From high in space,
we can see the familiar shapes of countries...
..and continents.
But now, satellite images
allow us to look closer...
..revealing our planet as a patchwork
of extraordinary landscapes...
..created by natural forces...
..by animals...
..and by us.
These patterns give an insight into the health of our planet.
Behind every line and every pattern...
..there's a story.
Around the world...
..tropical coastlines are fringed with coral reefs.
At first glance,
their shapes seem random.
But a closer look reveals a pattern...
..pale discs surrounding patches of dark coral.
Using satellite images,
scientists have now found these shapes
on coral reefs across the globe.
Understanding how they are formed
offers a new insight into the health of our oceans...
..and the animals that call them home.
For fish that live on coral reefs, there are different strategies
for finding food.
Some stay close to the reef...
..feeding from the coral itself.
Others venture out
to the surrounding seabed.
But feeding in the open...
..can be dangerous.
Predators, like coral groupers...
..and sharks,
patrol the reef perimeter.
So small fish only feed as far from the coral
as is absolutely necessary...
..staying within easy reach of safety.
Over time, the seabed around each patch of coral is stripped of food...
..creating rings of bare sand
that scientists call grazing halos.
They are a sign that both predator and prey populations are healthy.
But where this pattern disappears,
it may be a sign that predator numbers are falling.
These halos now allow scientists
to monitor the reefs' delicate balance from space.
Satellite cameras can now look down on every part of our planet...
..allowing us to explore Earth's most remote habitats.
The Congo jungle in central Africa.
This forest is home to thousands of animal species.
But from space, it appears as little more than a blanket of green...
..except, that is, if we look down over one remote corner.
Satellite images reveal a strange shape...
..with dozens of trails leading in from the surrounding forest.
This shape was created by the Congo's mightiest residents.
They spend most of their lives hidden in the thick jungle...
..but travel hundreds of kilometres to gather here.
Forest elephants.
ELEPHANTS TRUMPET
Locals call this place Dzanga Bai...
..the Village of Elephants.
Forest elephants spend most of their lives in small family groups.
But here, up to 150 individuals
are drawn together every day.
Their diet of tough leaves and jungle fruit is lacking
in vital minerals.
So generations of elephants have come to this one spot in the forest...
..where deposits of sodium, potassium and calcium
lie just below the surface.
Using their tusks to dig at the soil
and their trunks to blow into the water...
..these elephants have excavated a network of boreholes...
..allowing them to extract these minerals from under ground.
Over hundreds of years, the constant digging
and movement of elephants has caused this clearing to grow.
ELEPHANT TRUMPETS
It's now more than 500 metres long...
..and clearly visible from space.
For a young forest elephant, a first visit to the Bai
is full of new experiences.
While the adults drink effortlessly...
..she's still getting to grips with her trunk.
Infants are raised by their mothers for up to four years...
..and learning how to drink from these wells
is one of life's vital lessons.
For a calf who spends most of her time with her mother...
..this is a rare opportunity to socialise.
Relationships formed at this young age can last a lifetime.
But while they play...
..mothers must keep a close watch.
DEEP TRUMPETING
Male forest elephants are also drawn here.
This gathering is the ideal place to find a fertile female.
To display their size and strength...
..bull elephants charge around the clearing.
And if more than one male appears...
..tensions run high.
Young forest elephants have been killed here by charging males.
TRUMPETING
Mother retreats to the safety of the forest.
Her baby should be able to return
to this clearing throughout its lifetime.
But these elephants face an uncertain future.
In the last 20 years,
more than half of all the forest elephants in the world
have been killed by poachers for their ivory.
But cameras in space may be able to help.
Scientists can now use satellite images
to identify other clearings used by forest elephants...
..protecting them from poachers...
..and preserving these unique gatherings.
But you don't need to be as big as an elephant
to make a mark visible from space.
In South Australia,
the outback is speckled with mysterious light patches...
..interlinked with narrow trails...
..the work of an unlikely architect.
He's a southern hairy-nosed wombat...
..a marsupial only found in this part of Australia.
Exposing the thinner fur of his belly
helps to keep him cool as he waits for the midday heat to pass.
Then there's work to be done.
It's springtime,
and with each passing day temperatures are steadily rising.
In just a few weeks,
it could be close to 50 degrees Celsius.
Wrapped in a thick fur coat,
this heat could be deadly.
But the wombat has a solution.
With sharp claws and short, powerful limbs,
he's built for digging.
It's 15 degrees cooler below ground...
..a hiding place from the worst of the summer sun.
But high temperatures aren't the only threat wombats face.
Habitat loss and the impact of invasive species
caused wombat numbers to plummet in the early 20th century.
But now, using satellite images to locate their burrows...
..scientists can see they're bouncing back...
..with around one million southern hairy-nosed wombats
now living in this corner of Australia.
In South America,
vast areas are covered with lush, green tropical forest.
But on the coast of north-east Brazil,
the forest is interrupted by a very different landscape.
Vegetation is being swallowed up by sand.
Washed up by the ocean and blown inland over thousands of years...
..a field of sand dunes covering more than 800 square kilometres.
The Lencois Maranhenses.
The surface of the scorched sand
can reach 80 degrees Celsius.
To survive here you have to be made of tough stuff.
A Pininga turtle.
She's left the surrounding forest behind...
..and is making her way into the heart of this desert...
..walking for days
beneath the burning sun...
..each step on the soft sand sapping away her precious energy.
Without food and water, she won't survive for long.
But she's made this journey for a reason.
THUNDER RUMBLES
It's the wet season.
And in these dunes,
the rain changes everything.
Only from space can we see the scale of the transformation.
Once a year, rainwater floods the desert...
..forming thousands of freshwater lagoons.
Beneath the sand, a layer of solid rock stops rainwater escaping...
..creating a landscape
like nowhere else on Earth.
And that's just what she came for.
As the lagoons grow,
fish make their way into the pools from surrounding rivers.
They'll keep her fed for weeks.
But this water won't last forever.
In the tropical sun, these lagoons will soon evaporate.
Dozens of desert species now race
to make the most of the life-giving water...
..even after the sun has set.
A tiny four-eyed frog.
He's been lying dormant in the cool sand.
But the rains have triggered the breeding season.
And there are thousands just like him.
In other parts of the world,
frogs migrate for kilometres to reach their breeding pools.
But here, the water has come to them.
Around the lagoons, grasses have sprung up,
creating sheltered spots for breeding.
And it's not only four-eyed frogs who come here.
Seven different species of frogs and toads
are all hoping to breed.
CROAKS
ANIMALS AND BIRDS CALL
It's a struggle to make yourself heard above the noise.
Eventually, the four-eyed frogs find each other.
Each pair may produce more than a thousand eggs...
..an explosion of new life.
And just in time.
When the rains ease, the lagoons begin to disappear...
..and sand reclaims this corner of Brazil.
Around the world, the forces of nature
create mysterious and intriguing patterns
visible only from space.
Star-like shapes in the Sahara desert
are sand dunes whipped up by the wind.
In West Africa, a ring of concentric circles...
..formed by magma forcing its way through the Earth's crust.
And in Iran's salt desert,
these abstract swirls are the remains of an ancient ocean...
..sculpted by the wind over millions of years.
In the Amazon rainforest, hundreds
of rivers wind through the jungle.
Alongside them...
..are strange arcs and horseshoe shapes.
Satellite images taken over 30 years
reveal how these patterns are formed.
As the water forges a path through the jungle...
..bends in the river are cut off and left behind...
..creating isolated oxbow lakes...
..like El Dorado Lake in northern Peru.
A special place for wildlife
and for local people.
CHILD CHATTERS
Elvira is nine years old.
She and her friends live in a small village
close to the oxbow lake.
They're fascinated by animals...
..and their favourite is perhaps the most elusive...
..the Amazonian manatee.
Manatees spend their lives hidden
in the murky water of jungle rivers...
..surfacing only briefly to take a breath
or to feed on floating plants.
In many parts of the Amazon, manatees are hunted for their meat,
and their numbers are declining.
Elvira has never laid eyes on a manatee.
ELVIRA: Vamos, chicas!
But that's all about to change.
The oxbow lake has all the benefits of a river...
..but its isolated waters are still and safe...
..perfect for manatees in need of a second chance.
TRANSLATION:
For Elvira, it's an opportunity
to finally come face-to-face
with her favourite animal.
This manatee is one of a lucky few.
They were rescued from illegal captivity and rehabilitated
by an international team of experts.
They're now fit and well enough
to be released.
Radio tags will allow their progress to be monitored...
..as they start their new life in the safety of the oxbow lake.
The twists and turns that lead to oxbow lakes
are typical of slow jungle rivers meandering over flat ground.
But across the globe, each river
has its own unique character.
In Egypt, the River Nile brings life to the desert...
..creating a ribbon of green.
At the base of the Himalayas,
the Brahmaputra River pulls in water from hundreds of streams
pouring out of the mountains...
..creating a complex channel 10km wide.
In the USA, the movement of Utah's Green River
has carved out deep canyons
over millions of years.
In eastern China...
..five major rivers converge...
..to form a body of fresh water so huge
that the only way to see it in its entirety is from space.
Poyang Lake.
This is no ordinary lake.
Each year, when the dry season arrives...
..it begins to shrink.
Within three months, it almost totally disappears...
..leaving behind huge areas of nutrient-rich mud...
..and hundreds of shallow freshwater pools.
This transformation is the cue
for one of the greatest migrations on our planet.
Half a million birds flock here from all across Asia.
But none have travelled further
than the critically endangered Siberian cranes.
This is the end of a month-long journey from northern Russia,
almost 5,000 kilometres away.
They've come for a unique feeding opportunity.
BIRDS CALL
The falling water has revealed
the nutritious roots of aquatic plants.
The cranes gorge themselves after their long journey.
And they aren't interested in sharing.
Among the many families
are two parents with their five-month-old offspring.
He's successfully completed his first migration.
But 5,000 kilometres was a long way to fly
on young wings.
He begs for food.
But his mother...
..ignores him.
It's every bird for themself.
And from space,
it's clear to see why.
As the dry season progresses, the pools shrink...
..increasing competition for the best feeding spots.
BIRDS CALL
A rival has strayed onto the family's patch.
This cannot go unchallenged.
Father squares up to the intruder.
Neither is willing to back down.
Their claws are razor-sharp.
15-centimetre-long beaks
become weapons.
The intruder...
..is seen off.
But the youngster still hasn't been able to get a meal.
There's only one thing for it.
He finally works out how to feed for himself.
The whole family can now fuel up for the return journey
to Siberia.
After four months, the rivers that flow into Poyang begin to rise again...
..and the cranes start the long flight home.
An epic journey...
..triggered by a remarkable transformation.
The coming and going of water
makes for some of the most beautiful landscapes on Earth.
Rivers arriving at the coast
deposit vast quantities of sediment...
..creating deltas that reach out
into the ocean.
In northern Russia,
the Lena River forks into thousands of separate channels.
And in the Gulf of Mexico,
the Mississippi River Delta
spans 10,000 square kilometres.
But the largest delta in the world
lies in the Bay of Bengal.
This maze of waterways
is the Sundarbans.
Twice a day, it's transformed by the tide...
..blue...
..to brown...
..as the tide falls,
exposing the mud below.
Silt from river water is trapped by mangrove roots...
..creating a habitat like no other.
A home for timid chital deer...
..troops of macaques...
..elusive Bengal tigers...
..and over three million...
..people.
Bhoben and his son Hridoy live
in the north of the Sundarbans.
Bhoben is a fisherman.
He's teaching his son the family trade.
But they won't be fishing with lines or poles.
Instead, they'll be using
ten smooth-coated otters.
The people here have been fishing together with otters
since the sixth century.
Wild otter populations are declining in the Sundarbans.
This specially bred captive population could be crucial
for the survival of the species.
And they're extremely precious to their owners.
TRANSLATION:
But they can only fish at very precise times of the day.
They have to wait for the tide.
While it's high,
thousands of tiny inlets crisscross through the mangrove forest.
Water dominates the landscape,
giving fish plenty of places to hide.
But from space,
we can watch the tide turn.
Water is replaced with mud.
And at the very lowest tide,
fish are forced into the few remaining stretches of water.
And the otters get to work.
Their sensitive whiskers detect the movement of fish...
..and they flush them towards the nets.
Young otters swim freely.
They're supposed to be learning from the adults,
but it's easy to get distracted.
The otters bring in up to twice as many fish as using nets alone.
And they take their cut.
Ten otters can eat eight kilos of fish every day.
But it's getting harder for fishermen here to make a living.
Large-scale fishing and pollution from growing industry
are decimating the fish stocks in the Sundarbans.
From over 200,
this is now just one of eight boats keeping this ancient skill alive.
The tide turns,
and the fishermen follow the water home.
Humans have always found ways to survive
alongside our planet's natural landscapes.
But around 10,000 years ago,
we began to create patterns of our very own.
Alongside nature's chaotic curves,
more ordered shapes appeared...
..designed with great precision...
..to help us feed ourselves.
At first, farming could only take place
alongside natural water sources.
But now, even in the driest desert,
crops are being grown.
And one shape has come to dominate.
By using rotating sprinklers,
farmers can water a circular field more easily than any other shape.
In the American Midwest,
these irrigation circles stretch for hundreds of kilometres.
Intensive farming like this can force out wildlife.
But no matter how tightly circles are packed together...
..there'll always be gaps left between them.
In Missouri, farmers are encouraged to keep these spaces wild...
..creating pockets of habitat for animals...
..like the bobwhite quail.
On the edge of this circle,
just enough space has been left
for quail to raise their chicks.
With hungry new mouths to feed,
families are always on the move in search of food.
Young chicks are inquisitive -
keen to explore their new world.
But in the thick undergrowth,
parents can find it difficult to keep an eye on all of them.
CHICK CHIRPS
And there are others here
looking for a meal.
Kestrels have their own young to feed.
Mothers know the best thing to do
is hunker down and stay still.
But a lone chick's instinct
is to keep running.
She's inside the circle of crops.
An alien world.
Row upon row of soybeans
arranged in a circle almost a kilometre wide.
There's nothing to eat
and, in the height of summer, nothing to drink.
Dry conditions are bad for the crops, too.
But here in Missouri, they have a solution for that.
Millions of gallons of water pumped from deep underground...
..and piped along a rotating arm 300 metres long.
A life-saver for the crops...
..but potentially deadly for a quail chick.
Life beside industrial farming comes with dangers.
But each small patch of wild habitat
can be an important oasis for animals.
There are now 125,000 circular fields in the USA.
Who knows what dramas may be unfolding
in the spaces left between them?
Human agriculture now covers more than one third
of the Earth's land surface.
Add to that the space taken up by our homes and our industries
and humanity's impact can now be seen on more than half
of the planet's land.
For millions of years, natural forces have shaped Earth's surface.
But now, it is undoubtedly us who will decide
what our home will look like in the future.
Next time...
The view from space reveals our blue planet
as a kaleidoscope of incredible colours.
Vast turquoise swirls in the ocean
trigger the planet's biggest feeding frenzy.
Billions of flowers turn a Chinese landscape bright yellow.
And a lake in East Africa is transformed
by the pink of thousands of flamingos.
Each colour has its own remarkable secrets to reveal.
The Open University has produced a poster exploring Earth from space.
To order your free copy, call...
..or go to...
..and follow the links to the Open University.