Alps • 2009 • episode "S1E13" • How the Earth Was Made

45:03

How the cruise of a lifetime turned into a deadly nightmare. Passengers and day trippers were trapped when New Zealand’s most active volcano erupted. Were tourists warned of the danger and could more have been done to prevent tragedy?

Four Corners • 2020 • Environment

50:51

We start at the oldest cliffs of the palaeocontinent Baltica in the Extreme North of Russia atop an ancient mountain now covered in water. From the Urals in the east to the forgotten Tabernas Desert in the west, volcanic landscapes with plants from every climate zone, dolphins and whales will amaze.

S1E1 • Expedition Europe • 2019 • Environment

53:31

We live in an age when technological innovation seems to be limitlessly soaring. But for all the satisfying speed with which our gadgets have improved, many of them share a frustrating weakness: the batteries. Though they have improved in last century, batteries remain finicky, bulky, expensive, toxic, and maddeningly short-lived. The quest is on for a “super battery,” and the stakes in this hunt are much higher than the phone in your pocket. With climate change looming, electric cars and renewable energy sources like wind and solar power could hold keys to a greener future...if we can engineer the perfect battery. Join host David Pogue as he explores the hidden world of energy storage, from the power—and danger—of the lithium-ion batteries we use today, to the bold innovations that could one day charge our world.

NOVA PBS • 2017 • Environment

58:55

Last century, earthquakes killed over one million, and it is predicted that this century might see ten times as many deaths. Yet when an earthquake strikes, it always takes people by surprise. So why hasn't science worked out how to predict when and where the next big quake is going to happen? This is the story of the men and women who chase earthquakes and try to understand this mysterious force of nature. Journeying to China's Sichuan Province, which still lies devastated by the earthquake that struck in May 2008, as well as the notorious San Andreas Fault in California, Horizon asks why science has so far fallen short of answering this fundamental question.

Horizon • 2009 • Environment

52:51

Their beauty has captivated us for millennia. Their cost can be extraordinary–some are even considered priceless. Precious gems like diamonds, rubies, emeralds, opal, and jade are the ultimate treasures of the earth, and each one is made from a specific–and often torturous–recipe of chemistry, pressure, and heat. The secrets to their sparkle, color, and even strength lie deep inside the gems themselves, but could they also hold clues to one of the most enduring mysteries in the field of geology? From Tiffany’s workshop in New York to the sapphire mines of Sri Lanka, from North Carolina’s emerald fields to the jade-laden Forbidden City of China.

Part 1 • Treasures of the Earth • 2016 • Environment

41:59

What if the Earth was pulled out of its orbit and sent on a collision course into the Sun? Earth's deadly fall triggers massive hurricanes, sandstorms and a heat wave that kills every last person.

S1E8 • Doomsday: 10 Ways the World Will End • 2016 • Environment