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.
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
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
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
Brian Cox tackles the question that unites Earth's seven billion people - why are we here?
2014 • Science
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
Dead stars may be the key to understanding the cosmos. New research proves white dwarfs are one of the driving forces of our universe. They eat planets, they flare out in high-energy light Have scientists finally discovered how these small stars could be such massive galactic players?
S9E5 • How the Universe Works • 2021 • Astronomy
Quasars are the brightest and most powerful objects in our universe, and though they have shaped the cosmos, they might ultimately destroy everything that exists.
S6E7 • How the Universe Works • 2017 • Astronomy
Our Sun could erupt at any moment, spewing a vast wave of charged particles toward Earth that could leave millions of people without power for up to a year. Learn about the latest missions to protect our planet from this potentially devastating threat.
2017 • Astronomy
We don't yet know where the edge of the universe is or what happens there; but thanks to cutting-edge technology and new discoveries, experts might finally reveal the secrets of the phenomena that can be found in deepest reaches of the cosmos.
S8E7 • How the Universe Works • 2020 • Astronomy
Supernovas are the violent death of giant stars, and new discoveries reveal that these cataclysmic events create the elements that are essential to all life in the universe.
S7E2 • How the Universe Works • 2019 • Astronomy
There’s a reason rocket science is used as a benchmark for difficulty. See why as we examine great liftoff disasters.
S1E6 • Space Disasters • 2020 • Astronomy