - Animal Espionage

How do you study an animal you can't even get close to? Camera traps and drones are revolutionizing wildlife biology by recording the secret lives of animals—from whales and tigers to elusive giant armadillos—all without disturbing them.
Episode 9 - Secrets in Our Dna

Millions of people have sent their DNA to be analyzed by private companies, which are revealing customers' ancestry and family connections, and reporting health risks. But what are the pitfalls and unintended consequences of sharing genetic data?
Episode 9 - Saving the Right Whale

North Atlantic right whales are among the planet’s most critically endangered large ocean mammals. With fewer than 350 remaining as of 2023, they could be extinct within 20 years. But teams of marine biologists and whale rescuers are determined to help save the species. Follow their efforts and get a glimpse into the lives of these giants of the sea and their prospects for survival.
Episode 9 - First Horse Warriors

Horse riding played a key role in human expansion and civilization. But when and how did people first master these animals? Scientists use archeology and genetics to uncover clues about the first horse riders and how they shaped the world.
Episode 9 - Nazca Desert Mystery

Who created the Nazca lines, one of archaeology’s greatest enigmas, and why? Recent finds of long-hidden lines and figures etched into the Peruvian desert offer new clues to the origins and purpose behind these giant desert symbols.
Episode 10 - Killer Volcanoes

NOVA's expert team looks for the signature of a volcanic eruption big enough to have blasted a huge cloud of ash and sulfuric acid into the atmosphere. Killer Volcanoes spotlights the search for the mystery volcano that plunged the globe into a deep freeze and inflicted famine on medieval Europe.
Episode 10 - Crypto Decoded

From Bitcoin to NFTs, crypto is making headlines. But what exactly is it, and how does it work? Experts go beyond the hype and skepticism to unravel the social and technological underpinnings of crypto--exploring how it came to be and why this new technology may change more than just money.
Episode 10 - Lost Viking Army

Bioarchaeologists investigate a ninth-century mass grave in a rural English village. Will the remains unlock the mystery of the “Great Heathen Army,” a legendary Viking fighting force that once invaded England?
Episode 10 - Looking For Life on Mars

NASA launches its most ambitious hunt for traces of life on Mars, landing a rover in a rocky, ancient river delta. The rover will stow samples for possible return to Earth and test technology that may pave the way for human travel to Mars.
Episode 10 - Hidden Volcano Abyss

In January 2022, one of the most powerful volcanic eruptions in recorded history rocked the Pacific islands of Tonga. Join scientists as they investigate what caused the blast, how it spurred a devastating tsunami, and if another eruption could be imminent.
Episode 10 - Mysteries of Sleep

Like virtually every animal, humans need sleep to survive. But why? Scientists peer into the brain to see what happens while we snooze and understand the powerful role that sleep—or lack of it—plays in memory, trauma and emotion regulation.
Episode 11 - Killer Hurricanes

Killer Hurricanes pursues the riddle of an 18th century Caribbean superstorm that killed 20,000, the highest known death toll of any single weather event. To reconstruct its epic scale and investigate what made it so devastating, NOVA joins historians and storm sleuths as they track down clues in eyewitness chronicles, old ruins, and computer simulations.
Episode 12 - Killer Floods

All over the world, scientists are discovering traces of ancient floods on a scale that dwarfs even the most severe flood disasters of recent times. In Killer Floods NOVA discovers gigantic scars in the landscape that testify to North America’s greatest ever megaflood, which tore across the western states with 60 times the flow of today’s Amazon.


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