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Humpback Whale

   2006    Nature
Few sounds are more beautiful or moving than the underwater songs of the humpback whale. Male whales compete with their songs, which often last for 10 minutes at a time, and can be repeated for hours on end. Whales separated by thousands of miles of sea will sing almost identical songs. Researchers have found that the songs change throughout the breeding months, following a mysterious pattern repeated across the waves. Whales also use sound to hunt. To catch herring, humpback whales release a stream of bubbles to form a shimmering, circular fishing net. Emitting a repetitive loud scream, they scare the fish into a tight ball, then lunge out of the water to swallow the shoal whole. Now it seems that the long-held image of the gentle giant must change to one of a ferocious and opportunistic hunter.

Loose Lips Sink Ships

   2020    History
Sultan Mehmed II's siege of Constantinople enters its third week. Mehmed's artillery teams continue their relentless bombardment of Constantinople's walls. After his navy suffers a devastating defeat, Mehmed moves his ships overland to the Golden Horn in a daring, visionary feat. In the shadow of betrayal, Giustiniani attacks the Ottoman fleet.
Series: Rise of Empires: Ottoman

Going Small

   2022    Science
In this mind-bending series, Professor Jim Al-Khalili explores the vast range of size in the universe, from tiny atoms to gigantic, interconnected galaxies.
In the first episode, Jim will enter the world of objects that are too tiny to glimpse with the naked eye. Starting with the smallest insects, he moves on to encounter living cells with amazing superpowers and confronts some of humanity's deadliest enemies in the form of viruses. Going smaller still, he encounters wondrous new nanomaterials such as graphene, discovered by physicist Andre Geim. These are revolutionising engineering, medicine, computing, electronics and environmental science. Finally, Jim comes face to face with the fundamental building blocks of the world around us – atoms – and reveals why understanding the science of the 'small' is crucial to the future of humanity.
Series: Secrets of Size: Atoms to Supergalaxies

One Hour That Changed World: Moon Landing

   2022    Technology
The Moon Landing celebrates the historic 50th anniversary of Apollo 11, in a fresh and distinctive style. This inspiring documentary subverts usual conventions by beginning with the momentous event, exploring the preceding dramatic sixty minutes in granular detail.
Packed with surprising details which reveal a whole new perspective on the story of how humans landed on the moon, this documentary rewinds one hour before Neil Armstrong's famous footstep to reveal a whole untold story, hidden in the forensic moment-by-moment details driven by powerful footage from the time and authentic audio recordings from the capsule and the command module and mission control in Houston. In the last 60 minutes, the Apollo mission could fall apart. Without dazzling on-the-spot ingenuity, a 240,000-mile helpline to Houston, and almost unnatural abilities to remain calm under incredible pressure, the first step onto another world might not happen at all.

Predicting the Future

   2016    Culture
Astrology, the celestial movements of the Sun, Moon, and planets among the stars, governing our personality and destiny. For centuries, millions of people, from paupers to powerful world leaders, have relied on the ancient system for answers. This episode examines whether tracking astronomical phenomena can actually predict the future.
Series: The Universe Season 8

Pluto and Beyond

   2011    Science
Pluto is one of the Smaller than our own Moon, Pluto has never had a single visitor from Earth - until now. We keep saying, 'This is it, this is humanity's trip to Pluto. For the first time in human history, Pluto is about to be revealed. We can expect surprises, it's almost guaranteed. Until then, we can only guess what Pluto looks like. And recently, astronomers decided not to call it a planet any more. Once thought to be an isolated oddity, Pluto now marks the beginning of a whole new frontier. it's as if the explorers had climbed up to the top of the Rockies and were looking over and could see the lands of California on the other side. There has never been a better time to venture where no human has gone before. To follow in the footsteps of our robot pioneers and explore beyond the planets of our Solar System.
Series: A Traveler Guide to the Planets