The Discovery Enterprise

Skylab – America’s First Space Station

2013-05-14T09:21:00.002-07:00

Today on Discovery Enterprise we commemorate the fortieth anniversary of the launching of America’s first space station - Skylab.

Forty years ago today on May 14^th, 1973 Skylab, America’s first Space Station, was sent into orbit aboard a Saturn V rocket booster from pad 39A at Kennedy Space Centre.

Skylab consisted of a modified S-IVB stage from a Saturn IB, providing a cavernous interior for its three-man crews. In the end, Skylab proved highly successful, but the project could have ended disastrously, within minutes of launch:

Skylab Space Station Launched on May 14^th, 1973

"Almost immediately, technical problems developed due to vibrations during liftoff. A critical meteoroid shield ripped off taking one of the craft's two solar panels with it, and a piece of the shield wrapped around the other panel keeping it from deploying."

Skylab as photographed by its departing final crew

"Skylab was manoeuvred so its Apollo Telescope Mount, or ATM, solar panels faced the sun to provide as much electricity as possible. Because of the loss of the meteoroid shield, however, this positioning caused workshop temperatures to rise to 52 degrees Celsius (126 degrees F). The launch of Skylab 2 was postponed while NASA engineers, in an intensive 10-day period, developed procedures and trained the crew to make the workshop habitable. At the same time, engineers "rolled" Skylab to lower the temperature of the workshop." (NASA mission notes)

Cutaway look at Skylab Space Station

To mark the occasion we present three video features for your viewing pleasure - Skylab: Space Station One, NASA’s 40th Anniversary of Skylab and Skylab - Orbiter Space Flight Simulator.

Skylab: Space Station One

NASA's 40th Anniversary of Skylab

Skylab - Orbiter Space Flight Simulator

Ray Harryhausen’s Earth vs. the Flying Saucers in Color

2013-05-11T02:46:00.003-07:00

Today on Discovery Enterprise we pay a special tribute to special effects pioneer Ray Harryhausen by presenting for your viewing pleasure a colorized version of Earth vs. the Flying Saucers.

Earth vs. the Flying Saucers (1956) is an American science fiction film, directed by Fred F. Sears and released by Columbia Pictures. The film is also known as Invasion of the Flying Saucers. It was suggested by the best selling, non-fiction book Flying Saucers from Outer Space by Maj. Donald Keyhoe. The flying saucer effects were created by Ray Harryhausen.

Dr. Russell Marvin heads up Operation Skyhook, which is tasked with sending rockets into the upper atmosphere to probe for future space flights. Unfortunately, all the rockets are somehow disappearing. While investigating this strange occurrence, Russell and his new assistant/wife Carol Marvin are abducted by a flying saucer, where the aliens demand to meet with certain people in order to negotiate. But it was a trick; the aliens only wanted to kill them. The invasion has begun and if Russell and Carol can't find a way to get past their defenses and stop these creatures, it may be the end of the human race.

This motion picture is a textbook example of '50s-era science fiction, Earth vs. the Flying Saucers boasts not only a solid script and competent performances, but some genuinely impressive stop-motion effects courtesy of one of the industry's uncontested masters, Ray Harryhausen. Scientist Hugh Marlowe (who faced a more benevolent invader from space five years earlier in The Day the Earth Stood Still) discovers that UFOs are responsible for the destruction of a series of exploratory space rockets launched by his space exploration project. The saucers' helmeted pilots land on Earth and deliver an ultimatum to humanity via Marlowe: fealty or complete annihilation.

Harryhausen's painstakingly intricate saucers and the destruction they wreak (particularly during an assault on Washington, D.C.) are the film's unquestionable highlights

Earth vs. The Flying Saucers, the special color edition is available on DVD from Amazon Books.

Ray Harryhausen’s Earth vs. the Flying Saucers in Color

Watch Earth vs The Flying Saucers 1956 Color Version.avi in SciFi & Fantasy | View More Free Videos Online at Veoh.com

Code-Breakers: Bletchley Park’s Lost Heroes

2013-05-09T10:50:00.002-07:00

Today on Discovery Enterprise we present the BBC documentary film Code-Breakers: Bletchley Park’s Lost Heroes.

The stunning achievements of mathematical whiz Bill Tutte, combined with the engineering genius of British General Post Office (GPO) engineer Tommy Flowers, were to change the course of the Second World War and usher in the age of computers.

Code-breakers: Bletchley Park's Lost Heroes reveals how the talented Bill Tutte was responsible for what experts have described as the single most important intellectual feat of World War Two – without this work, D-Day would never have happened.

Colossus and two operators from the Women’s Royal Naval Service, Dorothy Du Boisson (left) and Elsie Booker. Tutte’s code breaking skill and Flowers’ engineering expertise gave rise to Colossus, the world’s first programmable computer

His breathtaking genius was exploited by an amazing array of talent at Bletchley Park, the UK’s top secret intelligence base, who then broke into Hitler’s own communications network, changing the War and the world.

Bill Tutte

But unlike the well-documented story of the cracking of the Enigma code, their work in deciphering the codes of the more complicated Lorenz machine was hidden from public view.

British engineer Tommy Flowers

At the time, neither man was credited with this work as it was covered by the Official Secret Act – Tutte in particular was essentially buried as the official history of Bletchley began to emerge, but continued to work in secret for his government right through the Cold War.

This was a man who did extraordinary things and was ahead of his time, but who put duty above personal glory, and died without ever being honored by his own country.

A BBC production

Code-Breakers: Bletchley Park’s Lost Heroes

Ray Harryhausen - Special Effects Titan

2013-05-08T09:11:00.003-07:00

Today on Discovery Enterprise we bid a final and fond farewell to special effects pioneer Ray Harryhausen who died yesterday, May 7^th, 2013, in London at the age of ninety-two.

The remarkable career of the movie industry’s most admired and influential special-effects auteur, the legendary Ray Harryhausen, is the subject of Gilles Penso's definitive documentary Ray Harryhausen Special Effects Titan.

Leaving no doubt as to Harryhausen’s seminal influence on modern-day special effects, the documentary features enlightening and entertaining interviews with the man himself, Randy Cook, Peter Jackson, Nick Park, Phil Tippet, Terry Gilliam, Dennis Muren, John Landis, Guillermo Del Toro, James Cameron, Steven Spielberg and many more.

These filmmakers, who today push the boundaries of special effects movie-making, pay tribute to the father of Stop Motion animation and films such as The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms, It Came From Beneath The Sea, The 7th Voyage of Sinbad, Mysterious Island, Jason And The Argonauts and The Golden Voyage of Sinbad, the films that enthralled them as children and inspired them to become filmmakers in their own right.

Ray Harryhausen Special Effects Titan is available on DVD from Amazon Books in the United Kingdom.

Ray Harryhausen: Special Effects Titan and on YouTube

The Lost Tomb of Genghis Khan

2013-05-04T08:37:00.001-07:00

Today on Discovery Enterprise we go on an adventure that sounds like it came right out of Clive Cussler novel as we go in search of the LostTomb of Genghis Khan.

His action-packed life may have blazed a searing trail of death and destruction through history but, in death, Genghis Khan is proving to be a puzzlingly elusive figure.

In the Lost Tomb of Genghis Khan we saddle up with a team of experts as they unearth Mongolia's best-kept secret and the only remaining tie to its spiritual and political forefather.

With no burial site ever uncovered, the 800-year-old mystery of the marauding Mongolian's final resting place has baffled archaeologists for centuries.

Led by self-confessed Genghis-obsessive Albert Yu-Min Lin, the explorers hope that untested technologies and a sophisticated network of civilian scientists will give them the edge on previous missions.

But as they approach what they believe could be the legendary Burkhan Khaldun, a sacred mountain often linked to the long-dead ruler, gold grabbing gravediggers and freakish weather systems all stand in their way.

The final pieces of this ancient mystery have never seemed closer, but will they stay out of reach forever?

This National Geographic Channel documentary is available from Amazon.com and the National Geographic Channel’s online store.

For those of you in search of a good adventure yarn allow me to suggest: Treasure of Khan (A Dirk Pitt Novel) by Clive Cussler and Dirk Cussler. This novel is the ninetieth Dirk Pitt novel and is about a Mongolian oil tycoon and his attempts to gain control over the world petroleum markets. It also has a secondary plot of a search for the treasures in the tombs of Genghis Khan and Khublai Khan. This is a self contained novel as the entire series of Dirk Pitt novels as is a good introduction to the entire Dirk Pitt series. Treasure of Khan and the entire Dirk Pitt series is available from Amazon Books.

National Geographic Channel's The Lost Tomb of Genghis Khan

An American Adventure - The Rocket Pilots

2013-05-01T00:05:00.000-07:00

Today on Discovery Enterprise we present An American Adventure the Rocket Pilots.

This documentary produced in 1981 covers the history of rocket planes from the Bell X-1 to the iconic X-15 and the test pilots who flew them, culminating finally with the Space Shuttle.

This documentary film features exclusive interviews with Chuck Yeager, Scott Crossfield, John Young, Robert Crippen and more.

An American Adventure the Rocket Pilots is available on DVD from Media Outlet’s online store.

An American Adventure - The Rocket Pilots

James Cameron’s Voyage to the Bottom of the Earth

2013-04-30T00:05:00.000-07:00

Today we join film director James Cameron as he made history on March 26^th, 2012 during his odyssey to the deepest depths of the ocean, when he broke a world’s record and took the deepest solo dive ever attempted.

The last time a dive into the Mariana Trench was accomplished by two men on January 23^rd, 1960, aboard the bathyscaphe Trieste, crewed by Jacques Piccard (son of the boat's designer Auguste Piccard) and U.S. Navy Lieutenant Don Walsh achieving the goal of Project Nekton.

Plunging to the virtually unknown depths of the Mariana Trench, James Cameron's Deepsea Challenge expedition takes this National Geographic Explorer deeper and further than any filmmaker or solo explorer has ever gone before.

The finish line lies below nearly 36,000 feet of seawater, weighing in at about 16,000 pounds of pressure on every square inch of sub.

Now join James Cameron, moment by nail-biting moment, on this intimate glimpse inside the mind of a master traveller as he recounts his journey to the bottom of the earth.

National Geographic:- James Camron's Voyage To The Bottom of the Earth

In Search of History - The Great Library of Alexandria

2013-04-29T00:05:00.000-07:00

An imagined rendering of scholars in the Great Library

Today on Discovery-Enterprise we will wander once again through the halls of the Great Library of the Ptolemaic-Egyptian city of Alexandria thanks to the History Channel’s documentary series In Search of History - The Great Library of Alexandria.

The interior of the Great Library Re-created

This was once the greatest centre of research and learning of the ancient world and served as the home of the greatest minds of classical civilization.

Facade of the Great Library of Alexandria

Hipparchus, Euclid, Galen and Hypatia strolled through its magnificent galleries and made use of its fantastic collection of half a million papyrus scrolls encompassing the knowledge of classical antiquity. For the first time in history, scholars from all fields of study and from every known corner of the world have a place where they can pursue pure knowledge.

A scene from the movie "Agora," with Rachel Weisz playing the 4th-century scholar, Hypatia. This is supposed to take place in the Serapeum, not the Royal Library, but the scholarly traditions would have been similar.

Scholars Using the Great Library of Alexandria, Egypt, c.300-200 Bc," unknown artist, probably c. 1900

The Alexandria Library housed the largest collection of books ever assembled in the ancient world. But no trace of it exists today. Who was responsible for the destruction of the Alexandria Library and what secrets about the ancient world were forever lost in the rubble?

The Great Library Burning

In Search of History - The Great Library of Alexandria is available on VHS tape from Amazon Books.

In Search of History - The Great Library of Alexandria

Treasures of the Sunken City

2013-04-28T00:05:00.000-07:00

Today on Discovery Enterprise we take another foray into the exciting field of underwater archaeology by presenting an episode of the acclaimed PBS documentary series NOVA titled Treasures of the Sunken City which originally aired on November 18^th, 1997.

In Treasures of the Sunken City we join a team of underwater archaeologists as they plunge into the murky waters off Alexandria and discover many tantalizing artefacts, including some which may belong to one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World - the Great Pharos Lighthouse of Alexandria, which was destroyed in an earthquake in 1375.

Treasures of the Sunken City is available on VHS tape from Amazon.com.

NOVA-Treasures of the Sunken City

Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea (1961)

2013-04-27T00:05:00.000-07:00

Today on Discovery Enterprise we have the honour of presenting Irwin Allen’s motion picture Voyage tothe Bottom of the Sea released in 1961 and which later spawned the television series starring Richard Basehart and David Hedison.

In the motion picture Admiral Nelson takes the brand new atomic submarine Seaview through its paces when news arrives that the Van Allen radiation belt catches fire...

TV Series Version of the Submarine Seaview with the Flying sub

Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea is an American science fiction film, produced and directed by Irwin Allen, released by 20th Century Fox in 1961. The story was written by Irwin Allen and Charles Bennett. Walter Pidgeon starred as Admiral Harriman Nelson, with Robert Sterling as Captain Lee Crane. The supporting cast included Joan Fontaine, Barbara Eden, Michael Ansara, and Peter Lorre. The theme song was sung by Frankie Avalon, who also appeared in the film.

Science fiction author Theodore Sturgeon later wrote a novel based on this motion picture which is available online in pdf format.

The film's submarine design is unique in that it features an eight-window bow viewport that provides panoramic undersea views. In the novel of the film by Theodore Sturgeon, the windows are described as "... oversized hull plates which happen to be transparent."

They are made of "X-tempered herculite", a process developed by Nelson. In the film, Seaview's bow has eight windows in the exterior shots, but only four windows appear to be seen in the interior shots of the Observation Room (the four upper windows were implied to be out of frame, at the top of the observation room). The bow also has a shark-like bottom flare, and the stern has 1961 Cadillac tail-fins, the "Cadillac" of submarines. In the film, the USOS Seaview (United States Oceanographic Survey) is under the authority of Nelson and the Bureau of Marine Exploration rather that the U.S. Navy. The novel mentions the bureau as being part of the U.S. Department of Science.

Both the motion picture and television series versions of Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea are available from Amazon.com.

Also available from Amazon.com is the book SEAVIEW: A 50th Anniversary Tribute toVoyage to the Bottom of the Sea:

Includes an introduction by David Hedison plus interviews with David Hedison (Captain Crane), Bob Dowdell (Chip Morton), Del Monroe (Kowalski), Alun Hunt (Stu Riley), Richard Bull (Doctor), Terry Becker (Sharkey), assistant producer Paul Zastupnevich, and guest star Pat Culliton. The book includes coverage of the making of both the movie and the TV series from the pilot through all four seasons, a complete episode guide with EXTREMELY comprehensive story notes, information on vehicles and ships in the show, collectibles (includes nearly 150 rare items), unfilmed Voyage stories, a guide to Irwin Allen, guest stars and much more.

This book contains over 500 pages and nearly 740 black and white and colour photos. This book covers the whole Voyage experience, from what influenced it (Jules Verne, movie serials, the news of the day, etc.) to its place in SF TV history and Irwin Allen's conquest of TV, to how the idea was revisited in Allen's Nemo mini-series as well as Spielberg's SeaQuest DSV, plus reviews of the fans, their zines and conventions, right up to the DVD releases. This book is perfect bound, printed on quality paper with 600 DPI photos. You won't be disappointed!

Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea (1961)

Stone Age Apocalypse

2013-04-23T00:05:00.000-07:00

Human evolution is believed to have begun some six million years ago. Yet, despite the passage of so much time, the diversity of the DNA genetic code of all humans is minute.

Some Seventy-five thousand years ago, something apocalyptic occurred that left relative few humans alive to carry on the species.

The cause of this bottleneck is now believed to have been a massive volcanic eruption on the Indonesian island of Sumatra.

A super-eruption from the site of Lake Toba in Sumatra blasted out more than two hundred cubic miles of ash over an area of over a million square miles.

Today on Discovery Enterprise we present two documentary features concerning this prehistoric mega disaster: Naked Science - Stone Age Apocalypse and PBS NOVA’s Mystery of the Megavolcano.

These documentaries investigate the devastating aftermath of the most powerful volcano of the last twenty-five million years including, the theory that it triggered a human genetic bottleneck leaving a tiny band of humanity, as low as a few thousand survivors to preserve the human race. These documentaries also look at the threat of super-volcanoes in the twenty-first century.

These episodes of NOVA and Naked Science other PBS and National Geographic Channel documentaries can be purchased from PBS’s Online Store and direct from the National Geographic Channel’s store respectively.

Naked Science - Stone Age Apocalypse

NOVA - Mystery of the Megavolcano

Earth Day April 22, 1970

2013-04-22T00:09:00.000-07:00

On behalf of my co-bloggers Ralph Buttigieg, Dennis Chamberland and Michael Lombardi I would like to wish each and every one of our dear readers a Happy Earth Day. Today marks the forty-third anniversary of the first Earth Day events of April 22, 1970. According to the entry of that ever indispensable, yet at times not always dependable, web resource Wikipedia:

Earth Day is a day that is intended to inspire awareness and appreciation for the Earth's natural environment. Earth Day was founded by United States Senator Gaylord Nelson as an environmental teach-in first held on April 22, 1970. While this first Earth Day was focused on the United States, an organization launched by Denis Hayes, who was the original national coordinator in 1970, took it international in 1990 and organized events in 141 nations. Earth Day is now coordinated globally by the Earth Day Network, and is celebrated in more than 175 countries every year. Numerous communities celebrate Earth Week, an entire week of activities focused on environmental issues. In 2009, the United Nations designated April 22 International Mother Earth Day.

My father took me to the first Earth Day celebrations that were held in New York City. I was nine years old at the time. I remember 14th Street near Union Square being closed off to traffic and that there was a street fair displaying the eco-friendly technology of the time. It was the first time ever I actually saw an electric car. To commemorate that event and in a sense to share an early childhood memory I decided to post the original broadcast of the CBS News Special Report with Walter Cronkite covering the events of the first Earth Day of April 22, 1970.

In the opening of today’s video feature you will meet biologist Dr. Barry Commoner. Dr. Commoner is a professor at my alma mater Queens College. Dr. Commoner established the Center for the Biology of Natural Systems at Queens College. One of Commoner's lasting legacies is his four laws of ecology, as written in The Closing Circle in 1971.

The four laws are:

1. Everything is Connected to Everything Else. There is one ecosphere for all living organisms and what affects one, affects all.

2. Everything Must Go Somewhere. There is no "waste" in nature and there is no “away” to which things can be thrown.

3. Nature Knows Best. Humankind has fashioned technology to improve upon nature, but such change in a natural system is, says Commoner, “likely to be detrimental to that system.”

4. There Is No Such Thing as a Free Lunch. Exploitation of nature will inevitably involve the conversion of resources from useful to useless forms.

After seeing today’s video feature, I could not help but wonder how the concerns of that time remain the principle anxieties of today. Allow me to close with the following words of Walter Cronkite, in that sage voice of his, which still ring true today: "The hoopla of Earth Day is over. The problems remain."

Earth Day April 22, 1970 CBS News Special with Walter Cronkite

In The Footsteps of Alexander the Great - Son of God

2013-04-22T00:05:00.000-07:00

In 335 BC Alexander of Macedonia set off on an expedition to conqueror the world. The voyage of Alexander the Great covered more than 22,000 miles in ten years, from Greece to India and back, through some of the most difficult and unforgiving terrain.

Extent of Alexander's Conquests

Join us today on Discovery Enterprise, more than two thousand year later, as we accompany historian and BBC journalist Michael Wood on an odyssey, from Greece to India, which retraces the footsteps of Alexander the Great in the acclaimed BBC documentary series - In the Footsteps of Alexander the Great.

Travelling with Lebanese traders, Iranian pilgrims and Afghan guerrillas, by jeep, train, boat, camel and on foot, Michael Wood interweaves the momentous events of the past with present day reality and brings us new insights into a man whose myth and achievements still resonate down the centuries and illustrates the impact Greek culture had in the lands Alexander conquered.

In the first instalment of this monumental series Son of God we enter the Lebanese city of Tyre, the scene of Alexander's most desperate battle and uncover the Palestinian legend of `Two-Horned Alexander'; and then journey to the Egyptian oasis of Siwa, where Alexander was proclaimed pharaoh and son of God.

In the Footsteps of Alexander the Great is available on DVD along with its companion book from Amazon.com.

For our readers in Australia: Be sure to visit the Alexander the Great Exhibition in Sydney at the Australian Museum in Sydney which opened on November 24^th, 2012 and end on April 28^th, 2013.

In The Footsteps of Alexander the Great - Son of God

How to Grow a Planet - Life from Light

2013-04-21T00:05:00.000-07:00

Today on Discovery Enterprise we present the first episode of the BBC documentary series How to Grow a Planet - Life from Light.

In this series Professor Iain Stewart tells a stunning new story about our planet. He reveals how the greatest changes to the Earth have been driven, above all, by plants.

In this first episode we join Dr Iain Stewart on an odyssey from the spectacular caves of Vietnam to the remote deserts of Africa to reveal an important chapter in the story of Life on Earth.

The BBC documentary series How to Grow a Planet hosted by Professor Iain Stewart is available on DVD from the BBC’s online shop and Amazon.com.

We might think humans are the most powerful living thing on Earth, but it's plants that time and again have set the agenda for life. All animals rely on plants for their survival. This is not an accident - they are the most powerful evolutionary force on Earth. Plants enabled amphibians to leave the water, they had a hand in the rise and fall of the dinosaurs, and they ensured the ultimate triumph of insects, mammals, birds and even us - all for their own benefit. This is because plants have only ever had one goal - the total domination of the planet. It is a story of ruthless ingenuity, seduction and deception; of unimaginable power and ambition. An epic tale, How to Grow a Planet offers a stunning new perspective on Earth history.

BBC How To Grow A Planet, Life from Light

Could We Survive A Mega Tsunami?

2013-04-20T00:05:00.000-07:00

Today on Discovery Enterprise we explore the question Could We Survive A Mega Tsunami?

This BBC Two documentary starts with a horrific scenario a kilometre high tidal wave, travelling at the speed of a jet aircraft, and heading for us.

The destructive effects of tsunamis have been all too evident in recent years, with one on Boxing Day (December 26^th) 2004 killing around 250,000 people in southern Asia and another striking Japan on March 11^th, 2011 and nearly bringing this nation close to the edge of a nuclear catastrophe.

This documentary uses the latest scientific modelling to present a minute-by-minute account of what might happen if there was a mega-tsunami in the Atlantic, and what would it do to cities including Casablanca, Lisbon, London and New York.

Could We Survive A Mega Tsunami?

Wonder Women: The Untold Story of American Superheroines

2013-04-19T08:53:00.005-07:00

Today on Discovery Enterprise we are proud to present as our feature documentary Wonder Women - The Untold Story of American Superheroines.

This feature documentary explores the concept of heroic women from the birth of the superhero in the 1940s to the TV and big screen action blockbusters of today.

Heroic role models are important in childhood development, yet there is a dearth of these for young girls. Wonder Woman provides a rare example of a female heroine who doesn't require rescue, determines her own missions, and possesses uniquely feminine values.

Featuring such guest speakers as Gloria Steinem, actors Lynda Carter and Lindsey Wagner, and a colorful cast of scholars, writers, and fans, the film challenges pop culture's gender biases by looking at how Wonder Woman's storyline changed over time while considering how women are rarely depicted as heroic, powerful, or world-changing.

Wonder Women - The Untold Storyof American Superheroines more information about this documentary is available from PBS.

Wonder Women - The Untold Story of American Superheroines

Possible Earth Doomsday Scenarios with David Darling on Coast to Coast Radio

2013-04-14T00:05:00.000-07:00

Doomsday Asteroid

Today on Discovery Enterprise we are happy to present a recent interview George Noory had on December 6^th, 2012 with Astronomer and best selling author David Darling on Coast to Coast Radio concerning various Doomsday Scenarios and existential threats.

David Darling is a British astronomer, with a PhD from the University of Manchester and is the author of several dozen science books. His website The Internet Encyclopedia of Science is one of the most visited sites on the Internet for information about life and intelligence in the universe.

As the Sun approaches a peak of activity in 2013, is human civilization at risk?

During the course of this interview author and astronomer David Darling discussed the plausibility of various scenarios which could fulfil doomsday predictions for the end of the Mayan calendar, including near-Earth asteroids, devastating pandemics, and solar kill shots.

Doomsday Supervolcano

He observed that, since 12.21.2012 is a mere two weeks away, events like a supervolcanic eruption or an asteroid strike can be dismissed as possibilities for that fateful day, since warning signs would have been seen by now.

Alien Invasion

In light of this limited time frame, Darling opined that fast-acting events like an alien invasion or spread of an airborne pandemic remain "remote possibilities."

Doomsday Plague

On the potential that the end of the Mayan calendar may portend the arrival of Planet X, Darling explained that such a scenario would result in it being clearly visible in the sky both night and day. Additionally, he rejected the idea that Planet X could be 'hiding' behind the Sun, because the Earth's motion would eventually reveal the object. "The mechanics of the thing don't really add up," Darling said. That said, he conceded that it is possible that such a planet is lurking out in the distant solar system and may eventually arrive near Earth, albeit not on 12.21.2012. "I cannot be persuaded that it will arrive in two weeks time," he said, "I just cannot make it work in any scenario."

Doomsday Planet Nibiru was due to Collide with us on December 21, 2012. And we're still here.

David Darling is also the co-author with Dirk Schulze-Makuch of the book Megacatastrophes!: Nine Strange Ways the World Could End available from Amazon books in the United States and the United Kingdom.

Megacatastrophes!: Nine Strange Ways The World Could End

Celebrate the year of the Mayan Apocalypse in style with Megacatastrophes!, as Dr. David Darling and Dr. Dirk Schulze-Makuch delve into the amazing science of the end of the world.

Could it be the asteroid hurtling towards us from outer space, or a super-volcano covering the Earth under a cloud of ash; black holes gobbling up the solar system, or a tiny army of nanobots in a deranged feeding frenzy? Oh, and don’t forget – there’s always the risk of alien invasion.

Rating the likelihood of each potential disaster, David and Dirk provide the best guide to the worst that could happen, and explore what we could do to save our souls. So sit down, face the inevitable, and prepare to discover the nine weirdest ways we could all go to meet our maker.

Possible Earth Doomsday Scenario's with David Darling on Coast to Coast Radio

Animation of NASA's Proposed Asteroid Retrieval Mission

2013-04-13T00:05:00.000-07:00

NASA's 2014 budget proposes a mission to robotically capture a small Near Earth Asteroid and then bringing it into a stable lunar orbit where astronauts can visit and explore it, and where it will be a 'stepping stone' to future missions to farther asteroids and beyond.

In the wake of the meteorite explosion over Russia's city of Chelyabinsk on February 15^th, 2013 NASA’s recent budget request calls for the funds to develop the dual use technologies necessary for planetary defence and utilising the mineral wealth of the asteroids as outlined by NASA’s Keck Institute for Space Studies proposal which was published earlier this year.

Artist’s conception of the Orion crew vehicle orbiting Earth. Credit: NASA

This mission will be a decisive leap towards transforming our species into a spacefaring civilization finally poised to colonize the solar system.

The asteroid retrieval mission would capture a small space rock in an expandable bag, cinch it shut, de-spin the object and return it to a stable orbit around the moon. Credit: NASA

The Third Industrial Revolution by G. Harry Stein

This mission will also be a fitting tribute to memory of three great space visionaries who foresaw the coming era of space industrialization and colonization - Dandridge MacFarlan Cole, G. Harry Stine author of The Third Industrial Revolution, and Gerald K. O'Neil.

Animation of NASA's Proposed Asteroid Retrieval Mission

Reach for the Stars

2013-04-12T00:05:00.000-07:00

Today on Discovery Enterprise we commemorate two important events that happened on this date in history.

April 12^th, 1633 and April 12^th, 1961 are two days on which science challenged the conventional view of our place in the universe.

On April 12th, 1633 Galileo’s trial for heresy commences for claiming the sun and not the Earth is the center of the known universe, and exactly 328 years to the day later (1961) Soviet cosmonaut Major Yuri Gagarin rockets into space becoming the first human to orbit the Earth.

Days That Shook the World is a British documentary series that premiered on the BBC on 17 September 2003. The program features various milestones throughout history. It has been broadcast on the BBC, Discovery Channel UK, and The History Channel.

This series is available on DVD from Amazon.com and BBC video.

BBC Days that Shook The World - Reach for the Stars

Windscale Britain’s Biggest Nuclear Disaster

2013-04-10T00:05:00.000-07:00

Today on Discovery Enterprise we present a BBC documentary that reveals how political ambition fuelled the Windscale fire of 1957 and then dictated that the heroes of Windscale be made the scapegoats.

Some fifty-five years ago, on the night of October 10^th, 1957, Britain was on the brink of an unprecedented nuclear tragedy. A fire ripped through the radioactive materials in the core of Windscale, Britain's first nuclear reactor. Tom Tuohy, the deputy general manager at the site, led the team faced with dealing with a nightmare no-one had thought possible.

"Mankind had never faced a situation like this; there's no-one to give you any advice," he said. Tuohy and his men were confronted by a terrifying dilemma.

If they let the fire burn out, it could spread radioactivity over a large area of Britain. But if they put water on the reactor, they risked turning it into a nuclear bomb that could kill them all.

Now tapes of the inquiry into the accident, heard for the first time in a BBC film, reveal the reasons why the politicians covered up the causes of the accident. Scientists had been warning about the dangers of an accident for some time. The safety margins of the radioactive materials inside the reactor were being further and further eroded.

Windscale Britain's Biggest Nuclear Disaster

Clash of the Gods - J.R.R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings

2013-04-08T00:05:00.000-07:00

Today on Discovery Enterprise we take another foray into the world of J.R.R. Tolkien's Middle Earth and the story behind the most renowned myth created in modern times.

Wizards

Join us as we enter Tolkien's fantastical world of Hobbits, Orcs and Wizards, and uncover the real life influences that shaped his epic fantasy, "The Lord of the Rings."

Orcs

Clash of the Gods - Tolkien's Monsters is available on DVD from the History Channel’s online store.

Hobbits

Clash of the Gods - J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings (Tolkien's Monsters)

Curiosity: Is There A Parallel Universe?

2013-04-07T00:05:00.000-07:00

Today on Discovery Enterprise we join award-winning actor Morgan Freeman for a voyage into the realm of parallel universes where the alternate realities of our imagination come alive and Doppelganger versions of ourselves are manifest.

Up until today, there still exists a question as to whether a person can be living multiple lives through a parallel universe. What started out as a result of fiction writers imagination has turned out to be actually possible.

One cosmologist from MIT firmly believes that multiple personas of one person exist. He believes that our cosmic doppelgangers exist in realm that is beyond our reach. He further points out that studies have shown that the universe is massive and has no finite end.

This means that at one point in time, there can be a universe besides ours. More disturbingly so, there can be a being that looks exactly like you in that separate universe. This cosmologist has even calculated the number of light-years that one should travel to possibly find his or her doppelganger.

This and other episodes of the acclaimed Discovery Channel documentary series Curiosity are available from the Discovery Channel’s online shop.

Curiosity: Is There A Parallel Universe?

The Three Rocketeers

2013-04-06T00:05:00.000-07:00

Today on Discovery Enterprise we present the BBC 4 documentary The Three Rocketeers, about the men behind the revolutionary single stage to orbit space vehicle - Skylon.

For his entire life, one man has nursed the dream of putting mankind into space. Inspired by the Dan Dare comic strip, Alan Bond first started building rockets as a teenager in his back garden.

Dan Dare - Pilot of the Future

Bond started his career working on Britain's Blue Streak rocket, then HOTOL, the world's first attempt to build a 'single stage to orbit' spacecraft (SSTO)'.

HOTOL Single Stage To Orbit Spaceplane

Each time, he was thwarted by lack of funding from the UK government, so, together with two colleagues, Richard Varvill and John Scott-Scott; he decided to go it alone. This documentary tells the story of how the three racketeers defeated the Official Secrets Act, shrugged off government intransigence and defied all conventional wisdom to build a revolutionary new spacecraft – Skylon.


Skylon in orbit

BBC 4 The Three Rocketeers

The Day After Disaster – What if Washington, D.C. got Nuked?

2013-04-05T00:05:00.000-07:00

In the current climate of widespread national security concerns in the U.S. and recent sabre rattling by North Korea’s Kim Jong-un, many people worry that the threat of a nuclear attack on American soil is more plausible than ever.

Today on Discovery Enterprise we explore this chilling scenario, and get a firsthand look at what would happen if a nuclear bomb exploded in the heart of Washington, D.C.

With shockingly realistic dramatizations, Day After Disaster puts you in the line of fire to experience the consequences of nuclear fallout from the moment of detonation to 24 hours afterward.

Focusing on the administration’s controversial Continuity of Government program (COG) this History Channel documentary offers a rare inside look at how the government plans to save American lives while also ensuring that the country does not descend into anarchy should the President and those next in line be among the estimated 300,000 dead.

Featuring extraordinary interviews with Department of Homeland Security officials and terrifying images of the expected nuclear aftermath in the nation s capital, this feature-length special explores the incisive question: Is America prepared for the Day After Disaster?

Day After Disaster is available on DVD from the History Channel’s online store.

Day After Disaster – What if Washington, D.C. got Nuked?

Beyond the Movie - The Lord of the Rings

2013-04-04T00:05:00.000-07:00

Today on Discovery Enterprise we present the National Geographic Channel’s documentary Beyond the Movie - The Lord of the Rings.

J.R.R. Tolkien

This documentary explores the myriad inspirations for J.R.R. Tolkien's Middle-earth fantasy saga, beginning with the influence of Tolkien's idyllic childhood in rural England, which served as the model for Tolkien's threatened Hobbit paradise.

Equally fascinating are the influence of Tolkien's experience in World War I, the "evil" of industrial development, and especially the influence of Anglo-Saxon poetry (notably Beowulf) and the mythology of the Finnish Kalevala, which formed the basis of Tolkien's elfish culture.

Tolkien's passion for nature conservancy and cultural preservation is what ultimately serves the National Geographic agenda, but eloquent testimonials by archaeologists, anthropologists, and filmmakers make this 52 minute documentary an extraordinary journey to the far corners of the globe and back into time to explore the impact of cultural forces that inspired the epic motion picture.

Beyond the Movie - The Lord of the Rings is available on DVD from Amazon.com.

National Geographic Beyond the Movie - The Lord of the Rings