Are We Alone • 2014 • episode "S1E3" • Human Universe

Category: Astronomy

Brian Cox explores the ingredients needed for an intelligent civilisation to evolve in the universe - the need for a benign star, for a habitable planet, for life to spontaneously arise on such a planet and the time required for intelligent life to evolve and build a civilisation. Brian weighs the evidence and arrives at his own provocative answer to the puzzle of our apparent solitude.

Make a donation

Buy a brother a hot coffee? Or a cold beer?

Hope you're finding these documentaries fascinating and eye-opening. It's just me, working hard behind the scenes to bring you this enriching content.

Running and maintaining a website like this takes time and resources. That's why I'm reaching out to you. If you appreciate what I do and would like to support my efforts, would you consider "buying me a coffee"?

Donation addresses

BTC: bc1q8ldskxh4x9qnddhcrgcun8rtvddeldm2a07r2v

ETH: 0x5CCAAA1afc5c5D814129d99277dDb5A979672116

With your donation through , you can show your appreciation and help me keep this project going. Every contribution, no matter how small, makes a significant impact. It goes directly towards covering server costs.

Human Universe • 2014 • 5 episodes •

Apeman - Spaceman

Apeman - Spaceman

Beginning in Ethiopia, Professor Brian Cox discovers how the universe played a key role in our ascent from apeman to spaceman by driving the expansion of our brains. But big brains alone did not get us to space.

2014 • People

Place in Space and Time

Place in Space and Time

Brian reveals how - as our exploration of the cosmos has deepened - we have even been able to piece together how the universe itself began.

2014 • Astronomy

What is our Future?

What is our Future?

In a powerful conclusion, Brian pieces together this story of creation that started with what Einstein called the 'happiest thought of his life' - the moment that he realised that gravity was far stranger than anyone had imagined. In an incredible experiment inside the largest vacuum chamber, Brian reveals how Einstein formulated a new theory of gravity, which ultimately took us back to the big bang. And how in doing so, we humans found our true place in space and time.

2014 • Science

Why Are We Here?

Why Are We Here?

Brian Cox tackles the question that unites Earth's seven billion people - why are we here?

2014 • Science

Are We Alone

Brian Cox explores the ingredients needed for an intelligent civilisation to evolve in the universe - the need for a benign star, for a habitable planet, for life to spontaneously arise on such a planet and the time required for intelligent life to evolve and build a civilisation. Brian weighs the evidence and arrives at his own provocative answer to the puzzle of our apparent solitude.

2014 • Astronomy

You might also like

Alien Worlds

Ultra-sensitive telescopes have transformed alien planet-hunting from science fiction into enthralling hard fact. Join NOVA on a visit to exotic worlds orbiting distant suns to answer an age-old question with thrilling new science: are we alone?

S1E3 • Nova: Universe Revealed • 2021 • Astronomy

Impact - Looking Out for Asteroids

Impact - Looking Out for Asteroids

An asteroid colliding with the Earth is not a just Hollywood fantasy. NASA and the Space Guard Foundation develop deflection plans to save the Earth from a comet, meteor or asteroid with Earth in its trajectory. Take a look at how the world is working together to keep our skies safe.

8 • Cosmic Front • 2014 • Astronomy

Part 2

After the destruction of Shuttle Challenger, the US considered grounding its fleet for good. That is until the stunning discovery that the Soviets had built their own fleet using plans stolen from NASA.

S1E2 • Secrets of the Space Shuttle • 2018 • Astronomy

Skylab: NASAs First Space Station

Skylab: NASAs First Space Station

Before the ISS, there was Skylab: NASA’s first mission to build a home beyond our planet. This is the spectacular story of the first astronauts who lived on a space station, and the incredible things their work taught us about what it takes for human beings to live, work, and play in outer space.

Secrets of the Universe (Curiosity) • 2022 • Astronomy

A Grand Tour

Starting with a grand tour of the Solar System, powerfully told by the world’s top space scientists. From the raging inferno of the Sun to the icy beauty of Pluto, discover the secrets that the planets have kept for billions of years, revealed with stunning images from space.

S1E1 • Secrets of the Solar System • 2020 • Astronomy

Hunting for Martian Life: The Perseverance Rover

Hunting for Martian Life: The Perseverance Rover

Meet Perseverance, NASA's latest rover, as it heads to Mars to answer one question: did life exist on the red planet? On the way, it will lay the foundation for human exploration of our closest neighbour.

S4E5 • Breakthrough • 2021 • Astronomy