Congo: Protecting the Gorilla Forests • 2019 • episode "S1E1" • Paradise Preserved

44:08

On April 20th, 2010, at 9:49 PM, the Deepwater Horizon oil rig explodes. For 87 days, more than 200 million gallons of crude oil pump into the Gulf of Mexico, leading to long-term effects on the environment, the local economy, and the health of tens of thousands. Now, in-depth analysis of the catastrophe, investigative reports, and personal testimony from oil workers and residents of the Gulf Coast reveal ten critical mistakes that ultimately led to the greatest environmental disaster in U.S. history.

S1E4 • Ten Steps to Disaster • 2021 • Environment

44:00

From desalination plants to the "Billion Oyster Project," witness humankind's efforts to meet our freshwater needs.

S1E3 • Age of Humans • 2021 • Environment

52:41

In May 2018, Kilauea volcano erupted, obliterating neighborhoods with devastating force and uprooting thousands of local residents. It is Hawaii's most destructive volcanic eruption in generations. How can one of the most beautiful places on Earth suddenly transform into a roaring inferno, sputtering molten lava and bombs of volcanic rock the size of refrigerators? On the ground in the early days of the eruption, NOVA joins scientists and residents alike on a breathtaking journey to investigate Kilauea's recent spike in activity. Along the way, some of Hawaii's biggest secrets are revealed: Why did these geologically distinctive volcanoes form in the middle of the Pacific? How did life establish itself on the remote islands? What does this tell us about the future of Hawaii? And what dangers yet lurk for the inhabitants of the island paradise?

NOVA PBS • 2019 • Environment

59:45

Dr Helen Czerski reveals how shifting ocean water distributes heat and nutrients around the Earth. This process is linked to almost every aspect of human existence, and the lecture explores how dependent we are on the ocean for weather, food supply and connection between land masses - as well as exploring what needs to be done by humans to maintain this vital element of the Earth's ecosystem.

S1E2 • BBC Royal Institution Christmas Lectures - Planet Earth: A User's Guide • 2020 • Environment

44:33

As Shattered Ground reveals, some see fracking as a great opportunity for money and jobs, and one that provides cheap, clean fuel. But, for others, the possible human health costs of this new drilling technology have motivated a large and vociferous anti-fracking movement. The debate over fracking has been echoed in the Oscar-nominated documentary Gasland and in Promised Land, the new Gus van Sant's feature film starring Matt Damon. Fracking's critics consider the industry a potential environmental disaster, citing chemical contamination of air and water. With pipelines proposed, terminals for liquefied natural gas (LNG) requiring billions of dollars of investment, and huge shale beds lying underneath highly-populated areas of the Canada and the US (including southern Ontario and the GTA), fracking is an issue that could affect every one of us.

S52E09 • The Nature of Things • 2013 • 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