Original subtitles

Narrator: N.A.S.A.'s MISSION IS TO EXPLORE THE UNKNOWN.

THERE'S MORE THAT WE DON'T KNOW THAN WE DO KNOW.

THAT'S JUST THE NATURE OF THE UNIVERSE.

Narrator: SEARCHING FOR ANSWERS,

IT LAUNCHES SCIENTISTS INTO SPACE

AND CRAFT BEYOND THE EDGE OF THE SOLAR SYSTEM.

TAKING RISK IS PART OF MAKING DISCOVERIES.

SPACE EXPLORATION IS LIKE LIGHTING A MATCH,

AND WE DON'T KNOW WHAT LURKS IN THE SHADOWS.

THERE COULD BE ANYTHING OUT THERE.

Narrator: STRANGE EXPERIMENTS

CONDUCTED DURING THE "APOLLO" PROGRAM.

Man: AND SUDDENLY, THERE'S SOMETHING OUT THERE.

THIS -- THIS IS AMAZING.

THIS IS SCIENCE FICTION, EXCEPT YOU'RE LIVING IT.

Narrator: WEIRD PHENOMENA THAT APPEAR TO DEFY

THE LAWS OF PHYSICS...

IT REALLY DOES PROVE

THAT THERE CAN BE A SNOWBALL'S CHANCE IN HELL.

Narrator: AND THREATS TO THE CONTINUED EXISTENCE

OF LIFE ON EARTH...

IT'S PROBABLY THE MOST DESTRUCTIVE EVENT

IN THE HISTORY OF HUMAN CIVILIZATION.

BUT THERE'S NO TRACE OF WHAT ACTUALLY HIT US.

[ STATIC, REWINDING SOUND ]

Narrator: N.A.S.A.'s MISSIONS

HAVE UNCOVERED DISTURBING ANOMALIES...

MAN: Okay. We're seeing three or four objects.

MAN: No, there are -- there are three objects.

...THAT CONTINUE TO PERPLEX OUR FINEST SCIENTIFIC MINDS.

THESE ARE...

THE "APOLLO 12" MISSION ENDS

WITH HUMANITY'S FIRST DELIBERATE SPACESHIP CRASH.

WE JETTISONED THE LUNAR MODULE.

IT IMPACTED THE MOON AT JUST THE RIGHT SPOT.

Narrator: AND THE SCIENTISTS MONITORING THE IMPACT

GET THE SURPRISE OF THEIR LIVES.

THIS IS WEIRD. IT DOESN'T MAKE SENSE.

UH, IT'S RINGING LIKE A BELL.

ONCE YOU GO DOWN THE PATH OF A HOLLOW MOON,

EVERYTHING IS ON THE TABLE.

[ STATIC ]

Narrator: STEPPING OUT FROM THE LUNAR MODULE,

"APOLLO 12" ASTRONAUTS PETE CONRAD AND ALAN BEAN

BECOME THE THIRD AND FOURTH MEMBERS OF HUMANITY

TO SET FOOT ON ANOTHER WORLD.

THIS...THIS IS AMAZING.

THIS IS SCIENCE FICTION, EXCEPT YOU'RE LIVING IT.

WE KNEW WE'D BEEN SENT THERE FOR A JOB,

SO I LOOKED AT THE CUFF CHECKLIST

AND SEE WHAT WAS TO DO NEXT.

Narrator: ONE OF THE MISSION'S PRIMARY OBJECTIVES

IS AN EXPERIMENT TO REVEAL THE MOON'S GEOLOGICAL MAKEUP.

CRASHING PART OF THE "APOLLO 12" SPACECRAFT

SHOULD SEND MEASURABLE VIBRATIONS

THROUGH THE LUNAR CRUST.

SCIENTISTS SAID, "LET'S SEPARATE THE LUNAR MODULE

"AND HAVE IT IMPACT THE MOON JUST AT THE RIGHT DISTANCE

"AWAY FROM THIS SEISMOMETER THAT THEY PUT THERE,

"AND WE'LL MEASURE HOW IT VIBRATES,

"AND THAT'LL TELL US WHAT'S GOING ON

IN THE CENTER OF THE MOON."

Narrator: THE EXPERIMENT BEGINS WITH THE INSTALLATION

OF A SEISMOMETER, A HIGHLY SENSITIVE DEVICE

TO DETECT TINY MOVEMENTS IN THE MOON'S SURFACE

AND THE ROCKS DEEP BELOW.

THE FIRST THING IT MEASURED ON THERE

WAS US RUNNING NEAR IT.

THEY COULD CATCH OUR FEET.

[ BEEP ]Feet now.

We're picking up, uh, your heavy footprints

going by the seismometer.

Narrator: FOR THE NEXT 31 HOURS,

THIS GEOLOGY EXPERIMENT REMAINS ON HOLD

WHILE THE ASTRONAUTS FOCUS ON OTHER WORK,

INCLUDING CONSTRUCTION

OF A NUCLEAR-POWERED SCIENCE STATION

ON THE LUNAR SURFACE.

[ STATIC ]

THE EXPERIMENT RESUMES WHEN THE ASCENT STAGE

BLASTS INTO ORBIT TO RENDEZVOUS WITH THE COMMAND MODULE.

ONCE THE LUNAR MODULE ASCENT STAGE

DOCKS WITH THE COMMAND SERVICE MODULE

AND THEY TRANSFER ALL THE PERSONNEL

AND THE MATERIAL INTO THE COMMAND MODULE,

THE ASCENT STAGE BECOMES VIRTUALLY USELESS.

[ INDISTINCT CONVERSATIONS ]

Narrator: THE ABANDONED SPACECRAFT

BECOMES A MISSILE UNDER THE CONTROL

OF TECHNICIANS IN HOUSTON.

MAN: Guidance and control officer reports that --

that, uh, the two spacecraft have, uh, separated.

THE LUNAR MODULE ASCENT STAGE IS TARGETED TO LAND

ABOUT 40 TO 50 MILES AWAY FROM THE "APOLLO 12" LANDING SITE.

"Apollo 12," Houston. The land is on its way down.

Narrator: TRAVELING AT ALMOST 3,800 MILES PER HOUR,

THE USED VEHICLE SLAMS INTO THE MOON'S SURFACE...

[ EXPLOSION ]

...CREATING A 30-FOOT-WIDE CRATER AND A MOONQUAKE.

IT IMPACTED THE MOON AT JUST THE RIGHT SPOT

SO OUR SEISMOMETER

COULD MEASURE WHAT THE INTERIOR OF THE MOON WAS LIKE.

Narrator: THE RESULTS RECORDED ON THE SEISMIC SENSORS

ASTONISH N.A.S.A. SCIENTISTS.

WHEN THEY SAW THEM ON THE SEISMIC RECORD,

IT WAS RINGING LIKE A BELL, AND IT JUST WOULDN'T STOP.

IT -- IT WAS JUST AMAZING.

THEY HAD NOT SEEN SOMETHING LIKE THAT BEFORE.

THEY WONDERED, "WHAT THE DEVIL IS THIS?"

Narrator: WHEN MAURICE EWING,

CO-HEAD OF THE SEISMIC EXPERIMENT,

STARTS THE SCIENCE PRESS CONFERENCE

30 MINUTES LATER, THE MOON IS STILL RINGING.

[ STATIC ]

Man: AS FOR THE MEANING OF IT, I'D RATHER NOT MAKE A --

AN INTERPRETATION RIGHT NOW,

BUT IT IS AS THOUGH ONE HAD

STRUCK A BELL, SAY, IN THE -- IN THE BELFRY OF THE CHURCH,

A SINGLE BLOW, AND FOUND THAT

THE REVERBERATION FROM IT CONTINUED.

Narrator: THE MOONQUAKE CAUSED BY THIS SINGLE IMPACT

CONTINUES FOR ANOTHER 25 MINUTES.

THIS, OF COURSE, SET OFF

A SEARCH TO TRY TO FIND AN EXPLANATION

FOR WHAT THIS BIG DIFFERENCE BETWEEN WHAT WE SEE ON EARTH,

WHERE THE EARTHQUAKES ONLY LAST FOR A FEW MINUTES,

AND ON THE MOON, WHERE THEY GO ON FOR HOURS AND HOURS.

SCIENTISTS WHO WERE WILLING TO THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX SAID,

"HEY, THAT'S HOLLOW. WE HAVE A HOLLOW MOON."

ONCE YOU GO DOWN THE PATH OF A HOLLOW MOON,

EVERYTHING IS ON THE TABLE.

SO, IF THE MOON WERE HOLLOW, WHAT WOULD THAT MEAN?

WELL, OBVIOUSLY, IT'S NOT A NATURALLY OCCURRING PHENOMENON

SO IT'S GOTTA BE ARTIFICIAL.

SOMEBODY PUT IT THERE. SOMEONE BUILT IT.

[ ALARM SOUNDS ]

Man: "FIRST MEN IN THE MOON."

Narrator: THEORIES ABOUT OUR MOON BEING HOLLOW

HAVE BECOME COMMON IN SCIENCE FICTION STORIES

BUT DON'T FIT WITH MAINSTREAM SCIENCE.

THE IDEA THAT THE MOON COULD BE AN ARTIFICIAL SPACE STATION...

HOW DIFFICULT IT IS JUST TO GET OUR SPACE STATION UP,

CAN YOU IMAGINE PUTTING SOMETHING THE SIZE OF THE MOON

IN ORBIT?

I DON'T THINK SO. IT HAS A BIGGER STORY.

Narrator: N.A.S.A. SCIENTISTS

HAVE THEORIZED THAT THE UNEXPECTED VIBRATIONS

COME FROM LOW LEVELS OF WATER IN THE MOON'S CRUST.

THE EARTH IS A WATER-RICH PLANET.

WE HAVE WATER COVERING THE SURFACE,

BUT THERE'S ALSO LOTS OF WATER THAT'S BEEN BURIED DEEP

INSIDE THE EARTH'S MANTLE.

[ OBJECTS SHATTERING ]

WHEN YOU HAVE AN EARTHQUAKE, THE WATER IN THE EARTH

ABSORBS THAT SIGNAL VERY QUICKLY,

LIKE SHOCK ABSORBERS.

[ SHATTERING CONTINUES ]

BUT ON THE MOON, THERE'S MUCH LESS WATER ON THE SURFACE

AND THEN ALSO VERY LITTLE WATER INSIDE THE INTERIOR OF THE MOON.

WITHOUT THE WATER, IT MAKES IT KEEP ON RINGING.

Narrator: THE IDEA OF A HOLLOW MOON

REMAINS SCIENCE FICTION...

AT LEAST FOR NOW.

N.A.S.A.'s GEOLOGICAL RESEARCH

IS CONSTANTLY EXPANDING THE BOUNDARIES

OF HUMAN KNOWLEDGE BY UNLOCKING THE SECRETS OF DISTANT WORLDS.

BUT MANY OF THE SPACE AGENCY'S STRANGEST DISCOVERIES

ARE FOUND CLOSER TO HOME.

[ WHOOSHES ]

AGENT WHITE WAS DEEP INTO THE UNKNOWN.

HE WAS EXPERIENCING THINGS

THAT NO PILOT HAD EVER ENCOUNTERED BEFORE.

Narrator: WHEN A N.A.S.A. TEST FLIGHT

SOARS TO THE EDGE OF SPACE,

EVERYONE EXPECTS IT TO BE A SOLO JOURNEY.

WHITE SAID, "THERE ARE THINGS OUT HERE."

WHITE'S THINKING, "WHAT ISTHAT THING,

AND WHAT'S IT DOING IN OUR ATMOSPHERE?"

[ STATIC ]

Narrator: JULY 17, 1962.

AT THE HEIGHT OF THE COLD WAR,

BOTH SUPERPOWERS FIGHT FOR TECHNOLOGICAL SUPREMACY

OVER AIR AND SPACE.

AND N.A.S.A.'s ENGINEERS MAN THE FRONT LINES.

THESE ARE THE EARLY DAYS

OF HIGH-SPEED, HIGH-ALTITUDE FLIGHTS.

EVERYTHING IS NEW. EVERYTHING IS ON THE EDGE.

Narrator: IN 1955, N.A.S.A.'s FORERUNNER,

THE NATIONAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE FOR AERONAUTICS,

COMMISSIONS THE X-15,

A ROCKET-POWERED, SUPERSONIC PLANE,

TO REACH THE EDGE OF EARTH'S ATMOSPHERE.

THE X-15 IS A JOINT VENTURE BETWEEN N.A.S.A.

AND THE UNITED STATES AIR FORCE,

AND IT'S TESTING WHAT THE LIMITS ARE

FOR AIRCRAFT FLYING AT HIGH ALTITUDE INTO SPACE

AND IS DEFINITELY CUTTING-EDGE.

Narrator: THE CHIEF TEST PILOT FOR THE X-15 PROGRAM

IS MAJOR ROBERT WHITE.

A VETERAN OF THREE WARS,

WHITE HOLDS THE RECORD FOR THE FASTEST MANNED FLIGHT EVER,

OVER 4,000 MILES PER HOUR.

MAJOR WHITE AND THE OTHER X-15 PILOTS

WERE FLYING FASTER AND HIGHER

THAN ANYONE HAD EVER FLOWN BEFORE.

[ STATIC ]

Narrator: FIRST, HE HITCHES A RIDE TO 45,000 FEET

UNDER THE WING OF A B-52 MOTHERSHIP.

THEN THOSE ENGINES LIGHT OFF.

[ WHOOSH ]

AT THAT POINT, HE'S ALL ALONE.

Narrator: THE ENGINES BURN FOR 82 SECONDS,

ACCELERATING WHITE TO 3,800 MILES PER HOUR.

NEARLY 60 MILES ABOVE THE EARTH,

HE IS HIGHER THAN ANY PERSON IN RECORDED HISTORY.

HE WAS FLYING VERY HIGH, VERY FAST.

SUDDENLY THERE'S SOMETHING OUT THERE.

Narrator: WHITE RADIOS TO GROUND CONTROL

THAT HE SEES MULTIPLE UNIDENTIFIED OBJECTS.

MAN: There are a lot of things out there. There absolutely is.

Narrator: ONE PARTICULARLY STANDS OUT.

HE SAW THIS STRANGE OBJECT OUTSIDE OF HIS COCKPIT WINDOW.

Narrator: THE OBJECT SEEMS TO SHADOW HIS X-15

AS HE ZOOMS THROUGH THE UPPER ATMOSPHERE

AT MORE THAN FIVE TIMES THE SPEED OF SOUND.

IT'S A GREAT SURPRISE. DOESN'T EXPECT TO SEE ANYTHING UP THERE.

HE'S GOTTA FIGURE OUT HOW FAR AWAY THEY ARE, HOW BIG THEY ARE,

HOW THEY'RE MOVING RELATIVE TO HIM. ARE THEY DANGEROUS?

Narrator: THE OBJECT KEEPS PACE WITH THE FASTEST AIRCRAFT

HUMANITY HAS EVER PRODUCED

FOR SEVERAL MINUTES BEFORE WHITE STARTS HIS DESCENT.

I DON'T THINK HE KNEW WHAT IT WAS,

AND HE WAS THE ONE LOOKING AT IT.

YOU'RE KIND OF LEFT WITH THE QUESTION,

"WHAT THE HECK COULD THAT HAVE BEEN?"

[ ROARING ]

Narrator: WHEN WHITE LANDS, HE REPORTS HIS SIGHTING

TO ENGINEERS AS PART OF HIS DEBRIEF.

Oberg: WHITE'S STORY REMAINS CONSISTENT.

THE OBJECTS ARE SMALL, ABOUT THE SIZE OF HIS HAND,

30 OR 40 FEET AWAY,

TUMBLING AND MOVING ALONG IN FLIGHT WITH HIM.

ALL THESE ARE VERY PUZZLING ASPECTS.

IT'S JUST VERY DIFFICULT TO IMAGINE WHAT IT IS

THAT COULD BE TRAVELING AT THE SAME SPEED

AS A MACH 4 ROCKET PLANE.

Narrator: OFFICIAL REPORTS SUGGEST THE OBJECTS

WERE CAUGHT ON FILM BY AT LEAST ONE OF THE ONBOARD CAMERAS,

BUT MYSTERIOUSLY,

THIS FOOTAGE IS NO LONGER AVAILABLE.

NO FOOTAGE. I MEAN, HERE'S A PLANE

THAT'S BRISTLING WITH ALL KINDS OF CAMERAS.

IF A FILM EXISTS OF WHAT'S GOING ON OUTSIDE THAT COCKPIT

OF AN OBJECT, YOU CAN BET THAT WILL NEVER SEE THE LIGHT OF DAY.

Narrator: WITHOUT THE CRUCIAL FOOTAGE,

WHITE'S TESTIMONY IS THE ONLY CLEAR EVIDENCE

OF THE MYSTERIOUS OBJECT AT THE EDGE OF SPACE.

THIS ISN'T THE TYPE OF INDIVIDUAL

WHO'S GONNA MAKE UP SOMETHING OR IMAGINE IT.

HE SAW A U.F.O.,

AND HE HAD NO REASON TO FABRICATE THAT STORY.

THIS IS A N.A.S.A. AIR FORCE MISSION

FLOWN BY AN AIR FORCE PILOT.

YOU DON'T GET MORE CREDIBLE THAN THAT.

Narrator: ONE IDEA IS THAT THE UNKNOWN OBJECTS

COULD BE THE REMAINS OF A SATELLITE OR SPACECRAFT.

THE LIKELIHOOD OF IT BEING MAN-MADE SPACE JUNK

OR SATELLITES IS EXTREMELY REMOTE

BECAUSE THERE WEREN'T MANY THINGS

THAT HAD BEEN UP THAT HIGH AT THAT TIME.

I DON'T KNOW WHAT IT WAS. BUT IT CERTAINLY,

AS FAR AS WE KNOW, WASN'T ANYTHING OF OURS.

Narrator: N.A.S.A. OFFICIALLY DESCRIBES THE PHENOMENON

AS A BYPRODUCT

OF THE X-15's EXPERIMENTAL PROPULSION SYSTEM.

BECAUSE OF THE SUPERCOOLED LIQUID NITROGEN IN USE,

YOU WOULD GET ICE CRYSTALS AND ICE FLAKES FORMING

ON THE OUTSIDE OF THE AIRCRAFT,

AND AS THE AIRCRAFT MANEUVERS AS IT'S IN ITS FLIGHT,

YOU'LL GET BREAKING OFF OF THESE ICE CRYSTALS AND FLAKES.

IF YOU'RE UP AT 300,000 FEET, THE SUNLIGHT IS GONNA REFLECT

OFF OF THAT VERY STRONGLY

AND MAKE IT VERY, VERY BRIGHT.

Narrator: AT LOWER ALTITUDES,

TRAVELING AT SUCH HIGH SPEEDS,

FRICTION WITH THE AIR WOULD GENERATE INTENSE HEAT,

MELTING ICE CRYSTALS AS SOON AS THEY FORM.

WHEN YOU THINK OF A ROCKET PLANE

GOING THOUSANDS OF MILES AN HOUR, YOU THINK OF FRICTION.

BUT IT WAS ALSO IN A VACUUM,

AND THERE WAS PRECIOUS LITTLE AIR AROUND IT.

THERE'S VERY LITTLE RESISTANCE. THERE'S VERY LITTLE FRICTION

ON THE OUTSIDE OF THE SPACECRAFT.

SO THESE ICE CRYSTALS ARE GONNA FLOAT ALONG WITH THE AIRCRAFT.

Narrator: WHITE REMAINED UNCERTAIN

ABOUT WHAT HE SAW ON THE FLIGHT.

MANY OTHERS ARE RELUCTANT TO ACCEPT THE OFFICIAL EXPLANATION.

UNLESS THEY FULLY ADMIT TO WHAT SOME OF THEIR PILOTS,

THEIR ASTRONAUTS HAVE SEEN,

WE'RE NEVER GONNA GET TO THE BOTTOM OF THE STORY.

[ STATIC ]

Narrator: UP NEXT -- N.A.S.A. REOPENS THE CASE FILE

FROM A U.F.O. SIGHTING IN PENNSYLVANIA.

[ WHOOSHING ]

Narrator: WHEN AN UNIDENTIFIED OBJECT

CRASH-LANDS IN PENNSYLVANIA...

[ EXPLOSION ]

THIS THING DIDN'T COME DOWN IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE.

IT LANDED 30 MILES SOUTHEAST OF PITTSBURGH.

THE QUESTION IS, "WHAT WAS IT, AND WHERE DID IT COME FROM?"

Narrator: RUMORS OF N.A.S.A. INVOLVEMENT

IN THE INCIDENT SPREAD FAST.

AFTER N.A.S.A. RETRIEVED THIS OBJECT,

THERE WAS A CONE OF SILENCE THAT DROPPED OVER IT.

SO WHAT ACTUALLY HAPPENED?

ACCORDING TO THE UNITED STATES AIR FORCE THEMSELVES,

"THERE WAS NOTHING TO BE SEEN HERE, FOLKS."

Narrator: N.A.S.A. HOPES THAT IT'S GROUNDBREAKING RESEARCH

MAY ONE DAY ANSWER QUESTIONS

ABOUT WHETHER MANKIND IS ALONE IN THE UNIVERSE.

BUT OTHERS BELIEVE THOSE ANSWERS CAN ALREADY BE FOUND

IN CHAPTERS FROM THE SPACE AGENCY'S PAST.

WE GOT CUT OFF. STAND BY.MAN: Roger.

Narrator: DECEMBER 9, 1965.

A DAZZLING FIREBALL BURNS THROUGH THE EARLY EVENING SKY

OVER PENNSYLVANIA.

[ WHOOSHING ]

IT LOOKED LIKE IT WAS FLAMING, BUT IT WAS REALLY GLOWING.

WHATEVER IT IS, IT'S MOVING INCREDIBLY FAST.

Narrator: THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE SEE THE BRILLIANT LIGHT

AS IT RACES ACROSS THE CANADIAN BORDER INTO THE UNITED STATES.

IT MADE THIS LONG S-CURVE,

FLEW OVER OHIO OVER THE WESTERN BORDER OF PENNSYLVANIA.

Narrator: INITIAL REPORTS SUGGEST THE FIREBALL

IS NOTHING MORE THAN AN UNUSUALLY LARGE METEOR.

THEN WE START GETTING REPORTS FROM KECKSBURG

THAT SOMETHING HAS LANDED IN THE WOODS OUTSIDE OF TOWN.

Narrator: IN THE SMALL, RURAL TOWN OF KECKSBURG,

30 MILES OUTSIDE OF PITTSBURGH,

LOCAL RESIDENTS REPORT A MYSTERIOUS OBJECT

FALLING FROM THE SKY.

THE PEOPLE WHO SAW THIS THING COME DOWN

SAID IT WAS A CONTROLLED LANDING.

IT WASN'T A CRASH.

Narrator: THE SIGHT SHOCKS LOCAL WITNESSES.

PEOPLE SAW THIS THING COMING DOWN FROM THE SKIES,

AN OBJECT, ACORN-SHAPED.

IT WAS ABOUT 8 TO 10 FEET. IT WAS GLOWING A PURPLISH-BLUE.

IT LOOKED HOT, AND IT WAS PULSATING.

IT HAD THESE STRANGE MARKINGS ALONG THE BASE,

AND NOBODY COULD MAKE OUT WHAT THE MARKINGS WERE.

[ LIGHTS CLICK ]

Man over P.A.: THIS IS NOW A MILITARY ZONE.

CLEAR THE AREA IMMEDIATELY.

Narrator: WITHIN HOURS,

THE MILITARY CORDONS OFF THE ENTIRE AREA.

THESE ARMY TROOPS

DID NOT HAVE ANY IDENTIFYING INSIGNIA ON THEM.

NOBODY KNEW WHO THEY WERE.

THEY SHOW UP. THEY CORDON OFF THE AREA.

EVEN THE PENNSYLVANIA STATE TROOPERS,

WHO WERE CALLED TO THE SITE -- THEY WERE THROWN OFF THE SITE.

WITNESSES REPORT THAT WHEN THEY WENT OUT TO THE SCENE,

THEY RAN INTO FOLKS WHO CLAIMED TO BE N.A.S.A.

WHY WOULD N.A.S.A. SHOW UP?

I MEAN, IT MAKES NO SENSE.

Narrator: WITNESSES AT THE SCENE REPORT SEEING SOMETHING

LOADED ON THE BACK OF A FLATBED TRUCK.

PEOPLE SAW MILITARY, BIG VEHICLES,

CARTING AWAY THIS ACORN-SHAPED THING.

IT WAS KIND OF, "WHAT'S GOING ON HERE?"

Narrator: IN SPITE OF CREDIBLE WITNESS REPORTS,

FOR FOUR DECADES, THE OFFICIAL EXPLANATION

IS THAT NOTHING WAS RECOVERED IN THE WOODS OUTSIDE KECKSBURG

AND THAT THE FIREBALL IN THE SKY WAS JUST A METEOR.

[ BIRDS CHIRPING ]

BUT THE STORY THAT SOMETHING UNIDENTIFIED

CRASHED IN THE WOODS REFUSES TO GO AWAY.

SOME SPECULATE THAT THE "KECKSBURG U.F.O."

CAN BE EXPLAINED BY THE RE-ENTRY OF A KOSMOS 96 SOVIET SATELLITE.

Narrator: KOSMOS 96 WAS A SOVIET PROBE THAT WAS HEADED TO VENUS

BUT FAILED AFTER TAKEOFF AND CRASHED.

BUT THIS APPARENTLY STRAIGHTFORWARD EXPLANATION

DOESN'T FIT WITH THE U.S. AIR FORCE SPACE COMMAND'S RECORD

OF THE SOVIET SATELLITE'S FATE.

THEIR REPORT CONCLUDED THAT THERE WAS A CRASH

OF A SOVIET SPACE PROBE,

BUT THAT HAPPENED 13 HOURS BEFORE THE KECKSBURG INCIDENT.

Narrator: THE STORIES SURROUNDING THE INCIDENT

REMAINED UNEXPLAINED FOR DECADES,

UNTIL 2003, WHEN A N.A.S.A. CHIEF SCIENTIST,

NICHOLAS L. JOHNSON, PURPORTEDLY STATES

THAT IT IS IMPOSSIBLE FOR DEBRIS FROM THE RUSSIAN PROBE

TO HAVE LANDED IN KECKSBURG AT THAT TIME OF DAY.

BUT JUST TWO YEARS LATER,

N.A.S.A. RELEASES A STATEMENT WHICH SEEMS TO CONTRADICT

BOTH ITS OWN CHIEF SCIENTIST AND ALL THE PREVIOUS STORIES.

IN 2005, WE GET THIS N.A.S.A. STATEMENT

CONFIRMING THAT THEIR SCIENTISTS

DID ANALYZE METAL FRAGMENTS FROM THIS OBJECT.

THE N.A.S.A. REPORT CONCLUDED THAT THESE METAL FRAGMENTS

DID COME FROM THIS DOWNED SOVIET SPACE PROBE.

Narrator: TO DATE, ALL REQUESTS TO N.A.S.A.'s MISSING DOCUMENTS

HAVE BEEN UNSUCCESSFUL.

N.A.S.A.'s OWN CATALOGING SYSTEM

SAYS THERE SHOULD BE TWO BOXES OF DOCUMENTS

ABOUT KECKSBURG INCIDENT.

BUT SOME TIME IN THE LAST FOUR DECADES,

THEY'VE APPARENTLY GONE MISSING.

Narrator: WE MAY NEVER KNOW WHETHER THE MISSING DOCUMENTS

REVEAL THE TRUTH ABOUT WHAT WAS RECOVERED

THAT NIGHT AT KECKSBURG.

WHAT WAS IT? I DON'T KNOW.

BUT THE GOVERNMENT OBVIOUSLY GRABBED IT AND RAN WITH IT,

AND THEY'RE NOT TALKING ABOUT. AND THEY GOT AWAY WITH IT.

Narrator: COMING UP, A N.A.S.A. PROBE

FINDS SOMETHING THAT SHOULD BE IMPOSSIBLE

ON A PLANETARY SURFACE HOT ENOUGH TO MELT LEAD.

Narrator: WHEN A N.A.S.A. PROBE

REACHES THE CLOSEST PLANET TO OUR SUN...

MERCURY'S PRETTY STRANGE.

TEMPERATURES ARE EXTREMELY HOT. HOT ENOUGH TO MELT LEAD.

Narrator: IN THE MIDST OF A SUPERHEATED HELL,

IT DISCOVERS SOMETHING IMPOSSIBLE.

THERE'S REALLY WATER ICE THERE, AND IT'S VERY BIZARRE.

MERCURY'S A PLANET THAT'S SO HOT,

SO CLOSE TO THE SUN

THAT NO LIVING CREATURE CAN EXIST ON IT.

WHY IS THERE WATER ON MERCURY?

Narrator: N.A.S.A.'s SEARCH FOR LIFE TAKES IT

TO EVERY CORNER OF THE SOLAR SYSTEM.

BUT OF THE MANY SCIENTISTS WORKING

ON THE MESSENGER MISSION TO MERCURY,

NONE ARE EXPECTING TO SEE SIGNS OF LIFE.

FOR PROFESSOR SEAN SOLOMON, THE PROBE'S FINAL APPROACH

IS THE MOMENT OF TRUTH AFTER AN 8-YEAR WAIT.

Solomon: THERE'S A PERFECT ORBIT ABSORPTION.

WE ALL BREATHE A SIGH OF RELIEF.

[ SONAR BEEPING ]

THE TEAM JUST EXPLODED WITH DELIGHT.

WE WERE THERE, AND IT WAS WORKING.

Narrator: AS MESSENGER PASSES OVER MERCURY'S NORTH POLE,

IT DETECTS SOMETHING STRANGE.

HYDROGEN MEASUREMENTS THAT

THERE WAS A LOT OF WATER ICE THERE.

10 OF CENTIMETERS, MAYBE METERS, IN THICKNESS

OF NEARLY PURE-WATER ICE.

[ STATIC ]

WATER ICE ON THIS VERY HOT PLACE -- VERY BIZARRE.

Narrator: SCIENTISTS HAVE LONG BELIEVED

THAT MERCURY IS COMPLETELY UNINHABITABLE.

BUT THE DISCOVERY OF ICE ON THE HELL PLANET

RAISES NEW QUESTIONS...

INCLUDING "HOW DID THE ICE GET THERE,

AND WHY HASN'T IT MELTED?"

IT WASN'T EVERYWHERE IN THESE POLES.

IT WASN'T A POLAR CAP.

THE DEPOSITS WERE LOCALIZED TO THE FLOORS OF IMPACT CRATERS.

WHAT WE FOUND WAS THAT

THERE, IN FACT, WERE LOCATIONS INSIDE THESE CRATERS

THAT COULD BE COLD ENOUGH TO HAVE ICE IN IT.

Narrator: LYING DEEP IN THE CRATERS,

THE WATER ICE IS SHIELDED FROM THE SUN'S POWERFUL RAYS.

AND THANKS TO MERCURY'S SPIN AXIS,

THE PLANET'S POLES STAY PERMANENTLY FROZEN.

THE POLE IS STRAIGHT UP AND DOWN,

YOU KNOW, PERPENDICULAR TO THE ORBIT.

Solomon: THE POLES OF MERCURY ARE EXTRAORDINARILY COLD --

MINUS 300 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT.

Baines: THEY DON'T SEE THE SUN,

AND SO THEREFORE, IT STAYS VERY, VERY COLD

AND CAN KEEP WATER FROZEN FOR EONS.

Narrator: WHILE MERCURY'S WEIRD PLANETARY SPIN SEEMS TO EXPLAIN

HOW ICE CAN EXIST,

IT DOESN'T EXPLAIN THE ICE'S ORIGIN.

A CLUE COMES FROM SOMETHING ELSE

DETECTED DEEP INSIDE THE CRATERS.

INSIDE THESE SHATTERED CRATERS, ON THE SURFACE OF THE ICE,

THERE'S A MATERIAL THAT'S ABOUT AS DARK AS COAL.

Solomon: WHAT IS IT?

WHAT IS THAT DARK MATERIAL ON TOP OF THE WATER ICE?

AND THE LEADING IDEA IS THAT IT'S ORGANIC MATERIAL.

Narrator: THIS ORGANIC MATERIAL IS A DARK MIX

OF COMPLEX CARBON MOLECULES

THAT COULD BE ONE OF THE BUILDING BLOCKS OF LIFE,

AND IT DOESN'T COME FROM MERCURY.

THAT LED US TO THE IDEA THAT,

UH, THE WATER ICE ON MERCURY CAME FROM, UH, OBJECTS

THAT IMPACTED FROM OUTSIDE,

THAT THOSE OBJECTS BROUGHT OTHER VOLATILE COMPOUNDS,

INCLUDING ORGANIC MATERIAL.

Narrator: THE PRIME SUSPECTS FOR DELIVERING THIS MESSY COCKTAIL

OF ICE AND ORGANIC MATERIALS ARE COMETS,

DIRTY SNOWBALLS THAT STREAK ACROSS THE SOLAR SYSTEM

AND FREQUENTLY DIE WHEN THEY GET CLOSE TO THE SUN.

Solomon: JUST LAST YEAR, WE HAD TWO COMETS

THAT PASSED FAIRLY CLOSE TO MERCURY.

Narrator: ONCE EVERY COUPLE MILLION YEARS,

A COMET HITS MERCURY AND THEN VAPORIZES.

THIS MATERIAL HOPS ALONG THE SURFACE AND FINDS ITS WAY

INTO THESE COLD PLACES,

WHERE IT'S THEN FROZEN AND THEN ACCUMULATES.

Narrator: THE INCREDIBLE COMBINATION

OF ONE-IN-A-MILLION COMET IMPACTS

AND DEEP CRATERS AT THE POLES OF A WORLD WHICH DOESN'T TILT

MAKES IT POSSIBLE FOR FROZEN ICE TO EXIST

ON ONE OF THE SOLAR SYSTEM'S HOTTEST PLANETS.

AND IT MIGHT FORCE US TO RETHINK SOME OF OUR IDEAS

ABOUT WHERE LIFE CAN EXIST.

MERCURY REALLY DOES PROVE

THAT THERE CANBE A SNOWBALL'S CHANCE IN HELL.

[ WHOOSH ]STILL TO COME --

COULD THE SHUTTLE LAUNCH PROVIDE ANSWERS

TO ONE OF THE GREATEST SCIENTIFIC MYSTERIES

OF THE 20th CENTURY?

Narrator: A COLOSSAL EXPLOSION

COMES CLOSE TO WIPING OUT LIFE ON EARTH.

IT'S PROBABLY THE MOST DESTRUCTIVE EVENT

IN THE HISTORY OF HUMAN CIVILIZATION.

Narrator: THE EVIDENCE SEEMS TO POINT

TOWARDS AN ATOMIC APOCALYPSE...

35 YEARS BEFORE THE CREATION OF THE ATOMIC BOMB.

HOW COULD THERE HAVE BEEN AN EXPLOSION

LIKE A NUCLEAR EXPLOSION IN TUNGUSKA IN 1908?

UH, IT'S A DETECTIVE STORY, FOR SURE.

YOU FOLLOW THE FACTS, AND YOU FIND THE KILLER.

Narrator: THE FIRST MAN-MADE ATOMIC EXPLOSION TOOK PLACE

IN THE NEW MEXICO DESERT IN 1945.

BUT IN THE LORE OF ATOMIC SCIENCE,

ANOTHER CHAPTER IS RARELY MENTIONED --

A STRANGE INCIDENT

IN THE REMOTE TUNGUSKA REGION OF SIBERIA.

IT BEGINS ON A JUNE MORNING,

WHEN A HUNTING TRIP COMES TO AN EXPLOSIVE END.

A LIGHT, BRIGHTER THAN THE SUN, SUDDENLY APPEARS,

STREAKS ACROSS THE SKY...

AND EXPLODES.

[ EXPLOSION ]

THE LOCALS TRULY BELIEVE

THAT IT WAS THEIR GOD BRINGING ABOUT THE END OF THE WORLD.

Narrator: THE MASSIVE EXPLOSION DESTROYS AN AREA

MORE THAN TWICE THE SIZE OF NEW YORK CITY

AND PRODUCES SHOCK WAVES POWERFUL ENOUGH

TO CAUSE VIBRATIONS 3,000 MILES AWAY.

FOR MORE THAN 100 YEARS,

THE CAUSE OF THE SO-CALLED TUNGUSKA EVENT

REMAINS AN ENIGMA.

IT'S PROBABLY THE MOST DESTRUCTIVE EVENT IN THE HISTORY

OF HUMAN CIVILIZATION,

BUT THERE'S NO TRACE OF WHAT ACTUALLY HIT US.

THIS IS ONE OF THE MOST ENDURING MYSTERIES

OF 20th-CENTURY SCIENCE.

[ STATIC ]

Narrator: THE IMPACT SITE IS SO REMOTE

THAT THE FIRST INVESTIGATORS DON'T ARRIVE

UNTIL 19 YEARS AFTER THE EVENT.

THE ONLY CLUE THEY FIND IS THE INCREDIBLE ARRANGEMENT

OF MILLIONS OF DEAD TREES.

EXPLORERS OUT THERE FOUND THESE TREES,

RADIALLY KNOCKED DOWN FROM A CENTER POINT,

AND THEY COULDN'T FIGURE OUT WHAT -- WHAT REALLY HAPPENED.

Narrator: THE INVESTIGATION REVEALS

THAT SOMETHING BURNED AND STRIPPED THE TREES.

THE WAY THE TREES HAD BEEN BURNT, STRIPPED,

AND BLOWN DOWN AT TUNGUSKA

WAS ALMOST EXACTLY THE SAME WAY AS IN A NUCLEAR EXPLOSION.

SO THE QUESTION IS, HOW COULD THERE HAVE BEEN AN EXPLOSION,

LIKE A NUCLEAR EXPLOSION IN TUNGUSKA IN 1908?

WE WOULDN'T HAVE NUCLEAR WEAPONS FOR ANOTHER 35 YEARS.

Narrator: WITH NO EARTHLY EXPLANATION,

SCIENTISTS TURN TO THE HEAVENS.

THE FACT THAT THERE WAS SUCH SIGNIFICANT DEVASTATION

AT A TIME WHEN THERE WAS

NO NUCLEAR CAPABILITY ON THIS PLANET

MADE PEOPLE WONDER,

"IS IT POSSIBLE THAT SOMETHING CAME FROM THE STARS?"

Narrator: FOR MOST OF THE 20th CENTURY,

SCIENTISTS BELIEVED THAT A MASSIVE ASTEROID IMPACT

CAUSED THE TUNGUSKA EVENT,

BUT THEY LACK A CRUCIAL PIECE OF EVIDENCE.

THE PROBLEM IS, THERE IS NO CRATER AT TUNGUSKA,

SO WHERE DID THAT ASTEROID GO?

Narrator: GEOPHYSICIST MICHAEL KELLEY

HAS SPENT OVER 10 YEARS INVESTIGATING THIS MYSTERY.

UH, IT'S A DETECTIVE STORY FOR SURE.

YOU FOLLOW THE FACTS, AND YOU FIND THE KILLER.

Narrator: KELLEY'S FIRST CLUE COMES IN 2007,

WHEN HE NOTICES STRANGE, GLOWING CLOUDS FORMING

AFTER THE LAUNCH OF SHUTTLE MISSION STS-118.

TWO DAYS AFTER THE SHUTTLE WAS LAUNCHED,

THERE'S A SPECTACULAR NOCTILUCENT CLOUD DISPLAY,

I MEAN, ONE OF THE BRIGHTEST AND PRETTIEST

THAT I'VE EVER SEEN.

Narrator: NOCTILUCENT CLOUDS ARE AN EXTREMELY RARE PHENOMENON

THAT FORM 50 MILES UP.

THE CLOUDS RESEMBLE THE GLOWING SKIES

REPORTED BY WITNESSES AFTER THE EXPLOSION IN SIBERIA.

YOU COULD READ A BOOK AT NIGHT AT MIDNIGHT,

AND THAT REALLY GOT ME THINKING

BECAUSE THE WAY THEY DESCRIBED IT

WOULD BE EXACTLY THE WAY YOU WOULD DESCRIBE

A NOCTILUCENT CLOUD.[ FLAMES CRACKLING ]

Narrator: KELLEY DISCOVERS THAT THE GLOWING CLOUDS APPEAR

FOLLOWING THE RELEASE

OF 600,000 POUNDS OF WATER VAPOR FROM THE SHUTTLE'S ENGINES.

THERE'S REMARKABLE SIMILARITIES BETWEEN WHAT HAPPENED

AFTER TUNGUSKA AND WHAT HAPPENED AFTER THE SHUTTLE LAUNCHES.

THIS SUGGESTS THAT WHATEVER CAUSED THE TUNGUSKA EVENT

MUST ALSO HAVE RELEASED VAST AMOUNTS OF WATER

INTO THE ATMOSPHERE.

THAT'S WHEN I STARTED THINKING

THAT THIS REALLY COULD NAIL THE MYSTERY OF TUNGUSKA.

Narrator: FOR KELLEY, THERE'S ONLY ONE EXPLANATION.

WELL, IT OBVIOUSLY IS AN EXPLOSION OF A COMET.

Narrator: KELLEY'S INVESTIGATION CONCLUDES

THAT, IN JUNE 1908, A MASSIVE ICY COMET

EXPLODES HIGH IN THE EARTH'S ATMOSPHERE,

LEAVING NO CRATER BUT RELEASING HUGE CLOUDS OF WATER VAPOR,

JUST LIKE THE SHUTTLE LAUNCH.

[ EXPLOSION ]

I THINK WE FINALLY HAVE AN ANSWER

TO ONE OF SCIENCE'S GREATEST ENIGMAS.

Narrator: STILL TO COME,

A N.A.S.A. MISSION TO THE RED PLANET

STUMBLES ACROSS A SCI-FI PHENOMENON.

Narrator: WHEN A N.A.S.A. PROBE SURVEYS A MARTIAN SATELLITE,

WHAT IT DISCOVERS ASTONISHES SCIENTISTS ON EARTH.

I TOOK A LOOK AT THE PHOBOS IMAGE.

I LITERALLY COULD NOT BELIEVE MY EYES.

Narrator: A TOWERING STRUCTURE LOOMS OVER THE MOON'S SURFACE.

IF YOU WERE TO BE STANDING AT THE SURFACE OF PHOBOS,

THIS THING WOULD BE A SKYSCRAPER.

IT'S SO PROPER AND RIGHT ANGLED,

YOU THINK THAT IT'S ARTIFICIAL.

N.A.S.A.'s JET PROPULSION LABORATORY

IS THE SITE OF SOME OF HUMANITY'S GREATEST

TECHNOLOGICAL ACHIEVEMENTS.

AMONG ITS MANY SUCCESSES IS

THE MARS GLOBAL SURVEYOR PROGRAM.

BUT IN 1998, ONE THING NOBODY ON THE ELITE N.A.S.A. TEAM

EXPECTS TO FIND

IS SIGNS OF CONSTRUCTION

ON THE SURFACE OF THE RED PLANET'S LARGEST MOON.

I WASN'T REALLY LOOKING FOR ANYTHING,

JUST KIND OF GLANCING THROUGH THE IMAGES.

AND SOMETHING JUST POPPED OUT AND -- AND STRUCK ME.

I SAID, "WHOA. WHAT IS THIS THING?"

Narrator: INSTEAD OF A FEATURELESS EXPANSE

OF EMPTY ROCK,

Palermo: PALERMO SEES SOMETHING DISTURBINGLY REGULAR.

WHAT I SAW KIND OF BLEW MY MIND AWAY.

THE SHADOW WAS A LOT LONGER THAN IT SHOULD BE.

IT LOOKED LIKE THIS MONOLITHIC STRUCTURE.

THE SIGHTING BEARS LITTLE RESEMBLANCE

TO ANY KNOWN NATURAL PHENOMENON.

LO AND BEHOLD, THERE WAS THIS GIGANTIC MONOLITH

SITTING AT THE SURFACE OF PHOBOS

THAT WAS, ESSENTIALLY, A TOWERING FEATURE.

IT'S THE SIZE OF A SKYSCRAPER.

USING THE LENGTH OF THE SHADOW,

SCIENTISTS CALCULATE THAT THE ODD STRUCTURE

IS OVER 400 FEET HIGH.

TO HAVE A STRUCTURE STANDING UPRIGHT AS BIG AS THIS IS,

JUST STICKING OUT OF THE SURFACE,

YOU KNOW, IT'S -- IT'S A STRANGE PHENOMENA.

Narrator: THE STRUCTURE BECOMES KNOWN AS THE PHOBOS MONOLITH...

AND IT GENERATES EXCITEMENT

AMONG THE GIANTS OF SPACE EXPLORATION.

THERE'S A MONOLITH THERE, A VERY UNUSUAL STRUCTURE

ON THIS LITTLE POTATO-SHAPED OBJECT.

WHEN PEOPLE FIND OUT ABOUT THAT,

THEY'RE GONNA SAY, "WHO PUT THAT THERE?"

WHEN I SAY THE WORD "MONOLITH,"

THE FIRST THING I THINK ABOUT IS 2001.

ARTHUR CLARKE -- HE MADE THE MONOLITH

A GIFT FROM ALIEN KIND.

Narrator: IN "2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY,"

AN UNKNOWN CIVILIZATION LEAVES TOWERING MONOLITHS

ACROSS THE SOLAR SYSTEM AS BEACONS TO CONTACT HUMANITY.

ARTHUR C. CLARKE POSED THE NOTION,

"WHAT IF ALIENS WERE INTERESTED IN THE EARTH,

WERE INTERESTED IN POSSIBLY US?"

IF YOU'RE AN ALIEN RACE

THAT'S WANTING TO REACH OUT TO HUMANITY,

YOU DON'T WANT TO MESS UP OUR EVOLUTION.

WHAT YOU WOULD DO

IS PUT A MESSAGE FOR THEM JUST OUTSIDE THEIR REACH.

Narrator: BUT N.A.S.A.'s PLANETARY SCIENTISTS

HAVE AN EXPLANATION FOR THE MONOLITH'S PRESENCE

THAT DOESN'T REQUIRE ALIENS.

AS MUCH AS I WOULD FIND IT EXCITING

IF IT WERE A-A MONUMENT LEFT BY AN ALIEN CIVILIZATION,

THE HYPOTHESIS TO BEAT IS THAT IT'S JUST A-A BOULDER.

IT'S A GIANT BOULDER SITTING ON ITS END.

Narrator: THOUGH A SKYSCRAPER-SIZED BOULDER

PERCHING PRECARIOUSLY ON ONE END SOUNDS UNLIKELY,

THE TINY MOON'S WEAK GRAVITY MAKES STRANGE THINGS POSSIBLE.

THIS WEAK-GRAVITY ENVIRONMENT --

IT DOESN'T MAKE MUCH DIFFERENCE IF YOUR BOULDER IS SITTING

ON ONE END OR IF YOU'RE SORT OF LYING -- LYING ON YOUR SIDE.

UH, THINGS JUST TEND TO SIT ON THESE BODIES

THE WAY THEY LAND ON THEM.

THIS MONOLITH IS PROBABLY JUST A GIANT BOULDER

THAT WAS TOSSED IN THIS CATASTROPHIC EVENT.

[ EXPLOSION ]

Narrator: UNTIL WE REACH PHOBOS,

ALL THEORIES ABOUT THE MONOLITH'S ORIGIN

MUST REMAIN SPECULATIVE.

STILL TO COME,

WHEN N.A.S.A. SUFFERS ONE OF THE GREATEST TRAGEDIES

IN ITS HISTORY,

THE INVESTIGATION TAKES AN UNEXPECTED TURN.

MAN: Two minutes... [ Speaks indistinctly ]

Narrator: WHEN N.A.S.A. LOSES THE SPACE SHUTTLE "COLUMBIA"...

NOT A WEEK GOES BY THAT I DON'T DREAM

OF MY FRIENDS THAT WERE ON THAT MISSION.

THAT NEVER LEAVES YOU.

[ ROARING ]

Narrator: THE INVESTIGATION BEGINS IMMEDIATELY.

THERE ARE HUNDREDS OF THEORIES ABOUT WHAT IT COULD'VE BEEN,

FROM COSMIC LIGHTNING, OR MEGALIGHTNING,

TO EXTRATERRESTRIALS, TO ENEMY ACTION.

Narrator: AND AN INCREDIBLE PHOTOGRAPH SEEMED TO SUGGEST

SOMETHING STRANGE HAPPENED TO THE SHUTTLE.

TO ME, IT LOOKED LIKE A CREDIBLE PHOTOGRAPH

AND WAS WORTH TAKING ANOTHER LOOK AT BY N.A.S.A.

[ STATIC ]

Narrator: FEBRUARY 1, 2003.

AFTER A 16-DAY SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH MISSION,

STS-107 RE-ENTERS EARTH'S ATMOSPHERE.

So far, fine. We have good trims.

THE VOICE OF FLIGHT COMMANDER RICK HUSBAND

CUTS OFF MID-TRANSMISSION.

No onboard system can fix changes

right before we lost data.

WOMAN: Those correct flight, all look good.

MAN: "Columbia," Houston. Com check.

"Columbia," Houston. UHF, com check.

I WAS WORKING IN MISSION CONTROL THAT FATEFUL MORNING

WHEN "COLUMBIA" BROKE UP DURING RE-ENTRY.

AND THE FACT THAT THEY DISINTEGRATED,

BASICALLY, BEFORE OUR VERY EYES,

AND THERE WAS NOTHING WE COULD DO

WAS A VERY DEVASTATING EVENT

FOR ALL OF US IN MISSION CONTROL.

INVESTIGATING THE DISASTER

IMMEDIATELY BECOMES N.A.S.A.'s TOP PRIORITY.

WELL, THAT'S WHAT I TOLD HIM.

[ INDISTINCT CONVERSATIONS ]

N.A.S.A.'s GOING TO WORK VERY HARD

AND LEAVE NO STONE UNTURNED UNTIL THEY'RE SURE THEY KNOW

WHAT CAUSED THE ACCIDENT.

YOU HAVE TO GET TO THE BOTTOM OF IT.

OTHERWISE, YOU CAN'T FLY THE VEHICLE AGAIN.

YOU NEED AN ANSWER.

Narrator: IN THE MOMENTS BEFORE THE TRAGEDY,

AMATEUR ASTRONOMER PETER GOLDIE WAS PHOTOGRAPHING THE RE-ENTRY.

Goldie: FEBRUARY 1, 2003, WAS THE SECOND TIME I WITNESSED

A SHUTTLE LANDING COMING OVER SAN FRANCISCO.

IT WAS QUITE CLEAR TO SEE AND QUITE BEAUTIFUL TO SEE

BECAUSE IT MAKES A LONG, VERY BRIGHT LINE ACROSS THE SKY.

AND, OF COURSE, YOU -- YOU KNOW WHAT YOU'RE LOOKING AT,

SO IT'S A TREMENDOUS THING.

Narrator: WATCHING FROM A SAN FRANCISCO HILLSIDE,

GOLDIE HAS NO IDEA WHAT'S ABOUT TO HAPPEN.

THE FIRST INKLING HE HAS WITNESSED SOMETHING UNUSUAL

COMES WHEN HE LOOKS OVER THE DAY'S PHOTOGRAPHS.

I DIDN'T KNOW WHAT TO MAKE OF IT.

IT LOOKED, FOR ALL PRACTICAL PURPOSES,

TO BE AS IF IT WAS A JAGGED PURPLE BOLT OF LIGHTNING

INTERSECTING THE, UH, PATH OF THE SHUTTLE.

[ LIGHTNING CRASHES ]

Narrator: AT THE MOMENT GOLDIE TAKES HIS SHOT,

"COLUMBIA'S" TOO HIGH

FOR ANY CONVENTIONAL LIGHTNING STRIKE.

BUT IT'S STILL A POSSIBILITY N.A.S.A. TAKES SERIOUSLY.

WHEN ROCKETS LEAVE BEHIND A VAPOR TRAIL,

THE LIGHTNING STRIKE WILL COME UP AND CHASE THE ROCKET

UP TO THE BASE OF SPACE.

THESE LIGHTNING STRIKES

HAVE 100,000 VOLTS OR MORE AND A MILLION AMPERE.

BOY, THAT'S A LOT OF POWER.

THAT JUST, UH,

IT HEATS THE ATMOSPHERE 100,000 DEGREES EASY.

AND WHEN THEY DO SO,

THEY CAN CAUSE TREMENDOUS FLASHES OF LIGHT,

DEFINITELY CAUSE INSTRUMENTATION PROBLEMS.

Narrator: FOR N.A.S.A.,

EVIDENCE OF AN ELECTRICAL DISCHARGE

IS DISTURBING ENOUGH TO CALL IN VETERAN ASTRONAUT TAMMY JERNIGAN

TO INVESTIGATE.

I THOUGHT IT WAS VERY IMPORTANT TO LOOK AT EVERY PIECE OF DATA

THAT MIGHT HAVE BEARING ON THE CAUSE OF THE ACCIDENT.

THE PHOTOGRAPH CERTAINLY WARRANTED FURTHER INVESTIGATION.

Narrator: SO WHAT DID GOLDIE CAPTURE ON CAMERA,

AND DID IT CONTRIBUTE TO THE DISASTER?

N.A.S.A. IMAGING EXPERTS BEGIN BY EXAMINING GOLDIE'S EQUIPMENT.

THEY ANALYZED THE PHOTOGRAPH, UM, AND THE, UM,

CORKSCREW PHENOMENON, I BELIEVE,

WAS ATTRIBUTED TO SOME TYPE OF VIBRATION.

THE CAMERA SHUTTER OPENS FOR THE TIME EXPOSURE.

THERE'S A BRIEF JIGGLE, THE ZIG -- UP AND DOWN ZIGZAG.

Narrator: THIS MINUTE UP AND DOWN MOVEMENT OF THE CAMERA

AT THE PRECISE MOMENT THE PICTURE WAS TAKEN

CREATES THE APPEARANCE OF THE ZIGZAG

IN WHAT IS ACTUALLY THE ARROW-STRAIGHT LINE

OF THE SHUTTLE'S TRAJECTORY.

THE TIMING OF THE SHOT AS THE SHUTTLE BREAKS UP

IS JUST TRAGIC COINCIDENCE.

THE JIGGLING JUST HAPPENED TO COINCIDE WITH THE MOMENT

THAT THEY HAD LOST THE TELEMETRY.

Narrator: THE DISCOVERY OF THE CAMERA FAULT

RULES OUT THE POSSIBILITY

THAT A LIGHTNING BOLT BROUGHT COLUMBIA DOWN.

LIFT OFF OF SPACE SHUTTLE COLUMBIA.

SUBSEQUENT N.A.S.A. INVESTIGATIONS REVEAL

CRITICAL DAMAGE TO A THERMAL PROTECTION PAD DURING TAKEOFF.

30 SECONDS INTO THE FLIGHT.

Man: THE THREE LIQUID-FUEL MAIN ENGINES

BEGINNING TO THROTTLE BACK,

REDUCING THE STRESS ON THE SHUTTLE AS IT BREAKS

THROUGH THE SOUND BARRIER.

WHEN THE SHUTTLE CAME IN FOR RE-ENTRY,

UM, BECAUSE THE STRUCTURAL INTEGRITY

OF THAT THERMAL PROTECTION SYSTEM HAD BEEN VIOLATED,

IT WAS NOT ABLE TO STAND

THE THERMAL AND MECHANICAL STRESSES OF RE-ENTRY

AND CAME APART.

COMMANDER RICK HUSBAND, ILAN RAMON,

PILOT WILLIAM McCOOL, MICHAEL ANDERSON, DAVID BROWN...

THE LOSS OF "COLUMBIA'S" SEVEN ASTRONAUTS

REMAINS ONE OF N.A.S.A.'s DARKEST DAYS.

N.A.S.A.'s ONGOING MISSIONS HAVE FORCED US

TO LOOK AT OUR OWN WORLD WITH NEW EYES

WHILE WE STRUGGLE WITH STRANGE PHENOMENA

THAT CHALLENGE EVERYTHING WE THINK WE KNOW.

MORE THAN FOUR DECADES AFTER MAN FIRST SET FOOT ON THE MOON,

WE'RE STILL DISCOVERING MYSTERIES

IN THE DARK RECESSES OF OUR SOLAR SYSTEM.

CAPTIONS PAID FOR BY DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS