All language subtitles for Spaces Deepest Secrets S01E04 Alien Oceans

¶¶

Narrator:
THE OCEANS DEFINE THE EARTH.

THEY'RE CRUCIAL TO LIFE.

IN FACT, WITHOUT THE OCEANS,
THERE WOULD BE NO LIFE.

WE ONCE THOUGHT THEY WERE UNIQUE
TO OUR PLANET.

BUT WE WERE WRONG.

WE'VE RECENTLY DISCOVERED OCEANS
ALL OVER OUR SOLAR SYSTEM,

AND THEY'RE VERY SIMILAR
TO OUR OWN.

IMAGINE THIS AT THE BOTTOM
OF ENCELADUS' OCEAN.

Narrator: NOW, SCIENTISTS
ARE GOING ON AN EPIC JOURNEY

IN SEARCH OF NEW LIFE IN PLACES

THAT NEVER SEEMED POSSIBLE.

Mormile: LIFE HAS GOT THIS
AMAZING ABILITY TO, YOU KNOW,

JUST KEEP SURPRISING US.

I WANT TO GET DATA BACK FROM
A PROBE AND BE ABLE TO SAY,

"IT'S LIFE, JIM,
BUT NOT AS WE KNOW IT."

Narrator:
THE HUNT FOR OCEANS IN SPACE

MARKS THE NEW DAWN OF AN ERA

IN THE SEARCH FOR ALIEN LIFE.

-- Captions by VITAC --
www.vitac.com

CAPTIONS PAID FOR BY
DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS

NEARLY TWO CENTURIES AGO,

CHARLES DARWIN
SET OUT ON A JOURNEY

ACROSS THE WORLD'S OCEANS

TO UNCOVER THE SECRETS OF LIFE.

WHAT HE CAME TO UNDERSTAND
WAS THAT THE ANSWER

TO THE MYSTERY OF WHERE WE CAME
FROM LAY BENEATH THE HULL

OF HIS SHIP, THE BEAGLE.

AS HE FILLED HIS NOTEBOOKS
WITH BEAUTIFUL SKETCHES

OF THE BIRDS AND ANIMALS
HE CAME ACROSS,

HE BEGAN TO FORMULATE AN IDEA

THAT LIFE MIGHT ACTUALLY
HAVE STARTED IN WATER.

Lane: DARWIN'S IMPORTANT
FOR THE WHOLE STORY

OF EVOLUTION OF LIFE
AND NATURAL SELECTION,

WHERE WE ALL CAME FROM,

HOW LIFE ULTIMATELY
STARTED AS WELL.

A LOT
OF THAT GOES BACK TO DARWIN.

HE HAD IDEAS,
NOT VERY WELL PUBLICIZED IDEAS,

NOT IN "THE ORIGIN OF SPECIES,"

BUT ON HOW LIFE STARTED
IN A SMALL, WARM POND.

SO DARWIN HAD PUT HIS FINGER
ON THE IMPORTANCE OF WATER

AND THE ORIGIN AND EVOLUTION
OF LIFE VERY EARLY ON.

Narrator:
WATER IS SO ESSENTIAL

THAT IT'S DICTATED
WHERE SCIENTISTS LOOK

IN THE SEARCH FOR LIFE
IN OUR SOLAR SYSTEM.

LIFE NEEDS WATER. YOU LOOK
AT ALL LIFE-FORMS ON EARTH,

THE ONE REQUIREMENT THEY ALL
HAVE IN COMMON IS WATER.

AN OCEAN MAY BE A GOOD PLACE
TO INCUBATE LIFE,

AND, NOT SURPRISINGLY,

AN OCEAN HAS GOT
WHAT LIFE NEEDS TO SURVIVE.

Paul: EVERYWHERE
WHERE WE LOOK ON EARTH,

WHETHER IT'S FROZEN
OR BOILING HOT,

WHEREVER WE FIND WATER,
WE FIND LIFE.

WATER IS OUR WORKING FLUID.

YOU'RE MOSTLY MADE UP OF WATER,
I'M MOSTLY MADE UP OF WATER.

Narrator: THE SEARCH
CRITERIA WAS SIMPLE,

TO FIND LIFE, FIRST
FIND A LIQUID OCEAN.

ONLY, BEYOND EARTH,

THERE DIDN'T SEEM TO APPEAR
TO BE ANY IN OUR SOLAR SYSTEM.

Coates: THERE USED TO BE
THE IDEA OF THE GOLDILOCKS ZONE,

WHERE EVERYTHING WAS JUST RIGHT

FOR WATER TO BE
IN THE LIQUID STAGE

ON THE SURFACE OF A PLANET,

AND EARTH WAS SLAP-BANG IN IT.

VENUS WAS TOO CLOSE
TO THE SUN,

TOO HOT REALLY FOR LIQUID WATER
ON THE SURFACE.

MARS, THOUGHT TO BE
A LITTLE BIT TOO FAR AWAY.

Narrator:
BUT IS FINDING LIQUID WATER

AND LIFE ON MARS IMPOSSIBLE?

WE HAVE BEEN SENDING
INCREASINGLY MORE COMPLEX

AND SOPHISTICATED SPACECRAFT

TO THE RED PLANET FOR DECADES,

AND WE NOW KNOW MORE ABOUT IT
THAN WE EVER DID.

UNFORTUNATELY,
ALL THE SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE

GATHERED SO FAR POINTS TO MARS
BEING DRY, COLD,

AND SEEMINGLY LIFELESS.

BUT HAS IT ALWAYS BEEN THAT WAY?

IT'S A QUESTION
THAT'S INTRIGUED SCIENTISTS

AND ASTRONOMERS LIKE
GERONIMO VILLANUEVA FOR YEARS.

IRONICALLY, THE SEARCH

FOR EVIDENCE
OF AN ANCIENT MARTIAN OCEAN

IS BEING CONDUCTED FROM ONE
OF THE DRIEST PLACES ON EARTH --

THE ATACAMA DESERT IN CHILE.

Villanueva:
SO THERE'S A STRONG RELATIONSHIP

BETWEEN MARS AND ATACAMA BECAUSE
MARS IS A VERY DRY PLACE,

AND ATACAMA IS ONE OF
THE DRIEST PLACES ON THE PLANET.

ACTUALLY,
THE RELATIVE HUMIDITY MEASURED

BY THE CURIOSITY ROVER ON MARS
IS PRACTICALLY THE SAME

AS WE ARE RIGHT NOW HERE
ON THIS DESERT.

Narrator: FITTINGLY,
IT'S THAT LACK OF WATER

THAT MAKES THE ATACAMA
THE PERFECT PLACE

TO BUILD ONE OF THE BIGGEST
TELESCOPES IN THE WORLD,

BECAUSE WATER
IN THE ATMOSPHERE HERE

WOULD DRASTICALLY LIMIT
THE TELESCOPE'S ABILITY

TO FIND WATER ANYWHERE ELSE.

Villanueva:
WATER AND MANY OTHER THINGS

LIKE ORGANICS
ARE WHAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR.

SO WE COME TO A PLACE
WHICH DEVOID OF THOSE THINGS,

LIKE A DESERT.

SO WE DON'T GET THE
CONTAMINATION FROM THOSE THINGS

WHEN WE OBSERVE
FOR THE ATMOSPHERE.

SO WHEN YOU COME TO A PLACE
LIKE THIS, YOU'RE LOOKING FOR --

YOU'RE TRYING TO LOOK THROUGH
THE WATER IN OUR OWN ATMOSPHERE.

Narrator: WHAT'S
IMMEDIATELY OBVIOUS TO ANYONE

WITH EVEN AN ORDINARY TELESCOPE

IS THAT THERE IS WATER ON MARS,

BUT TODAY, IT'S FROZEN SOLID
AT THE POLES.

YET THE MARTIAN
LANDSCAPE LOOKS STRANGELY

AS THOUGH IT WAS CARVED
AND SHAPED BY LIQUID WATER.

Villanueva: PLANETS SHOW
ALL THIS MORPHOLOGY,

GEOMORPHOLOGY DRIVEN BY WATER --
A HUGE AMOUNT OF WATER.

SO THE ESTIMATES OF HOW MUCH
WAS ON THE PLANET

VARY A LOT
BECAUSE WE DIDN'T KNOW.

I MEAN, WE SEE ALL THIS CARVING,
ALL THESE BIG VALLEYS.

AND SO HOW MUCH WATER WAS
THERE WAS A BIG QUESTION.

Narrator:
ANSWERING THAT QUESTION
WAS PRETTY MUCH IMPOSSIBLE

UNTIL SCIENTISTS GOT LUCKY
IN 1984 IN ANOTHER DESERT,

THIS TIME IN THE COLDEST PLACE
ON EARTH --

ANTARCTICA.

HERE, THEY FOUND A REMARKABLE
METEORITE.

ANALYSIS CONFIRMED
IT WAS MARTIAN IN ORIGIN

AND THAT THEY HAD
DISCOVERED THE KEY

THAT WOULD UNLOCK THE MYSTERY
OF MARS' WATERY PAST.

SO ONCE WE IDENTIFY WHEN IN
THE HISTORY OF OUR SOLAR SYSTEM

WHERE IT CAME, THEN SAY,

"OKAY, THIS ROCK IS DATED THERE
AND IT COMES FROM MARS."

SO YOU HAVE A GOOD
REFERENCE POINT

IN TIME AND IN PLACE
OF THAT ROCK.

Narrator:
CAREFUL ANALYSIS REVEALED

THAT THIS METEORITE
WAS 4.5 BILLION YEARS OLD.

THE METEORITE ALSO CARRIED
CRUCIAL CHEMICAL INFORMATION,

AN ISOTOPIC SIGNATURE FIXED
BY THE AMOUNT OF WATER ON MARS

4.5 BILLION YEARS AGO.

ON ITS OWN,
THIS SIGNATURE WAS WORTHLESS.

BUT BY MEASURING THE AMOUNT
OF WATER ON MARS TODAY,

THEN COMPARING THE SIGNATURES
OF RECENT ROCKS

AGAINST THE ANCIENT METEORITE,

ALL WOULD BE REVEALED.

AND THAT'S WHERE THE HUGE
TELESCOPE COMES IN.

IT'S SO POWERFUL,

IT CAN DETECT WATER MOLECULES
ON THE SURFACE OF THE PLANET.

ARMED WITH A PRECISE MEASUREMENT

OF THE AMOUNT OF WATER
ON MARS TODAY,

GERONIMO WAS ABLE TO MAKE
AN ASTONISHING CALCULATION.

Villanueva:
WE EXTRAPOLATED BACK IN TIME,

AND WE INFER THAT THERE WAS

ALMOST SEVEN TIMES MORE WATER
THAN IS RIGHT NOW.

WHAT HAPPENED, MARS --
TOPOGRAPHICALLY SPEAKING --

HAS VERY LOW PLAINS IN THE NORTH

AND VERY HIGH-ALTITUDE PLAINS
ON THE SOUTH.

SO IF YOU FLOW WATER,

IT WILL TEND TO FLOW
INTO THE LOWER TOPOGRAPHY,

WHICH IS GONNA BE
THE NORTHERN PLAINS.

SO ONE OF THE THINGS
WE DID IS, OKAY,

SO WE HAD THIS BODY OF WATER,

AND SO WHAT DO WE DO WITH THIS?

SO ONE TRICK, WE SAID,

"OKAY, LET'S JUST
THROW IT ON THE PLANET,

AND LET'S SEE WHERE IT FALLS."

AND I JUST DID, LIKE,

YOU KNOW, FOLLOW THE RIVERS
AND EVERYTHING,

AND IT FORMED AN OCEAN

ON THE NORTHERN PLAINS
OF THE PLANET.

¶¶

Narrator:
4.5 BILLION YEARS AGO,

A MARTIAN OCEAN
COVERED 19% OF THE PLANET

AND WAS AS DEEP
AS THE MEDITERRANEAN.

IN FACT, NASA'S PLANETARY MODELS

REVEAL A MARS AT ITS WARMEST,

COMPLETE WITH
AN EARTH-LIKE ATMOSPHERE.

IF YOU WERE
IN AN ALIEN SPACE CRAFT

RANDOMLY COMING TO EARTH,
THE CHANCES

ARE BETTER THAN EVEN THAT
YOU'RE GONNA END UP IN WATER.

SO BRING A BOAT.

AND IT WAS THE SAME
ON EARLY MARS.

AND THAT'S A FUNDAMENTAL POINT,

THAT MARS WAS A WATER WORLD.

IT WOULD HAVE BEEN BETTER

TO CHARACTERIZE IT
AS A WATER WORLD.

WHEREAS NOW, OF COURSE,
IT'S A DESERT WORLD.

BUT IT'S THAT WATER WORLD
THAT'S INTERESTING.

THAT'S THE WORLD
THAT MAY HAVE HAD LIFE,

AND THAT'S THE WORLD
WE WANT TO INVESTIGATE.

Narrator: IT EVEN HAD WAVES.

THE REDUCED GRAVITY ON MARS

MEANT THAT THESE WAVES

WOULD HAVE BEEN TWICE AS TALL
AS THOSE ON EARTH,

A SURFER'S PARADISE.

BUT ACCORDING
TO NASA'S SCIENTISTS,

MOST OF THE TIME,

YOU'D HAVE TO BE PRETTY TOUGH
TO CATCH A MARTIAN WAVE.

McKay:
IF WE THINK BACK TO EARLY MARS,

WE WOULD EXPECT IT TO BE
AN EARTH-LIKE ENVIRONMENT --

IF IT HAD WATER AND A THICKER
ATMOSPHERE AND WAS WARMER.

THE ONE BIG DIFFERENCE, I THINK,

WOULD BE THAT IT WOULD BE
MORE LIKE THE ARCTIC OCEAN.

IT WOULD BE AN ICE-CHOKED,
ICE-COVERED OCEAN.

SO IF YOU IMAGINE STANDING
ON THE NORTH SHORE OF GREENLAND

LOOKING OUT
AT THE ICE PACKS MOVING,

I THINK YOU GET
A GOOD IMAGINATION

OF WHAT EARLY MARS
MIGHT HAVE LOOKED LIKE.

Narrator: IT MAY HAVE BEEN COLD.

MARS IS MUCH FURTHER AWAY
FROM THE SUN THAN THE EARTH.

BUT 4.5 BILLION YEARS AGO,

LIFE ON MARS WOULD HAVE BEEN
TECHNICALLY POSSIBLE.

THIS IS THE TIME WHEN MARS
WAS THE MOST HABITABLE TIME.

THIS IS WHEN IT WAS FORMED,

ACTUALLY PLANET EARTH AND MARS
WERE SIMILAR IN SOME ASPECTS.

IT HAD A THICKER ATMOSPHERE,
MAYBE IT WAS A BIG OCEAN THERE.

SO HABITABILITY
OF THE TWO PLANETS WERE SIMILAR.

AND, INTERESTINGLY,

THE TIME THAT WE THINK
THIS OCEAN WAS THERE

WAS A TIME THAT LIFE
STARTED ON OUR PLANET.

SO, YOU KNOW, IF THE CONDITIONS
WERE FAVORABLE FOR LIFE HERE,

TO START LIFE, YOU KNOW,

WHAT COULD BE THE CONDITIONS
ON THE PLANET MARS?

Narrator: SADLY, HOWEVER
HABITABLE THAT EARLY OCEAN WAS,

IT DIDN'T LAST.

SCIENTISTS THINK THAT
THE EARLY MARTIAN ATMOSPHERE

WAS VULNERABLE
TO SOLAR RADIATION,

AND OVER THE COURSE
OF 1.5 BILLION YEARS,

IT EVAPORATED AWAY,

LEAVING JUST 13%
FROZEN AT THE POLES.

BUT IF MARTIAN LIFE
WAS THEORETICALLY POSSIBLE

IN THAT OCEAN
MILLIONS OF YEARS AGO,

IS IT POSSIBLE THAT ANYTHING
COULD HAVE SURVIVED UNTIL NOW?

I THINK THE POSSIBILITY
OF FINDING LIFE ON MARS NOW

TRACES DIRECTLY
TO THE POSSIBILITY

OF FINDING LIQUID WATER ON MARS
THAT'S RELATIVELY FRESH.

Narrator: AND FINDING WATER
HAS BEEN A LARGE PART

OF THE CURIOSITY ROVER'S
MISSION.

CURIOSITY HAS BEEN ROLLING
AROUND MARS SINCE 2012,

AND THE IMAGES IT'S BEEN
SENDING BACK HAVE BEEN STUNNING.

SEQUENCES LIKE THIS BLUE SUNSET

ARE STARTING TO CHANGE
OUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE PLANET.

BUT IT'S THE PICTURES FROM
THE MARS RECONNAISSANCE ORBITER

OF A REGION CALLED
THE NEWTON CRATER

THAT ARE HELPING TO SHED
NEW LIGHT ON THE AMOUNT

OF LIQUID WATER LEFT ON MARS.

THIS IS A TIME-LAPSE
SEQUENCE SHOWING STREAKS

ON THE CRATER WALL APPARENTLY
GROWING AND GETTING DARKER.

SCIENTISTS THINK THAT
THEY MIGHT BE CAUSED BY WATER.

SMALL AMOUNTS OF WATER,

COMPARED TO AN OCEAN ON EARTH

OR EVEN AN OCEAN ON EARLY MARS
ARE INSIGNIFICANT.

BUT AS AN INDICTOR OF MARS
STILL BEING ACTIVE

AND STILL HAVING LIQUID PHASES

AND MAYBE A HINT OF BIGGER
AND BETTER THINGS ELSEWHERE,

THEN I THINK
IT'S VERY IMPORTANT.

Narrator: WHAT APPEARS
TO BE HAPPENING

IS THAT THE MOISTURE
IN THE SOIL

IS EVAPORATING DURING
THE RELATIVE WARMTH OF THE DAY

AND CONDENSING BACK AT NIGHT
WHEN IT'S COLDER.

McKay: SO MARS STILL HAVE
A HEARTBEAT, IT'S A FAINT ONE,

IF WE MEASURE ITS HEARTBEAT
IN TERMS OF PRESENCE OF WATER.

AT ONE TIME, IT WAS HUGE.
IT WAS AN OCEAN.

AND NOW THERE'S JUST
A FAINT GLIMMER OF IT.

Narrator: THE PROBLEM IS THAT
THESE SMALL AMOUNTS OF WATER

ARE EXCEPTIONALLY SALTY.

THE CURIOSITY ROVER

HAS IDENTIFIED
IN THE MARTIAN SOIL

A SALT CALLED
CALCIUM PERCHLORATE.

IT'S THIS SALT
THAT ABSORBS THE MARTIAN DEW

AS IT CONDENSES
ONTO THE COLD SURFACE EACH DAY.

THE SALT ALSO LOWERS
THE WATER'S FREEZING POINT,

KEEPING IT A LIQUID
EVEN AT SUBZERO TEMPERATURES.

BUT IT ALSO MAKES THESE FAINT
TRACES OF BRINE SO CONCENTRATED,

THEY WOULD BE TOXIC
TO CONVENTIONAL LIFE-FORMS.

SO COULD THEY SUPPORT LIFE
ON MARS?

¶¶

THERE MAY BE CLUES IN
THE SALTIEST PARTS OF THE EARTH

LIKE THE BONNEVILLE SALT FLATS
IN UTAH.

IT'S FAMOUS
FOR LAND-SPEED RECORDS,

BUT IT'S FASCINATING
FOR ASTROBIOLOGISTS

BECAUSE THE SALTY SURFACE HERE

NOT ONLY MIMICS
THAT FOUND ON MARS --

IT ALSO CONTAINS LIFE.

Mormile:
EVEN THOUGH THIS LOOKS DEAD,

WE COULD PROBABLY TAKE SOME
OF THESE CRYSTALS RIGHT HERE

AND GET BACK BACTERIA TO GROW.

I KNOW IT SEEMS RIDICULOUS,

BUT, YOU KNOW,
AS A MICROBIOLOGIST,

ONE OF THE THINGS
THAT WE'VE COME TO APPRECIATE

IS IF THERE'S
ANY LIQUID WATER PRESENT,

YOU'RE TYPICALLY
GOING TO FIND LIFE.

SO LIFE HAS GOT THIS AMAZING
ABILITY TO, YOU KNOW,

JUST KEEP SURPRISING US.

Narrator: UNFORTUNATELY,

MARS IS WAY COLDER
THAN THE BONNEVILLE SALT FLATS.

THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE
OF MINUS 58 FAHRENHEIT

IS A HUGE CHALLENGE FOR ANYTHING

LIVING ON THE SURFACE
OF THE RED PLANET.

AND IT'S PARTLY TO DO
WITH THE ANGLE OF ITS AXIS.

EARTH SPINS ON AN AXIS
OF 23 DEGREES,

WHICH SHOULD MAKE
THE PLANET UNSTABLE,

BUT IT ISN'T.

EARTH'S AXIS IS STABILIZED
BY THE MOON,

SORT OF LIKE AN OUTRIGGER --

A GRAVITATIONAL OUTRIGGER
THAT KEEPS THE EARTH STABLE.

MARS DOESN'T HAVE A LARGE MOON,

AND IT'S ALSO CLOSER TO JUPITER.

AS A RESULT, ITS AXIS
WOBBLES SIGNIFICANTLY --

MUCH, MUCH MORE THAN EARTH'S.

MORE THAN DOUBLE THE WOBBLE
OF EARTH.

Narrator: OVER 100,000 YEARS,

MARS' TILT WOBBLES

BY AS MUCH AS 10 DEGREES,

CAUSING HUGE CLIMATE CHANGE --

SIMILAR, BUT MORE EXTREME
THAN THE EARTH'S ICE AGES.

AT THE PEAKS OF THAT CYCLE,

THE SURFACE OF MARS

IS BRIEFLY WARM ENOUGH
TO SUPPORT LIFE.

BUT TO SURVIVE 100,000 YEARS

OF COLD BETWEEN THESE PEAKS

WOULD DEMAND A STRATEGY
OF EXTREME HIBERNATION.

BUT FOR MICRO-ORGANISMS,

THIS STRATEGY
OF LIVING WHEN IT'S WARM

AND THEN SLEEPING WHEN IT'S
FREEZING COLD IS A GOOD ONE.

THOSE ORGANISMS CAN BE FROZEN
AND THAWED

WITHOUT ANY DAMAGE AT ALL.

EVERY ONCE IN A WHILE,
WHEN THE TILT IS RIGHT,

YOU GET A FEW THOUSAND YEARS
OF TIME TO HAVE A GO AT IT,

AND THEN YOU GO BACK
TO DEEP-FREEZE SLEEP.

Narrator: THAT ALL SOUNDS FINE
IN THEORY,

BUT COULD ANY LIVING THING

POSSIBLY HIBERNATE FOR UP TO
100,000 YEARS?

THE ANSWER LIES IN THE SALT.

THE SALT CRYSTALS FORM
IN CUBES.

AND AS THEY FORM,

YOU'LL HAVE POCKETS OF LIQUID

THAT BECOME ENTRAPPED
AS THE SOLID SALT IS FORMING.

AND THE MICROORGANISMS
THAT ARE PRESENT

BECOME TRAPPED
IN THOSE FLUID INCLUSIONS,

THOSE LITTLE POCKETS OF FLUID.

Narrator: HOW LONG, THEN,

COULD A SINGLE BACTERIA SURVIVE
TRAPPED IN A SALT CRYSTAL?

MELANIE TOOK A CRYSTAL DATED
AT 97,000 YEARS OLD

AND DRILLED INTO ITS CORE.

SHE EXTRACTED THE FLUID,

PLACED IT
IN A NUTRIENT-RICH DISH,

AND WALKED AWAY.

WHEN SHE CAME BACK A WEEK LATER,

SOMETHING ASTONISHING
HAD HAPPENED...

...97,000-YEAR-OLD BACTERIA
WERE FLOURISHING IN THE DISH.

IT WAS PRETTY AMAZING,

YOU KNOW, TO BE ABLE TO HAVE
SUCH STRONG EVIDENCE.

I MEAN,
TAKING THAT FLUID INCLUSION UP

AND USING IT
TO INOCULATE A MEDIA, YOU KNOW,

AND THEN HAVING SOMETHING
TO GROW,

THAT'S PRETTY --
PRETTY POWERFUL STUFF.

Narrator:
SO RIGHT HERE ON EARTH,

THESE BACTERIA HAVE DEVELOPED

A HIBERNATION STRATEGY
EXTREME ENOUGH TO COPE

WITH THE LENGTH
OF THE MARTIAN ICE AGE.

BUT EVEN AT ITS WARMEST,

MARS IS MUCH COLDER
THAN THE BONNEVILLE SALT FLATS.

EXTREME ENDURANCE ALONE
WOULDN'T BE ENOUGH.

SO IS THERE ANY LIFE-FORM

CAPABLE OF HIBERNATING
THROUGH EXTREME COLD?

¶¶

Narrator: THIS DOESN'T LOOK
LIKE THE PLACE

TO ANSWER THE QUESTION
WHAT LIFE-FORMS

MIGHT BE ABLE TO HIBERNATE
THROUGH EXTREME COLD.

BUT BIOLOGISTS CARL JOHANNSON
AND BYRON ADAMS AREN'T HERE

JUST TO DRINK
IN THE OBVIOUS BEAUTY

OF THE BRIDAL VEIL FALLS
IN UTAH.

WHAT WE WANT TO TRY
AND TARGET IS THAT BASE THERE

WHERE THE UPPER FALLS
IS KIND OF FALLING DOWN,

JUST RIGHT BELOW
THE MAIN PART OF THE FALLS.

YOU CAN SEE ALL THE MOSS BEDS
THAT ARE IN THERE.

THAT'S ALL YOU.
YOU GET IN THERE.

-YEAH.
-THAT'S NICE AND SLICK.

-[ CHUCKLES ]
-OKAY.

-THAT WILL BE GOOD STUFF.
-ALL RIGHT, LET'S GO.

ALL RIGHT, MAN.

Narrator: THEY'RE LOOKING
FOR A CREATURE

WITH AN UNUSUAL ABILITY,

ONE THAT MIGHT PROVE CRUCIAL

IN THE SEARCH FOR ALIEN LIFE.

NOT SURPRISINGLY,
IT LOVES WATER,

AND THERE'S PLENTY OF THAT HERE.

NOW, THIS LOOKS GOOD.

HERE'S A GOOD WAY AROUND
THIS WAY, I THINK.

IT'S A GOOD SPOT.

WATCH YOUR STEP, MAN.
IT'S SLIPPERY, BRO.

YEAH, THIS LOOKS REALLY GOOD
HERE, MAN.

YO, CARL, BAG ME, BRO!

Narrator:
THIS CREATURE IS SO SMALL

THAT IT'S ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE
TO SEE WITH THE NAKED EYE.

BEING SMALL
DOESN'T MEAN ITS INSIGNIFICANT,

IT JUST MEANS THEY HAVE TO
COLLECT LOTS OF VERY DAMP MOSS

TO MAKE SURE THEY WRANGLE ONE.

BAG 'EM AND TAG 'EM.

IT'S GOT HER.

DUDE, I'M TAKING IT
RIGHT HERE, BRO!

IT'S LIKE RAINING ON ME.

I KNOW IT.
THAT'S WHY I GOT OUT.

Narrator: IT'S ONLY
WHEN THEY GET BACK TO THEIR LAB

AT BRIGHAM YOUNG UNIVERSITY

THAT THEY CAN SEE
WHAT THEY'VE GOT.

Johannson:
SO WHEN WE LOOK AT THE SLIDE

THE BYRON BROUGHT US
AND WE START LOOKING THROUGH,

WE CAN SEE SOME MOVEMENT RIGHT
HERE OF AN ANIMAL.

THIS IS THE TARDIGRADE.

TARDIGRADE MEANS --

IT'S THE LATIN NAME --
SLOW STEPPER.

"TARDI" MEANS SLOW,
AND "GRADE" REFERS TO FOOT.

AND YOU CAN START
TO SEE HE'S GOT LONG,

THIN FILAMENTS COMING OFF
HIS BODY AND SOME ACTUAL --

THEY ALMOST LOOK LIKE HORNS
COMING OFF HIS HEAD

THAT HE USES IN FEEDING.

Narrator:
TARDIGRADES ARE AQUATIC,

SO YOU'D EXPECT THEM TO DIE
IF THEY WEREN'T IN WATER.

BUT THEY HAVE A VERY SPECIAL
ABILITY.

Adams: AS THAT SAMPLE JAR
STARTS TO DRY OUT,

AS THAT SPECIMEN
STARTS TO DRY OUT,

WHAT'S COOL
ABOUT THESE GUYS

IS THEY CAN SURVIVE
THAT EXTREME DESICCATION.

DRYING DOWN TO, LIKE,
A CRISPY, LITTLE BOOGER.

IT'S CALLED A TUN.

THEY ROLL UP INTO A SPECIAL
TIGHT BALL, ESSENTIALLY --

LIKE A ROLY-POLY BUG ALMOST.

AND THEN GO THROUGH A SERIES
OF RADICAL CHEMICAL CHANGES

IN THE CELLS IN THEIR BODIES
TO DEAL WITH THIS LOSS OF WATER.

Narrator:
IT LOOKS LIKE IT'S DEAD.

BUT WHEN THEY ADD WATER,
IT SPRINGS BACK TO LIFE.

AS WELL
AS SURVIVING EXTREME COLD,

TARDIGRADES HAVE ANOTHER TRICK
UP THEIR SLEEVE.

IN 2007,

THE EUROPEAN SPACE AGENCY
SENT A SAMPLE OF TARDIGRADES

UP TO THE INTERNATIONAL
SPACE STATION

FOR AN ASTONISHING EXPERIMENT.

TOOK THEM INTO SPACE,
PUT THEM ON A SATELLITE,

OPENED UP THE DOOR,
SET THEM OUTSIDE,

EXPOSED THEM
TO EXTREME TEMPERATURES,

VACUUM, RIGHT?
HOT, COLD.

HUGE RADIATION. AND THEN WHEN
THEY BROUGHT THEM BACK TO EARTH,

THEY DID
WHAT YOU'RE SEEING HERE,

THEY DUMPED SOME WATER
ON THEM TO SEE

IF THEY ACTUALLY REANIMATED.

-WHAT HAPPENED?
-VOILà!

[ LAUGHTER ]

THEY TAKE THE WATER UP, MAN,

AND THEY START RIGHT --
THEY SWAP OUT THE MOLECULES

AND LIKE A MACHINE, MAN.

-YEAH.
-YOU ADD THE WATER TO IT,

THEY TAKE 'EM UP, CELLS
START TO DO THEIR THING AGAIN.

AND THEY COME BACK ALIVE.
IT'S ALWAYS BLOWS MY --

LOOK, I'M AN OLD, FAT DUDE,

AND I'VE LOOKED
AT THESE A HUNDRED TIMES,

THOUSANDS OF TIMES --
MILLIONS, MAYBE.

-YOU'RE NOT THAT OLD. [ LAUGHS ]
-WELL...

AND THEN, WHEN I ACTUALLY LOOK
AT THEM UNDER THE MICROSCOPE,

EVERY SINGLE TIME, I'M LIKE,
"DANG, THAT'S COOL, MAN."

YEAH. YEAH.

Narrator:
SO THE REMARKABLE TARDIGRADE

CAN SURVIVE
THE EXTREMES OF SPACE

AND THE KILLING COLD
OF ANTARCTICA --

CONDITIONS SIMILAR
TO MODERN-DAY MARS.

AND, OF COURSE,
LIFE CAN ALSO SURVIVE

FOR TENS OF THOUSANDS OF YEARS
LOCKED AWAY IN A SALT CRYSTAL.

SO THERE COULD POSSIBLY BE LIFE
ON MARS.

IT USED TO HAVE AN OCEAN,

AND THERE MIGHT STILL BE TRACES
OF THAT OCEAN LEFT TODAY.

BUT WHAT ABOUT THE REST
OF OUR SOLAR SYSTEM?

¶¶

Narrator:
FROM THE EARLY 1960s,

SCIENTISTS
HAVE BEEN SENDING PROBES

OUT INTO THE FURTHEST REACHES
OF OUR SOLAR SYSTEM,

LOOKING, IN PART,
FOR LIQUID WATER,

BUT EVERYTHING APPEARED LARGELY
FROZEN, DRY, AND LIFELESS.

MOST OF OUR SOLAR SYSTEM WAS
COLDER THAN ANYWHERE ON EARTH,

EVEN THE ICY WASTES
OF THE HIGH ATACAMA DESERT.

BUT IN THESE REMOTE MOUNTAINS,

SCIENTISTS HAVE UNCOVERED
TANTALIZING CLUES

THAT COULD HELP
ANSWER THE QUESTION,

"ARE EARTH'S RICH
AND FLOURISHING OCEANS

UNIQUE OR UBIQUITOUS?"

AND THE VOYAGER PROBE
LAUNCHED BY NASA

IN 1977 POINTED THE WAY.

IN 1980, IT PHOTOGRAPHED

A SMALL MOON OF SATURN
CALLED ENCELADUS.

IT'S TINY,
ABOUT THE SAME SIZE

AS THE UNITED KINGDOM,

AND AT FIRST,
IT LOOKED INSIGNIFICANT.

Hand: ENCELADUS
IS THIS BIZARRE LITTLE MOON

THAT THE VOYAGER SPACECRAFT
TOOK A FEW SNAPSHOTS OF.

THE SURFACE COULD BE SEEN
TO BE CRATERED IN THE NORTH,

A LOT OF CRATERS
ON ITS ICY SURFACE.

NOW, TO A PLANETARY SCIENTIST
AND ASTRONOMER,

THAT MEANS OLD ICE.

BUT IN THE SOUTH,
AND IN PARTICULAR,

DOWN NEAR THE SOUTH POLE,

WHAT WAS SEEN
WAS A FRESH ICE SURFACE,

VERY FEW CRATERS.

Narrator: IF THE ICE WAS FRESH,
THEN WHERE HAD IT COME FROM?

SCIENTISTS HAD TO WAIT FOR YEARS
BEFORE THEY GOT AN ANSWER.

AND IT WAS PROVIDED
BY THE CASSINI PROBE,

WHICH SPAN PASSED ENCELADUS
IN 2005.

AND WHAT CASSINI SAW
SHOCKED SCIENTISTS --

PLUMES OF WATER VAPOR
POURING OUT FROM THE SURFACE

OF THE LITTLE MOON'S SOUTH POLE.

SO WHEN CASSINI RETURNED
THESE IMAGES OF THE PLUMES,

THE COMMUNITY JUST WENT NUTS.

THIS WAS ASTOUNDING TO SEE
THESE JETS OF WATER

ERUPTING OUT
OF THIS BIZARRE LITTLE MOON.

ENCELADUS IS JUST 500 KILOMETERS
IN DIAMETER.

THAT'S ABOUT THE WIDTH
OF THE UNITED KINGDOM.

AND TO SEE THESE JETS ERUPTING,
IT WAS PHENOMENAL.

Narrator: AS CASSINI
GOT CLOSER TO ENCELADUS,

IT REVEALED THE PLUMES WERE
SPEWING NOT JUST FROM ONE CRACK,

BUT FROM FOUR HUGE FRACTURES

IN THE ICE.

EACH OF THEM
WAS ABOUT 81 MILES LONG,

ONE AND A HALF MILES WIDE,

AND ABOUT 1,600 FEET DEEP

WITH WATER VAPOR
POURING OUT OF THEM.

THAT AMOUNT OF WATER COULD
ONLY MEAN ONE THING --

ENCELADUS HAD TO HAVE
A LIQUID OCEAN

BENEATH ITS FROZEN SURFACE.

BUT THIS DARK SUBTERRANEAN OCEAN

WOULD BE LACKING IN SOMETHING

THAT'S CRUCIAL
FOR LIFE ON EARTH.

LIFE AS WE KNOW IT
NEEDS NOT ONLY LIQUID WATER,

IT ALSO REQUIRES THE ELEMENTAL
BUILDING BLOCKS FOR LIFE --

THE CARBON, THE HYDROGEN,
THE OXYGEN,

A SMATTERING OF THE ELEMENTS
ACROSS THE PERIODIC TABLE.

AND LIFE REQUIRES
SOME FORM OF ENERGY.

Narrator: IN THE DARKNESS
OF ENCELADUS' HIDDEN OCEANS,

THERE COULD BE NO PHOTOSYNTHESIS
TO CAPTURE THE SUN'S ENERGY.

YET THE POSSIBILITY
OF FINDING LIFE THERE

ISN'T ENTIRELY HOPELESS.

THIS IS EL TATIO.

IT'S A MASSIVE GEYSER FIELD.

IT SITS
OVER 2.5 MILES ABOVE SEA LEVEL,

HIGH IN THE ATACAMA DESERT,

AND IT'S A FLURRY
OF HYDROTHERMAL ACTIVITY.

AND THERE'S SOMETHING
BUBBLING UP HERE

THAT MAKES THE PROSPECT
OF LIFE ON THE DISTANT MOON

OF ENCELADUS
JUST A LITTLE MORE FEASIBLE.

WELL, THE CLUE
IS WHAT WE FIND HERE ON EARTH.

IF WE LOOK
ALONGSIDE OF THIS GEYSER,

WE SEE THESE GEYSER PEARLS.

THIS IS SILICA -- SiO2 --

THAT HAS SINTERED
OUT OF THIS GEYSER WATER.

AND THE COSMIC DUST ANALYZER

ON THE CASSINI SPACECRAFT

HAS CAPTURED GRAINS LIKE THIS,

EXCEPT MUCH, MUCH SMALLER.

AND THE FACT
THAT THOSE GRAINS ARE FOUND

IN THE PLUME OF ENCELADUS

LEADS US BACK TO THE WATER-ROCK
INTERACTION,

WHERE THAT SILICA IN THE PLUMES
OF ENCELADUS COULD ONLY BE THERE

IF THE OCEAN OF ENCELADUS

IS CYCLING
WITH AN ACTIVE, ROCKY,

POTENTIALLY HOT SEA FLOOR.

Narrator:
CASSINI'S MEASUREMENTS INDICATED

THAT DEEP IN THE OCEANS
OF ENCELADUS,

A PROCESS VERY SIMILAR
TO THE GEYSERS

OF EL TATIO MUST BE UNDER WAY.

Lane: IF YOU SIMPLY REMOVE
THE WATER AND HAD DRY SURFACES,

EVERYTHING WOULD REMAIN STUCK
IN ITS PLACE ON THE SURFACE,

AND THERE'D BE NO MOVEMENT TO
BRING THINGS TOGETHER TO REACT.

SO I SUPPOSE WATER
IS THE UNIVERSAL LUBRICANT

THAT MAKES THINGS HAPPEN.

Narrator: AND THE EVIDENCE
FOR THAT CAN BE FOUND

THROUGHOUT THIS SEEMINGLY
INHOSPITABLE ENVIRONMENT.

AT THE MOST BASIC LEVEL,
BIOLOGY IS A LAYER ON GEOLOGY.

BIOLOGY IS HARNESSING SOME
OF THE STORED CHEMICAL ENERGY

THAT EXISTS IN CHEMICALLY RICH
WATERS INTERACTING WITH ROCKS.

AND RIGHT HERE,
WE'VE GOT A BEAUTIFUL EXAMPLE

OF EXACTLY THAT KIND OF BIOLOGY
BEING A LAYER ON GEOLOGY.

EVERYTHING THAT YOU SEE HERE,
THE RED THAT YOU SEE,

THOSE ARE MICROBES UTILIZING
THE RICH CHEMISTRY

OF THE GEYSER WATER.

Narrator: THE PRESENCE OF THESE
EXTREME LIFE-FORMS THRIVING

IN ALMOST ALIEN CHEMISTRIES
RAISES REAL HOPE FOR SCIENTISTS,

NOT JUST IN THE SEARCH FOR LIFE,

BUT IN ANSWERING
ONE OF BIOLOGY'S

MOST FUNDAMENTAL QUESTIONS.

IS THERE A SECOND INDEPENDENT
ORIGIN OF LIFE

ELSEWHERE WITHIN
OUR OWN SOLAR SYSTEM?

AND IF THERE IS,
THEN THAT TELLS US

THAT LIFE ARISES WHEREVER
THE CONDITIONS ARE RIGHT

AND WE LIVE IN A BIOLOGICAL
UNIVERSE.

IF WE DON'T FIND LIFE
WITHIN THESE WORLDS,

THEN THAT MAY BE AN INDICATION
THAT THE ORIGIN OF LIFE IS HARD

AND THAT LIFE IS QUITE RARE

WITHIN OUR SOLAR SYSTEM
AND BEYOND.

BOTH OUTCOMES
ARE EQUALLY PROFOUND.

¶¶

Narrator: IS THERE REALLY
ONLY ONE WAY TO COOK UP LIFE?

COULD LIFE FORM FROM A DIFFERENT
SET OF INGREDIENTS?

SCIENCE FICTION WRITERS

HAVE SPECULATED WILDLY
ABOUT ALTERNATIVE LIFE-FORMS,

BUT IN THE COLD,
HARD WORLD OF SCIENCE,

WE ONLY HAVE PROOF OF LIFE
AS WE KNOW IT.

BUT IF AN OCEAN
REALLY IS CRITICAL,

DOES IT HAVE TO BE
AN OCEAN OF WATER?

THAT'S A QUESTION
THAT DRIVES NASA'S CHRIS McKAY.

McKay: WHAT I'M REALLY
INTERESTED IN FINDING

IS WHAT I CALL
A SECOND GENESIS OF LIFE.

ORGANISMS THAT ARE CLEARLY NOT
RELATED TO ANY LIFE ON EARTH.

ALL LIFE ON EARTH
IS RELATED TO ITSELF,

FORMS A SINGLE TREE.

YOU CAN CALL THAT LIFE ONE.

WHAT I'M LOOKING FOR
IS LIFE TWO --

SOMETHING THAT'S NOT RELATED.

IT DOESN'T HAVE
TO BE PROFOUNDLY DIFFERENT,

BUT IT HAS TO BE
DIFFERENT ENOUGH

THAT WE CAN SAY
WITH VERY HIGH CONFIDENCE

THAT THEY ARE NOT RELATED TO US,

WE DO NOT HAVE
A COMMON ANCESTOR.

Narrator: WHERE SUCH A LIFE-FORM
COULD FEASIBLY EMERGE

WAS ANYONE'S GUESS.

UNTIL IN 2005,

THE WORLD'S ATTENTION
TURNED TO TITAN,

THE BIGGEST OF THE MOONS
WHICH ORBIT AROUND SATURN.

AT THAT TIME,
ALL WE KNEW OF IT WAS

THAT IT LOOKED GASSY, ORANGE,

AND LIFELESS.

WE KNEW THAT TITAN WAS
A FUZZ BALL FROM TELESCOPES.

BEFORE A SPACECRAFT
EVER WENT TO TITAN,

JUST LOOKING AT TITAN
WITH A TELESCOPE,

WE COULD TELL THAT IT HAD
A THICK ATMOSPHERE.

WE DIDN'T KNOW THE COMPOSITION
OF THE ATMOSPHERE

OR THE TEMPERATURE OF IT,

BUT WE KNEW IT HAD
A THICK ATMOSPHERE.

Narrator: BUT THEN IN 2005,

THE CASSINI-HUYGENS PROBE
PASSED BY,

REVEALING A SURFACE
THAT WAS UNEXPECTEDLY EARTHLIKE.

IT WAS DOTTED WITH HUGE BODIES
OF WATER,

BEARING AN UNCANNY
GEOGRAPHICAL SIMILARITY

TO THE GREAT LAKES.

FROM A PHYSICAL POINT OF VIEW,

THE PRESENCE OF LIQUID

CREATES ALL THESE OTHER
SIMILARITIES.

AND SO WE REALIZED THAT LIQUID
ON EARTH, LIQUID ON TITAN,

WE'RE GONNA EXPECT A LOT
OF COMMONALITY, AND WE SEE IT.

AND SO, VISUALLY, WHEN WE LOOK
AT THESE IMAGES OF LAKES,

WE SEE REFLECTIONS OF
WHAT WE SEE IN AIRPLANES

WHEN WE LOOK DOWN
AS WE FLY OVER THE GREAT LAKES.

Narrator: THERE WAS ONE CRUCIAL
DIFFERENCE, THOUGH --

THESE WEREN'T LAKES OF WATER.
THEY WERE LAKES OF METHANE.

AND AT MINUS 292 FAHRENHEIT,

THEY'RE TOO COLD
FOR ANY LIFE-FORM

WITH AN EARTH-LIKE CHEMISTRY.

McKay: I WOULD CONTEND THAT WE
DON'T UNDERSTAND THE ROLE

OF TEMPERATURE DIRECTLY IN LIFE.

NOW, ON EARTH, OF COURSE,

WE'RE USED TO LIVING
IN A HIGH-TEMPERATURE LIQUID

AT HIGH TEMPERATURE.
WE'RE IN THE FAST LANE.

WE METABOLIZE VERY RAPIDLY

BECAUSE WE'RE LIVING
AT HIGH TEMPERATURE.

WELL, ON TITAN, THE LIQUID
THAT'S THERE IS COLD,

THE TEMPERATURES ARE COLD.

IF THERE'S LIFE THERE,
IT'S OBVIOUSLY IN THE SLOW LANE.

IT'S METABOLIZING VERY SLOWLY,
BUT SO WHAT? WHAT'S THE RUSH?

THERE'S NOT AN ABSOLUTE TEMPO
THAT LIFE MUST KEEP TO.

Narrator: BUT IS THAT POSSIBLE?

CAN YOU HAVE LIFE USING METHANE
RATHER THAN WATER?

WITH THIS IN MIND,

SCIENTISTS AT THE PICTURESQUE
AND VERY WATERY

CORNELL UNIVERSITY IN NEW YORK

ARE TRYING TO ESTABLISH
WHETHER METHANE-BASED LIFE

IS EVEN THEORETICALLY POSSIBLE.

THEY TOOK THE CHEMICAL
INGREDIENTS THAT EXIST ON TITAN

AND MIXED THEM UP...

...NOT IN A TEST TUBE,
BUT INSIDE A COMPUTER.

THE COMPUTER BUILT
A THREE-DIMENSIONAL MEMBRANE,

THE OUTSIDE WALL OF A CELL.

EXCEPT THIS ALIEN MEMBRANE
FUNCTIONS IN METHANE, NOT WATER.

Clancy: IT'S NOT LIFE YET.
IT'S JUST A HOUSE.

BUT THE VERY FIRST THING
THAT YOU HAVE TO DO

IS YOU HAVE TO HAVE SOMEWHERE
TO SHELTER.

AND A MEMBRANE IS A WAY

OF KEEPING THE OUTSIDE
TO THE OUTSIDE.

Narrator: A SMALL STEP, BUT THIS
WAS GROUND-BREAKING SCIENCE.

FOR THE FIRST TIME,
IT OPENED UP THE POSSIBILITY

THAT THERE COULD BE
A SECOND TREE OF LIFE.

Clancy: WE TEND TO THINK
THAT LIFE WOULD LOOK LIKE US.

YOU JUST HAVE TO LOOK
AT THE "STAR TREK" MOVIES.

ALL THE ALIENS
KIND OF LOOK LIKE INSECTS

AND THINGS THAT WE ALREADY KNOW.

BUT WHY NOT BE SOMETHING
COMPLETELY DIFFERENT,

SOMETHING THAT WE CAN'T IMAGINE,

SOMETHING PERFECTLY SUITED
TO THE CONDITIONS

THAT ARE ON TITAN?

Narrator: BUT IF THIS
EXTRAORDINARY COMPUTER MODEL

IS RIGHT, HOW WOULD WE KNOW?

RIGHT NOW, WE CAN'T PHYSICALLY
SEARCH FOR LIFE ON TITAN,

BUT THAT DOESN'T MEAN THERE
WOULDN'T BE OTHER TELLTALE SIGNS

THAT WE CAN DETECT.

¶¶

Narrator: IN 2005, ASTRONAUTS
FINALLY HAD AN OPPORTUNITY

TO TEST THE HYPOTHESES THAT
HYDROGEN IS THE KEY TO LIFE

WHEN THE CASSINI SPACECRAFT
SENT DOWN A PROBE CALLED HUYGENS

TO LAND ON TITAN.

THE PICTURES THE PROBE
SENT BACK WERE STUNNING.

UNFORTUNATELY, THERE WERE
NO OBVIOUS SIGNS OF LIFE,

BUT HUYGENS WAS DOING MORE
THAN TAKING IMAGES OF TITAN.

IT WAS MAKING DETAILED
MEASUREMENTS

OF THE MYSTERIOUS ATMOSPHERE.

AS IT TURNED OUT,

THE MOST IMPORTANT
WERE THE READINGS IT TOOK

OF HYDROGEN LEVELS AS IT FLOATED
DOWN FROM SPACE TO THE SURFACE.

AS THE PROBE LANDED, SCIENTISTS
NOTICED SOMETHING REMARKABLE.

THE HYDROGEN LEVELS
DROPPED ABRUPTLY.

McKay:
WHEN I HEARD ABOUT THIS RESULT,

FOR A COUPLE MINUTES,
I WAS ECSTATIC, THINKING,

"OH, MY GOD, THIS IS --
THIS IS JUST TEXTBOOK SCIENCE."

PREDICTION, CONFIRMATION,
YOU KNOW,

NOBEL PRIZE COMES NEXT, RIGHT?

BUT REALITY SET IN SOON AFTER

AS I LOOKED AT THE PAPER
IN DETAIL AND CONSIDERED,

YOU KNOW, HOW EASY IT IS TO JUMP
TO THE ANSWER YOU WANT.

IT'S REALLY A QUESTION OF
EXCLUDING OTHER POSSIBILITIES.

Narrator: ON ITS OWN,
HUYGENS' SENSATIONAL MEASUREMENT

WAS INCONCLUSIVE.

WHAT THEY NEEDED
WAS VERIFICATION.

SO NASA PUT TOGETHER A TEAM

OF THEIR BEST
AND BRIGHTEST ENGINEERS

TO DESIGN A SPACECRAFT CAPABLE
OF EXPLORING THE UNIQUE

AND TECHNICALLY CHALLENGING
OCEANS OF THIS LIQUID WORLD.

AND AFTER A NUMBER
OF FALSE STARTS AND DEAD ENDS,

THEY CAME UP WITH THIS --

A SUBMARINE.

I WAS READING "TWENTY THOUSAND
LEAGUES UNDER THE SEA,"

AND THOUGHT, YOU KNOW,

"TITAN HAS THESE WONDERFUL
GROUPS OF SEAS.

WHAT'S UNDERNEATH THERE?"

IF WE DON'T LOOK THERE,
WE REALLY HAVEN'T SEEN

WHAT'S GOING ON ON TITAN.

SO WE CAME UP WITH
A FAIRLY LONG SUBMARINE.

YOU KNOW, AS YOU SEE FROM
TERRESTRIAL SUBMARINES,

THEY'RE USUALLY

ABOUT 10:1 DIMENSIONS OF LENGTH
TO THE DIAMETER.

AND THE REASON FOR THIS
IS IT REALLY REDUCES YOUR DRAG.

WE ARE, OBVIOUSLY,
A LITTLE POWER-LIMITED.

WE HAVE A LOT
OF COMMUNICATIONS TO DO,

WE HAVE FOUR THRUSTERS
IN THE BACK HERE

USING ELECTRICAL ENERGY.

SO WE WENT WITH
A VERY LONG SUBMARINE.

IF YOU CAN GET
BELOW THE SURFACE OF THE SEA

AND GET ALL THE WAY DOWN
TO THE BOTTOM IN CERTAIN AREAS

AND ACTUALLY TOUCH THE SILT
THAT'S ON THE BOTTOM

AND SAMPLE IT AND LEARN
WHAT THAT'S MADE OF,

IT WILL TELL YOU SO MUCH ABOUT
THE ENVIRONMENT THAT YOU'RE IN.

BUT IF YOU HAVE A BOAT
THAT JUST DRIVES ON THE SURFACE,

FIGURING OUT HOW TO GET A PROBE
ALL THE WAY DOWN TO THE BOTTOM,

GET THAT SAMPLE ALL THE WAY BACK
UP TO THE SURFACE AND SAMPLE IT

REALLY BECOMES
AN INTRACTABLE PROBLEM.

THERE'S SO MANY THING
THAT COULD GO WRONG DOING THAT.

AND, INSTEAD, WE SAID,

"IF WE CAN ENCAPSULATE
EVERYTHING TOGETHER

IN A SUBMARINE,

THEN WE COULD GO RIGHT DOWN
AND DO THAT SAMPLING

AND COME ALL THE WAY BACK
UP TO THE SURFACE."

Narrator: BUT SAILING
A LARGE ONE-TUB SUB

AROUND TITAN'S SUPER-COLD,

METHANE-RICH SEAS
ISN'T WITHOUT ITS PROBLEMS.

FORTUNATELY,
NASA HAS THE TECHNOLOGY

TO REPLICATE CONDITIONS
ON THE FREEZING MOON,

AND THIS IS IT.

INSIDE THIS HUGE TANK,

SCIENTISTS CAN SAFELY
AND ACCURATELY MIX UP

THE HIGHLY VOLATILE COCKTAIL
OF CHEMICALS

THAT MAKE UP THE ATMOSPHERE
OF THE HUGE MOON.

Hartwig: AS WE DESIGN AND BUILD
THE CRAFT,

WE CAN BASICALLY USE
THIS FACILITY TO TEST PROBLEMS

OR ISSUES THAT COME UP
FOR THE SUBMARINE.

SO WE CAN USE THIS FACILITY

TO BASICALLY CREATE
THE SEAS OF TITAN,

THE COLDNESS OF TITAN,
THE PRESSURES OF TITAN.

Narrator: THEY HAVE DISCOVERED
THAT ONE OF THE BIGGEST PROBLEMS

OF TITAN'S METHANE SEAS IS
THAT THEY'RE RICH IN NITROGEN,

AND THAT COULD MAKE IT
VERY DIFFICULT TO MANEUVER.

Paul: THERE COULD BE SO MUCH
NITROGEN DISSOLVED IN THE SEA

THAT WHEN THE PROPELLERS
TURN IN OUR JETS,

IT MIGHT JUST MAKE
A LOT OF BUBBLES

AND NOT BE ABLE TO PUSH
AGAINST THE LIQUID.

SO WE'RE DOING ANALYSIS NOW
AND WE HOPE TO DO SOME TESTING

IN THE NEAR FUTURE THAT SHOWS US
WHAT HAPPENS

IF YOU SPIN A PROPELLER
IN LIQUID METHANE,

IN LIQUID ETHANE WITH LOTS
OF NITROGEN DISSOLVED IN IT,

AND CAN YOU GET
ANY THRUST OUT OR NOT?

THIS IS A REALLY IMPORTANT
QUESTION TO ANSWER.

THERE'S OTHER WAYS TO PROPEL THE
SUBMARINE IF THAT DOESN'T WORK,

BUT THE DESIGN
THAT WE CAME UP WITH

HELPS US
GET TO THAT SIMPLE PLACE

IN TERMS OF SPACE OPERATIONS.

[ PINGING ]

Narrator: THE SUB WILL BE PACKED
FULL OF SCIENTIFIC INSTRUMENTS

AND TEEMING WITH CAMERAS.

BUT THERE'S ONE THING
THE SCIENTISTS FEEL

WILL MAKE THE MISSION
MORE THAN ANYTHING ELSE.

Paul: THAT FIRST PICTURE.
ARE YOU KIDDING?

THAT FIRST PICTURE
FROM A SUBMARINE,

FROM ANYBODY'S SUBMARINE
ON THE SURFACE OF A SEA

ON ANOTHER PLANET IN OUR
SOLAR SYSTEM CHANGES THE WORLD.

I MEAN, THAT'S SOMETHING

THAT NONE OF US
HAVE EVER SEEN BEFORE.

THAT IS TRUE DISCOVERY.

THAT IS WHY WE DO ANY OF THIS.

AND THAT WOULD BE AWESOME --
THAT FIRST PICTURE ALONE

WOULD MAKE THIS ENTIRE MISSION
WORTH IT.

[ PINGING ]

Narrator:
SCIENTISTS AREN'T SAYING

THAT THE CAMERAS
OF THE TITAN SUB

WILL DEFINITELY PING BACK
PICTURES OF LIVING ORGANISMS,

BUT THEY BELIEVE SENDING A SUB
TO THIS STRANGE MOON

GIVES THEM THE BEST CHANCE

OF FINDING A NEW FORM OF LIFE.

McKay: I GREW UP WHEN
"STAR TREK" WAS JUST COMING OUT,

AND IT WAS AN INSPIRATION TO ME.

BUT THE KEY MOMENT WAS WHEN
I REALIZED THAT THE JOB I WANTED

WAS NOT KIRK'S JOB,
BUT SPOCK'S JOB.

HE'S THE ONE WITH THE TRICORDER.

HE'S THE ONE
THAT'S DETECTING LIFE.

AND MY FAVORITE SAYING IS,

"IT'S LIFE, JIM,
BUT NOT AS WE KNOW IT."

THAT'S WHAT I WANT
TO BE ABLE TO SAY.

I WANT TO GET DATA
BACK FROM A PROBE --

TITAN, MARS, ENCELADUS,
WHEREVER --

AND BE ABLE TO SAY,

"IT'S LIFE, JIM,
BUT NOT AS WE KNOW IT."

Narrator: WE USED TO THINK THAT
THE REST OF OUR SOLAR SYSTEM

WAS FROZEN AND DEAD,

BUT WE NOW KNOW THAT THERE
ARE OCEANS OF WATER AND LIQUID

IN PLACES WE NEVER
THOUGHT POSSIBLE.

IN 2015,
THE NEW HORIZON MISSION TO PLUTO

CHECKED OFF THE LAST
OF THE GREAT WORLDS

TO BE EXPLORED
IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM.

BUT WE'RE ONLY AT THE BEGINNING
OF THE QUEST

TO FIND THE HOLY GRAIL
OF SPACE SCIENCE --

LIFE.

WE'RE THROUGH WITH THE AGE
OF DISCOVERY.

WE'VE DISCOVERED
ALL THE PLANETS,

WE KNOW WHAT'S THERE.

WE'VE GOT A ROUGH MAP
OF THEM ALL

AND A ROUGH UNDERSTANDING
OF HOW THEY WORK.

THE NEXT QUESTION --
THE QUESTION THAT I THINK

SHOULD MOTIVATE
AND GUIDE PLANETARY SCIENCE

FOR THE NEXT 20 YEARS IS,

IS THERE ANY LIFE IN THESE
VARIOUS AND DIVERSE OCEANS?

Narrator:
NEARLY TWO CENTURIES AGO,

CHARLES DARWIN SET OUT
ON A VOYAGE OF DISCOVERY

THAT CHANGED THE WORLD.

PERHAPS NASA'S TITAN SUBMARINE
WILL BE A MODERN COUNTERPART

OF DARWIN'S SHIP, THE BEAGLE.

AND IN THE SEARCH
FOR A NEW FORM OF LIFE,

WILL BOLDLY GO
WHERE NO ONE HAS GONE BEFORE.