Science and Nature

NOVA

NOVA brings you stories from the frontlines of science and engineering, answering the big questions of today and tomorrow, from how our ancestors lived, to whether parallel universes exist, to how technology will transform our lives. Visit the official website to watch full-length documentaries, or explore our world through short-form video, on our digital publication NOVA Next.

Decoding the Universe: Cosmos

53m 38s

How big is the universe? Will it ever end? Why is so much of it made of mysterious dark matter and energy? See how mind-bending discoveries over the past 50 years have revolutionized our understanding of the universe.

Episodes

  • Decoding the Universe: Cosmos: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Decoding the Universe: Cosmos

    S51 E8 - 53m 38s

    How big is the universe? Will it ever end? Why is so much of it made of mysterious dark matter and energy? See how mind-bending discoveries over the past 50 years have revolutionized our understanding of the universe.

  • Great American Eclipse: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Great American Eclipse

    S51 E6 - 53m 34s

    Explore the spectacular cosmic phenomenon of a total solar eclipse. In April 2024, the Moon’s shadow is sweeping from Texas to Maine, as the U.S. witnesses its last total eclipse until 2044, and scientists scramble to unlock the secrets of our Sun.

  • A.I. Revolution: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    A.I. Revolution

    S51 E5 - 53m 30s

    A.I. tools like ChatGPT seem to think, speak, and create like humans. But what are they really doing? From cancer cures to Terminator-style takeovers, leading experts explore what A.I. can – and can’t – do today, and what lies ahead.

  • Secrets in Your Data: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Secrets in Your Data

    S51 E7 - 53m 40s

    Whether you’re on social media or surfing the web, you’re probably sharing more personal data than you realize. Find out where your data is going, who’s selling it, and how you – and a new kind of web – could put control back in your hands.

  • Hunt for the Oldest DNA: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Hunt for the Oldest DNA

    S51 E4 - 53m 10s

    For decades, scientists have tried to unlock the secrets of ancient DNA. Follow the dramatic quest to recover DNA millions of years old and reveal a lost world from before the last Ice Age.

  • Building the Eiffel Tower: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Building the Eiffel Tower

    S51 E3 - 53m 29s

    Explore the revolutionary engineering behind Paris’s iconic landmark. Completed in 1889, the iron tower smashed the record for the tallest structure on Earth, ushering in a new age of global construction that reached for the skies.

  • Easter Island Origins: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Easter Island Origins

    S51 E2 - 53m 17s

    The giant stone heads of Easter Island have inspired theories for centuries. Now, new research reveals intriguing evidence of the origins and inspirations of the ancient Rapanui people who created the iconic monoliths.

  • When Whales Could Walk: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    When Whales Could Walk

    S51 E1 - 53m 31s

    A spectacular fossil graveyard reveals a 43-million-year-old whale that had four legs and could walk. Follow scientists as they search for new clues to how mammals moved from land into the sea to become the largest animals on Earth.

Extras + Features

  • Decoding the Universe: Cosmos Preview: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Decoding the Universe: Cosmos Preview

    S51 E8 - 30s

    How big is the universe? Will it ever end? Why is so much of it made of mysterious dark matter and energy? See how mind-bending discoveries over the past 50 years have revolutionized our understanding of the universe.

  • How America watched the solar eclipse: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    How America watched the solar eclipse

    S51 - 2m 13s

    Cities across the US dipped into darkness during a total solar eclipse. Here’s what it looked like as seen by Americans all over the country.

  • Great American Eclipse Preview: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Great American Eclipse Preview

    S51 E6 - 30s

    Explore the spectacular cosmic phenomenon of a total solar eclipse. In April 2024, the Moon’s shadow is sweeping from Texas to Maine, as the U.S. witnesses its last total eclipse until 2044, and scientists scramble to unlock the secrets of our Sun.

  • The Sun is way more chaotic than you think: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    The Sun is way more chaotic than you think

    S51 E6 - 3m 59s

    A solar eclipse provides precious moments of darkness where scientists can explore a region of the Sun normally invisible, its outer atmosphere, the solar corona.

  • How to watch the eclipse without burning your eyes: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    How to watch the eclipse without burning your eyes

    S51 - 1m 59s

    Looking at the sun without eclipse glasses, even when 99% of the Sun is covered by the Moon, can cause retinal damage in your eye. Here’s the science behind why, and how you can protect your eyes.

  • A.I. Revolution Preview: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    A.I. Revolution Preview

    S51 E5 - 26s

    A.I. tools like ChatGPT seem to think, speak, and create like humans. But what are they really doing? From cancer cures to Terminator-style takeovers, leading experts explore what A.I. can – and can’t – do today, and what lies ahead.

  • How A.I. is fighting wildfires: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    How A.I. is fighting wildfires

    S51 E5 - 1m 34s

    In California an AI tool uses more than a thousand mountaintop surveillance cameras to look for early signs of wildfires.

Schedule

  • Image
    NOVA: TVSS: Banner-L1

    NOVA

    Ancient Builders of the Amazon

    Tuesday
    Jul 16

    1 Hour

    Discoveries reveal traces of ancient civilizations that flourished for centuries with prehistoric populations in the Amazon.
  • Image
    NOVA: TVSS: Iconic

    NOVA

    Emperor's Ghost Army

    Tuesday
    Jul 16

    1 Hour

    High-action experiments and 3-D technology provide insight into how China's terracotta army was made.
  • Image
    NOVA: TVSS: Banner-L1

    NOVA

    Ancient Builders of the Amazon

    Wednesday
    Jul 17

    1 Hour

    Discoveries reveal traces of ancient civilizations that flourished for centuries with prehistoric populations in the Amazon.
  • Image
    NOVA: TVSS: Iconic

    NOVA

    Emperor's Ghost Army

    Wednesday
    Jul 17

    1 Hour

    High-action experiments and 3-D technology provide insight into how China's terracotta army was made.
  • Image
    NOVA: TVSS: Banner-L1

    NOVA

    Ancient Builders of the Amazon

    Wednesday
    Jul 17

    1 Hour

    Discoveries reveal traces of ancient civilizations that flourished for centuries with prehistoric populations in the Amazon.
  • Image
    NOVA: TVSS: Banner-L1

    NOVA

    Ancient Builders of the Amazon

    Wednesday
    Jul 17

    1 Hour

    Discoveries reveal traces of ancient civilizations that flourished for centuries with prehistoric populations in the Amazon.
  • Image
    NOVA: TVSS: Banner-L1

    NOVA

    Ancient Builders of the Amazon

    Wednesday
    Jul 17

    1 Hour

    Discoveries reveal traces of ancient civilizations that flourished for centuries with prehistoric populations in the Amazon.
  • Image
    NOVA: TVSS: Iconic

    NOVA

    Emperor's Ghost Army

    Wednesday
    Jul 17

    1 Hour

    High-action experiments and 3-D technology provide insight into how China's terracotta army was made.
  • Image
    NOVA: Sunken Ship Rescue: TVSS: Iconic

    NOVA

    Sunken Ship Rescue

    Wednesday
    Jul 24

    1 Hour

    Efforts to secure, raise and salvage the Costa Concordia cruise ship which capsized off the Italian coast on Jan. 13, 2012, killing 32 people.
  • Image
    NOVA: Sunken Ship Rescue: TVSS: Iconic

    NOVA

    Sunken Ship Rescue

    Wednesday
    Jul 24

    1 Hour

    Efforts to secure, raise and salvage the Costa Concordia cruise ship which capsized off the Italian coast on Jan. 13, 2012, killing 32 people.
  • Image
    NOVA: Sunken Ship Rescue: TVSS: Iconic

    NOVA

    Sunken Ship Rescue

    Thursday
    Jul 25

    1 Hour

    Efforts to secure, raise and salvage the Costa Concordia cruise ship which capsized off the Italian coast on Jan. 13, 2012, killing 32 people.
  • Image
    NOVA: Sunken Ship Rescue: TVSS: Iconic

    NOVA

    Sunken Ship Rescue

    Thursday
    Jul 25

    1 Hour

    Efforts to secure, raise and salvage the Costa Concordia cruise ship which capsized off the Italian coast on Jan. 13, 2012, killing 32 people.
  • Image
    NOVA: Sunken Ship Rescue: TVSS: Iconic

    NOVA

    Sunken Ship Rescue

    Thursday
    Jul 25

    1 Hour

    Efforts to secure, raise and salvage the Costa Concordia cruise ship which capsized off the Italian coast on Jan. 13, 2012, killing 32 people.
  • Image
    NOVA: Sunken Ship Rescue: TVSS: Iconic

    NOVA

    Sunken Ship Rescue

    Friday
    Jul 26

    1 Hour

    Efforts to secure, raise and salvage the Costa Concordia cruise ship which capsized off the Italian coast on Jan. 13, 2012, killing 32 people.
  • Image
    NOVA: Sunken Ship Rescue: TVSS: Iconic

    NOVA

    Sunken Ship Rescue

    Sunday
    Jul 28

    1 Hour

    Efforts to secure, raise and salvage the Costa Concordia cruise ship which capsized off the Italian coast on Jan. 13, 2012, killing 32 people.
  • Image
    NOVA: Sunken Ship Rescue: TVSS: Iconic

    NOVA

    Sunken Ship Rescue

    Sunday
    Jul 28

    1 Hour

    Efforts to secure, raise and salvage the Costa Concordia cruise ship which capsized off the Italian coast on Jan. 13, 2012, killing 32 people.
  • Image
    NOVA: Sunken Ship Rescue: TVSS: Iconic

    NOVA

    Sunken Ship Rescue

    Sunday
    Jul 28

    1 Hour

    Efforts to secure, raise and salvage the Costa Concordia cruise ship which capsized off the Italian coast on Jan. 13, 2012, killing 32 people.
  • Image
    NOVA: Sunken Ship Rescue: TVSS: Iconic

    NOVA

    Sunken Ship Rescue

    Tuesday
    Jul 30

    1 Hour

    Efforts to secure, raise and salvage the Costa Concordia cruise ship which capsized off the Italian coast on Jan. 13, 2012, killing 32 people.
  • Image
    NOVA: Sunken Ship Rescue: TVSS: Iconic

    NOVA

    Sunken Ship Rescue

    Wednesday
    Jul 31

    1 Hour

    Efforts to secure, raise and salvage the Costa Concordia cruise ship which capsized off the Italian coast on Jan. 13, 2012, killing 32 people.
  • Image
    NOVA: Sunken Ship Rescue: TVSS: Iconic

    NOVA

    Sunken Ship Rescue

    Wednesday
    Jul 31

    1 Hour

    Efforts to secure, raise and salvage the Costa Concordia cruise ship which capsized off the Italian coast on Jan. 13, 2012, killing 32 people.

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