When a mysterious cigar-shaped object is spotted tumbling through our solar system, experts race to uncover it's true nature. The object, nicknamed Oumuamua, meaning 'a messenger that reaches out from the distant past' in Hawaiian, was discovered by the Pan-STARRS 1 telescope in Hawaii. Since its discovery, scientists have been at odds to explain its unusual features and precise origins, with researchers first calling it a comet and then an asteroid before finally deeming it the first of its kind: a new class of 'interstellar objects.' A recent paper by researchers at the Harvard Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics raises the possibility that the elongated dark-red object, which is 10 times as long as it is wide and travelling at speeds of 196,000 mph, might have an 'artificial origin.' The theory is based on the object's 'excess acceleration,' or its unexpected boost in speed as it travelled through and ultimately out of our solar system.
Alejandro Jodorowsky's daring and psychedelic films of the early 1970's, 'El Topo' and 'The Holy Mountain', cemented his status as the Godfather of the Midnight Movie. In 1974, he began work on his next film, possibly the most ambitious film ever attempted. In the pre-Star War era, Jodorowsky’s adaptation of Frank Herbert’s classic sci-fi novel DUNE was poised to change cinema forever. His DUNE would star Brontis Jodorowsky, Alejandro's own 12 year old son, alongside Orson Welles, Mick Jagger, David Carradine and even Salvador Dali. The team of assembled visual artists were some of the most provocative talents of the era, including H.R. Giger, Chris Foss, and Jean ‘Moebius’ Giraud. The groundbreaking special effects were under the control of Dan O'Bannon and the soundtrack would be created by Pink Floyd and the French prog-rock masters, Magma. For two years, Jodorowsky and his team of 'Spiritual Warriors' worked night and day on the massive task of creating the fabulous world of DUNE. In order to secure the necessary Hollywood funding, they created over 3,000 storyboards, numerous paintings, incredible costumes, and an outrageous, moving, and powerful screenplay. In the words of Jodorowsky’s producer, Michel Seydoux, 'It should have been enough. But it wasn’t.' Through intimate and honest conversations with Jodorowsky, filmed over the span of three years, plus interviews with legends and luminaries including H.R. Giger (artist, ALIEN), Gary Kurtz (producer, STAR WARS) and Nicolas Winding Refn (director, DRIVE and THE NEON DEMON), as well as never-before-seen realizations of Jodorowsky’s mind-blowing psychedelic space opera, director Pavich's film finally unearths the full saga of 'THE GREATEST MOVIE NEVER MADE'.
In episode 3, Artemis arrives on the exoplanet Minerva B, but will she find evidence of life? This is a vision of our future, the fateful day in a far-flung corner of the universe, when a probe from Earth initiates the first descent onto an alien world, looking for proof of life beyond our solar system. There are no witnesses, no cheering crowds in the control room. A decade or more will pass before news finally reaches us, back across the dark oceans of space. But the seeds of this mission are already being sowed today by the first generation of scientists bold enough to believe it could be possible.
The Hayabusa2 spacecraft has just completed one of the most intricate procedures in space exploration. The first mission to deliver rovers onto an asteroid has now descended to its surface for a sample, before returning back to Earth in 2020.
In just half a century, the human population has doubled to 7.4 billion, and during that time, astronaut and satellite photos have been capturing the startling changes on our planet. See how humans have made their mark reshaping the planet in our quest for new sources of food, power, and shelter. From glimmering new megacities like Shenzhen, China to areas affected by climate change like Mt. Kilimanjaro and Florida, witness Earth's changing look--the spectacular and the shocking--from 250 miles up.
Professor Brian Cox concludes his exploration of our place in the universe by asking what next for the ape that went to space. Our future is far from certain. In Florida, Brian joins the latest efforts to protect Earth from potential catastrophic events. He joins a team of Nasa astronauts who are training for a future mission to an asteroid - should we ever discover one coming our way - under 30 feet of water in a submerged laboratory that simulates space. It is just one example of how, for our long-term survival, space exploration may well be vital. It is a view shared by Apollo 16 astronaut Charlie Duke, who tells Brian what it was like to escape the confines of the planet. It is a dream that both Nasa and now commercial companies share as they race to get humans back into deep space. But space travel, like every leap our civilisation has ever made, requires energy. Here too, scientists are hard at work attempting to safeguard our future. At the National Ignition Facility in California, Brian witnesses the world's most successful fusion experiment in action. He believes that if their mission succeeds, our civilisation will have unlocked a way to the stars that will not destroy the planet in the process. Brian concludes by returning to the top of the world in Svalbard, where he gains access to our civilisation's greatest treasure, locked away in a vault buried deep in the permafrost.
A recent paper by researchers at the Harvard Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics raises the possibility that the elongated dark-red object, which is 10 times as long as it is wide and travelling at speeds of 196,000 mph, might have an 'artificial origin.' The theory is based on the object's 'excess acceleration,' or its unexpected boost in speed as it travelled through and ultimately out of our solar system.