Original subtitles

Narrator: NASA's MISSION IS TO EXPLORE THE UNKNOWN.

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

THAT'S JUST THE NATURE OF THE UNIVERSE.

Narrator: IN THE SEARCH FOR ANSWERS,

IT LAUNCHES ITS SCIENTISTS INTO SPACE,

ITS CRAFT BEYOND THE LIMITS OF THE SOLAR SYSTEM.

Williams: 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: STAR SYSTEMS THAT DEFY THE LAWS OF PHYSICS.

THIS STAR SHOULD NOT EXIST.

HOW DO YOU EXPLAIN PLANETS THAT ARE ORBITING THE WRONG WAY?

Narrator: POTENTIAL SIGNS OF LIFE ON MARS.

Baines: PERCIVAL LOWELL WAS RIGHT.

THERE ARE CHANNELS IN THE SURFACE OF MARS.

THERE COULD BE A MARTIAN CIVILIZATION.

Narrator: AND DO ANCIENT DOCUMENTS

REVEAL CLUES TO STRANGE EVENTS ON THE LUNAR SURFACE?

Genge: THEY WERE DESCRIBING SOMETHING VERY SIMILAR,

HUGE FIREBALL ON THE SURFACE OF THE MOON.

Narrator: NASA's MISSIONS HAVE UNCOVERED DISTURBING ANOMALIES...

MAN: Okay, we're seeing three or four objects.

MAN #2: Yeah, there are three objects.

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

THESE ARE NASA'S UNEXPLAINED FILES.

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

CAPTIONS PAID FOR BY DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS

NASA ASTRONAUTS ARE TRAINED TO HANDLE

ALMOST ANY THREAT THEY FACE IN SPACE EXCEPT DROWNING.

Chiao: THIS IS SOMETHING THAT NOBODY IS TRAINED FOR,

AND WE'RE NOT SURE HOW TO DEAL WITH IT.

Orwall: THERE'S NOTHING ANYONE CAN DO TO HELP IT.

Carey: YOU HAVE TO KEEP YOUR COOL.

IT'S VERY SIMPLE -- IF YOU DON'T KEEP YOUR COOL,

YOU'RE GONNA DIE.

Narrator: JULY 16, 2013.

ASTRONAUTS LUCA PARMITANO AND CHRIS CASSIDY

EMBARK ON A PLANNED SIX-HOUR SPACEWALK

TO INSTALL VITAL ELECTRICAL COMPONENTS

TO THE EXTERIOR OF THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION.

BUT 44 MINUTES INTO HIS TASK,

PARMITANO GETS A SICKENING SURPRISE.

THAT'S A SURPRISE.

SURPRISE DURING A SPACEWALK -- THAT'S BAD.

Narrator: CASSIDY, WHO IS FILMING THE UNFOLDING DRAMA,

TRIES TO HELP HIS COLLEAGUE LOCATE THE SOURCE OF THE LEAK.

Orwall: CHRIS, LOOKING INTO LUCA'S HELMET,

SEES THAT THE WATER IS INCREASING.

THEIR FIRST THOUGHT IS THAT IT'S PROBABLY THE DRINKING BAG

ON THE INSIDE OF THE SUIT, BUT THEY'RE NOT SURE.

Narrator: PARMITANO IMMEDIATELY EMPTIES HIS DRINKING BAG,

BUT THE WATER LEVEL IN HIS HELMET CONTINUES TO RISE.

AFTER EIGHT MINUTES, THE WATER REACHES HIS EARS.

THIS IS SOMETHING THAT NOBODY IS TRAINED FOR,

AND WE'RE NOT SURE WHERE THE WATER IS COMING FROM,

HOW QUICKLY IT'S ACCUMULATING AND HOW TO DEAL WITH IT.

Narrator: IT'S AN ENTIRELY NEW PROBLEM FOR MISSION CONTROL,

AND IT TAKES THEM TIME TO ASSESS THE SITUATION.

NASA ENGINEERS EXPECT THAT, IN ZERO G, SURFACE TENSION

WILL MAKE THE WATER CLING TO THE INTERIOR OF THE HELMET.

BUT IT DOESN'T.

AND WITH HIS HEAD SEALED IN THE SPACE-SUIT HELMET,

IT IS IMPOSSIBLE FOR LUCA TO WIPE THE WATER AWAY.

MISSION CONTROL HAS NO CHOICE BUT TO ABORT THE SPACE WALK.

AS PARMITANO MAKES HIS WAY BACK TO THE AIRLOCK,

INSTEAD OF CLINGING TO THE HELMET, THE WATER

IS STICKING TO HIS SKIN.

WITH NO GRAVITY TO MAKE IT FALL AWAY,

A SMALL QUANTITY COULD KILL HIM.

AND THE WATER KEEPS COMING, SWELLING INTO A BALL

WHICH STARTS TO ENVELOP HIS ENTIRE HEAD.

Chiao: AT THIS POINT, IT'S BECOME CRITICAL

BECAUSE THE WATER IS STARTING TO OBSTRUCT HIS AIRWAY.

HE COULD TRY TO DRINK IT,

BUT MORE IS GONNA COME TAKE ITS PLACE,

SO HE'S GOT TO CONSTANTLY FIGHT TO KEEP THAT AIRWAY OPEN.

Narrator: THE I.S.S. IS SUDDENLY PLUNGED INTO DARKNESS

AS IT MOVES INTO THE EARTH'S SHADOW.

WITH WATER NOW COVERING HIS EYES,

THE STRICKEN ASTRONAUT HAS TO RELY ON MEMORY

AND TOUCH TO FIND HIS WAY BACK TO THE HATCH.

LUCA HEADS BACK TO THE AIRLOCK USING HIS SAFETY LINE,

WHICH IS ON ONE SIDE OF THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION.

CHRIS CASSIDY USES HIS, WHICH IS ON THE OTHER,

SO LUCA'S ALL ALONE AT THIS POINT IN TIME,

HEADING BACK BLIND.

Carey: YOU HAVE TO KEEP YOUR COOL.

IT'S VERY SIMPLE -- IF YOU DON'T KEEP YOUR COOL,

YOU'RE GONNA DIE.

TAKE YOUR CHOICE.

Narrator: AS PARMITANO STRUGGLES TO ENTER THE HATCH,

THE I.S.S. CREW,

LOOKING ON HELPLESSLY THROUGH THE WINDOW,

KNOW HE POTENTIALLY HAS ONLY SECONDS TO LIVE.

TOWARDS THE END OF THIS CATASTROPHIC SPACE WALK,

THERE'S A LITER AND A HALF OF WATER INSIDE THE HELMET.

IF HE MAKES A SINGLE MISTAKE, HE'S DEAD.

THERE'S NOTHING ANYONE CAN DO TO HELP HIM.

Narrator: BY THE TIME THE AIRLOCK IS SAFE TO OPEN,

PARMITANO HAS BEEN HOLDING HIS BREATH FOR TWO MINUTES.

Chiao: IN A CRITICAL SITUATION LIKE THIS,

YOU'VE GOT TO KEEP A CLEAR HEAD AND DO THINGS IN ORDER

QUICKLY, EFFICIENTLY,

SO YOU CAN GET THE HELMET OFF AND SAVE THE GUY'S LIFE.

Bowersox: YOU HONESTLY HAVE TO BE VERY CAREFUL.

IF YOU DO THINGS TOO FAST,

YOU COULD ACTUALLY CAUSE WORSE DAMAGE.

Narrator: HEAVY-HANDED MOVEMENTS

COULD DISRUPT THE ASTRONAUT'S OWN EFFORTS

TO KEEP THE WATER FROM GETTING INTO HIS MOUTH.

EVEN AS HIS COLLEAGUES RUSH TO REMOVE THE HELMET,

THE LACK OF GRAVITY MEANS

PARMITANO HAS TO FIGHT TO CLEAR HIS AIRWAYS

BEFORE FINALLY TAKING A BREATH.

THIS IS BY FAR THE CLOSEST WE EVER CAME TO LOSING AN ASTRONAUT

DURING A SPACE WALK.

Narrator: THE CLOSE CALL PROMPTS NASA

TO LAUNCH A FULL INVESTIGATION

INTO THE CAUSE OF THE NEAR-FATAL LEAK.

NASA'S FIGURED OUT THAT A CLOGGED LINE

IN THE COOLING SYSTEM CAUSED THIS,

BUT THEY HAVEN'T FIGURED OUT HOW THAT CLOG OCCURRED.

Narrator: AFTER A FIVE-MONTH INVESTIGATION, NASA TECHNICIANS

REVEAL THAT THE BLOCKED LINE

WAS CAUSED BY A LUMP OF INORGANIC PARTICULATE MATERIAL,

BUT HOW THE MATERIAL ENTERED

PARMITANO'S AIRTIGHT SPACE SUIT REMAINS UNEXPLAINED.

Chiao: THE INVESTIGATION HAS BEEN VERY THOROUGH,

BUT THEY STILL HAVEN'T FOUND THE SO-CALLED SMOKING GUN.

[ ALARM BLARING ]

Narrator: NASA'S ASTRONAUTS FACE EXTRAORDINARY DANGERS

AS THEY PUSH ON THE BOUNDARIES OF HUMAN KNOWLEDGE.

SOME OF THE THREATS THAT LURK IN DEEP SPACE

ARE HARDER TO UNDERSTAND BUT NO LESS REAL.

WHEN NASA SCIENTISTS SPOT TWO PLANET-SIZED OBJECTS

APPEARING TO DEFY THE LAWS OF PHYSICS...

ONE PLANET ORBITING OUT OF THE EQUATORIAL PLANE

OF THE SYSTEM IS A BIT WEIRD.

TWO PLANETS IS INSANE.

Narrator: ...THE QUESTION BECOMES, ARE THEY PLANETS AT ALL?

THESE PLANETS ARE DANCING TO THEIR OWN TUNE.

ARE THEY REALLY PLANETS?

ARE THEY ARTIFICIAL?

Narrator: NASA SCIENTISTS MUST BE PREPARED

TO GRAPPLE WITH PHENOMENA

THAT NO HUMAN HAS EVER ENCOUNTERED.

I THINK WE'RE CONSTANTLY SEEING THINGS THAT WE SAY, "WELL,

I HAVEN'T SEEN THAT BEFORE. WHAT'S THAT?

WHAT'S GOING ON THERE?"

Narrator: IN 2012,

THE SPACE AGENCY'S PLANET-HUNTING TEAM

SPOTS SOMETHING THAT BAFFLES EVEN THEM.

NASA'S KEPLER TELESCOPE FINDS TWO PLANETS ORBITING A STAR

IN THE DISTANT CYGNUS CONSTELLATION,

BUT THE DATA FROM THE TELESCOPE SUGGESTS

THEY ARE DOING SOMETHING UNNATURAL.

BOTH PLANETS HAVE BEEN PULLED OUT OF THE EQUATORIAL PLANE.

THE STAR IS SPINNING LIKE THIS,

AND THE PLANETS ARE GOING AROUND LIKE THAT.

IT'S ALL VERY PECULIAR.

Narrator: PLANETS ORBIT AROUND THE EQUATOR OF THEIR STAR

BECAUSE THAT'S WHERE ITS POWERFUL GRAVITATION GRIP

AND ROTATIONAL FORCE COMBINE TO PULL TOGETHER DUST AND GAS,

MAKING NEW WORLDS.

BUT THIS STAR'S TWO COMPANIONS

SEEM TO DEFY THE LAWS OF PHYSICS.

KEPLER-56 IS THE FIRST EXTRASOLAR PLANETARY SYSTEM

DISCOVERED, WHERE THE PLANE OF THE PLANETARY SYSTEM

IS VERY DIFFERENT FROM THE ROTATION AXIS OF THE STAR.

THIS OBSERVATION GOES AGAINST EVERYTHING

WE KNOW ABOUT HOW PLANETARY SYSTEMS ARE FORMED.

Narrator: AND WHATEVER STRANGE FORCE IS AT WORK HERE,

IT'S AFFECTING MORE THAN ONE WORLD.

ONE PLANET ORBITING OUT OF THE EQUATORIAL PLANE

OF THE SYSTEM IS A BIT WEIRD.

TWO PLANETS IS INSANE.

HOW DO YOU EXPLAIN PLANETS THAT ARE ORBITING THE WRONG WAY?

YOU HAVE TO WONDER -- ARE WE LOOKING AT SOMETHING ELSE

BESIDES CONVENTIONAL PLANETS?

ARE THEY REALLY PLANETS?

ARE THEY ARTIFICIAL?

Narrator: IF THESE BODIES WERE ARTIFICIAL,

THEY'D HAVE TO BE BIGGER EVEN THAN THE FEARSOME DEATH STARS

OF "STAR WARS."

THE ENGINEERING INVOLVED WOULD BE FAR BEYOND HUMAN TECHNOLOGY,

BUT PLANETARY ORBITS SUCH AS THESE DO NOT HAPPEN

WHEN PLANETS FORM NATURALLY.

SOMETHING VERY STRANGE MUST HAVE HAPPENED TO THESE TWO PLANETS

IN ORDER TO HAVE THEM BOTH MISALIGNED THE SAME AMOUNT

FROM THE EQUATORIAL PLANE.

THAT'S THE HARD PART TO EXPLAIN.

YOU'D NEED SOMETHING WITH SOME UNHOLY POWER

TO SHIFT IT OUT OF AN EQUATORIAL ORBIT.

THE QUESTION IS, WHAT COULD CREATE SUCH A FORCE?

Narrator: AS AN ALTERNATIVE TO THE DEATH STAR HYPOTHESIS,

PLANETARY SCIENTISTS HAVE SUMMONED AN INVISIBLE PLANET.

WE SPECULATED THAT THERE WAS THIS ADDITIONAL BODY

FURTHER OUT THAT WAS MUCH LARGER,

BUT WE DON'T KNOW THAT IT IS THERE YET.

WE DON'T KNOW WHAT IT IS OR HOW FAR AWAY IT IS,

JUST THAT WE HAVE A HINT

THAT THIS EXTRA BODY FURTHER OUT MIGHT BE TRUE.

Narrator: THIS INVISIBLE PLANET,

LABELED KEPLER-56D,

WOULD HAVE TO BE HUGE,

THREE TO FOUR TIMES THE MASS OF JUPITER...

...CAPABLE OF EXERTING SUCH AN IMMENSE GRAVITATIONAL PULL

THAT IT COULD COMPETE WITH THE GRAVITY OF ITS OWN STAR.

WHATEVER THE TWO ROGUE OBJECTS ARE, THEY ARE DOOMED.

IN 130 MILLION YEARS,

THE STAR WILL EXPAND, CONSUMING THEM BOTH.

THE DARK WORLD WE CALL 56D WILL BE THE ONLY SURVIVOR

OF THE APOCALYPSE.

NOT ALL OF NASA'S MYSTERIES

ARE FOUND IN THE DISTANT REACHES OF THE GALAXY.

SOME OF THE STRANGEST CASES

FACED BY THE SPACE AGENCY'S SCIENTISTS

REVEAL THEMSELVES MUCH CLOSER TO HOME.

UP NEXT, A YOUNG PILOT REPORTS STRANGE LIGHTS IN THE SKY.

JUST AS HE WAS BREAKING THE COAST OF AUSTRALIA,

HE ASKED THE QUESTION, "IS THERE AN AIRPLANE ABOVE ME?"

Valentich: 9-8-9.

Narrator: MOMENTS LATER, HE DISAPPEARS.

VALENTICH: Taxi. Hotel. Bravo.

Narrator: AN AIR-TRAFFIC CONTROLLER

RECEIVES A MYSTERIOUS TRANSMISSION.

THE PILOT WAS TALKING TO THE AIR-TRAFFIC CONTROLLER

ABOUT SOMETHING HOVERING IN THE SKY NEAR HIS PLANE.

Narrator: SUDDENLY, THE AIRCRAFT VANISHES.

THIS IS SCARY STUFF. PEOPLE DON'T JUST DISAPPEAR.

Narrator: THE INCIDENT IS SO STRANGE,

IT DRAWS THE ATTENTION OF A SENIOR NASA SCIENTIST.

OCTOBER 21, 1978.

AT 7:06 P.M.,

THE AIR-TRAFFIC CONTROL CENTER IN MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA,

RECEIVES A STRANGE TRANSMISSION

FROM TRAINEE PILOT FREDERICK VALENTICH.

30 MINUTES INTO THE FLIGHT, ALL HELL BREAKS LOOSE.

JUST AS HE WAS BREAKING THE COAST OF AUSTRALIA,

HE ASKED THE QUESTION, "IS THERE AN AIRPLANE ABOVE ME?"

It's hovering, and it's not an aircraft.

Narrator: WHEN AIR-TRAFFIC CONTROLLER STEVE ROBEY CHECKS,

HE FINDS NO OTHER FLIGHTS

THAT ARE SCHEDULED OVER BASS STRAIT AT THAT TIME.

VALENTICH MAINTAINS RADIO CONTACT,

AND HIS REPORTS SOON BECOME EVEN STRANGER.

FREDERICK VALENTICH SAID THAT THERE WAS SOMETHING

HOVERING IN THE SKY NEAR HIS AIRCRAFT.

AND HE AT ONE POINT SAID IT WAS METALLIC

AND VERY, VERY LARGE.

THERE WERE FOUR BRIGHT, INTENSE LIGHTS,

LIKE ON AN AIRCRAFT,

AND THERE SHOULDN'T HAVE BEEN ANYTHING THERE.

Narrator: THESE WORDS ARE THE LAST

ANYONE HEARS FROM FREDDY VALENTICH,

BUT THE TRANSMISSION FROM THE DOOMED PLANE CONTINUES.

THE NOISE IS SORT OF SCRATCHY.

IT SORT OF SOUNDS METALLIC ON THE TRANSMISSION.

[ METALLIC SCRATCHING ]

Pope: THIS IS 17 SECONDS OF NOISE

UNLIKE ANYTHING THAT ANY AIR-TRAFFIC CONTROLLER

HAS HEARD BEFORE.

Narrator: AT THE TIME OF THE INVESTIGATION,

THERE ARE NO WITNESSES TO THE FATE OF VALENTICH

OR HIS AIRCRAFT.

NEITHER VALENTICH

NOR HIS AIRPLANE WERE EVER FOUND.

Narrator: THE AUSTRALIAN GOVERNMENT LAUNCHES AN INVESTIGATION.

WHEN IT HITS A DEAD END, THE MISSING PILOT'S FAMILY

TURNS TO A NASA RESEARCH SCIENTIST FOR HELP.

Rutkowski: RICHARD HAINES IS THE REAL DEAL.

HE'S A RESEARCH SCIENTIST WHO'S SPENT MANY YEARS

STUDYING CASES OF UFO REPORTS.

Narrator: HAINES CALLS THE INCIDENT THE MELBOURNE EPISODE

AND JUGGLES THE INVESTIGATION

ALONGSIDE HIS RESEARCH DUTIES AT NASA.

THERE REALLY IS NO ONE MORE CAPABLE

FOR INVESTIGATING THE VALENTICH CASE.

Narrator: IN HIS QUEST FOR ANSWERS,

HAINES CHASES DOWN EVERY LEAD.

Pope: HE'S INTERVIEWING EVERYONE CONNECTED WITH THAT CASE,

LOOKING AT AIRCRAFT MAINTENANCE RECORDS,

ANYTHING THAT COULD GIVE A CLUE

AS TO WHAT HAPPENED TO THAT PLANE.

Narrator: AFTER FOUR MONTHS OF PAINSTAKING RESEARCH,

HAINES UNCOVERS A LEAD

THE OFFICIAL GOVERNMENT INVESTIGATION

EITHER NEVER FOUND OR NEVER FOLLOWED UP --

A UNIQUE PHOTOGRAPH CAPTURING AN UNKNOWN AERIAL ANOMALY.

ABOUT THE SAME TIME, 60 MILES AWAY ON THE AUSTRALIAN COAST,

A PHOTOGRAPHER IS TAKING A PHOTOGRAPH OF THE SUNSET.

THE TIME COINCIDENCE IS UNCANNY,

AND THE IMAGE THAT THE PHOTOGRAPHER CAPTURES

APPEARS TO SHOW AN UNIDENTIFIABLE OBJECT

FLOATING ABOVE THE OCEAN IN MIDAIR.

Narrator: A RIGOROUS INVESTIGATOR,

HAINES QUESTIONS THE PHOTOGRAPH'S AUTHENTICITY,

BUT THE IMAGE DOES OPEN UP POTENTIAL NEW AVENUES

OF INVESTIGATION.

WITH THIS OBJECT PHOTOGRAPHED SO NEAR TO THE TIME

OF THE VALENTICH SIGHTING,

IT'S TEMPTING TO SAY THAT THE TWO ARE DEFINITELY RELATED.

Narrator: HAINES FOCUSES ON IDENTIFYING THE WEIRD NOISE

RECORDED IN VALENTICH'S FINAL TRANSMISSION.

[ METAL SCRATCHING ]

Pope: THE SOUND IS THE ONLY PIECE OF CONCRETE EVIDENCE

THAT MAKES THIS DIFFERENT FROM ANY OTHER LIGHT AIRCRAFT FLIGHT.

Narrator: IN 1987, THE NASA INVESTIGATOR

PUTS FORWARD AN ASTONISHING HYPOTHESIS.

THE METALLIC SOUNDS

MIGHT POSSIBLY BE THE CONTACT OF A DISK, LET'S SAY,

OR A VEHICLE OF SOME KIND ON HIS AIRPLANE.

IT'S RATHER FAR-FETCHED,

BUT WE HAVE TO CONSIDER IT AS A POSSIBILITY

THAT HE WAS ABDUCTED BY SOME RACE OR SPECIES

THAT'S CAPABLE OF DOING THIS SORT OF A THING.

FOR SOMEONE OF HAINES' STATURE

TO COME OUT WITH THAT IS TOTALLY UNPRECEDENTED.

Narrator: BUT HAINES AND SUBSEQUENT INVESTIGATORS

ALSO HAVE TO CONSIDER OTHER EXPLANATIONS.

FORMER U.S. AIR FORCE PILOT AND ASTRONOMER JAMES McGAHA

HAS A LESS CONTROVERSIAL BUT STILL UNPROVEN THEORY.

IT'S FAIRLY APPARENT THAT THE FOUR LIGHTS

THAT CAUGHT HIS ATTENTION WERE MERCURY, VENUS,

MARS AND THE BRIGHT STAR.

IT SO HAPPENS THAT VENUS THAT PARTICULAR NIGHT

IS THE BRIGHTEST IT EVER GETS.

AND HE STARTED LOOKING AT THAT AND PROBABLY INADVERTENTLY

STARTED THE AIRPLANE INTO A SLOW TURN.

AND AS THIS TURN BUILDS UP,

IT'LL GET TIGHTER AND FASTER AND FASTER.

YOU LOSE LIFT.

THE AIRCRAFT STARTS DESCENDING.

AND PRETTY SOON, THE AIRCRAFT IS OUT OF CONTROL.

BUT HE'S KEYED THE MIKE. WHAT IS THE SOUND?

IS IT THE AIRCRAFT ACTUALLY BREAKING UP FROM G-FORCES

FROM THE GRAVEYARD SPIN?

YOU KNOW, WE REALLY DON'T KNOW.

Narrator: HAINES' INVESTIGATION

CONCLUDES THAT VALENTICH PROBABLY CRASHED INTO THE SEA.

BUT TO THIS DAY, HE REFUSES TO RULE OUT

THE POSSIBILITY OF EXTRATERRESTRIAL INVOLVEMENT.

AND WITHOUT FURTHER EVIDENCE, THE CASE REMAINS OPEN.

HAINES IS NOT THE ONLY SCIENTIST

TO ENTERTAIN THE IDEA THAT WE ARE NOT ALONE.

UP NEXT, FOR DECADES,

MANKIND BELIEVED

THAT DARK SHAPES CRISS-CROSSING THE PLANET MARS

WERE SIGNS OF ADVANCED CIVILIZATION.

ASTRONOMERS EVEN SPECULATED

THAT IT COULD BE A MARTIAN CIVILIZATION.

Narrator: BUT A NASA MISSION DISCOVERS THAT THE TRUTH IS EVEN STRANGER.

Baines: PERCIVAL LOWELL WAS RIGHT.

THERE ARE CHANNELS IN THE SURFACE OF MARS

CARVED TO TRANSPORT WATER FROM ONE PLACE TO ANOTHER.

Narrator: A PIONEERING ASTRONOMER SEES SIGNS OF INTELLIGENT LIFE

ON THE SURFACE OF THE RED PLANET.

THAT'S A PRETTY EXCITING THING, YOU KNOW?

IT'S A BIG CANAL.

THAT HAD TO BE A BIG CIVILIZATION

TO DO SOMETHING LIKE THAT.

Narrator: MORE THAN A CENTURY LATER,

A NASA PROBE FINDS EVIDENCE OF WATER CHANNELS ON MARS.

WE HAVE EVIDENCE TODAY THAT WATER'S STILL PERCOLATING

OUT OF THE PLANET.

Bell: WE SEE FROM THESE ORBITAL IMAGES NOW THESE CHANNELS,

AND THEY SEEM VERY FRESH.

Narrator: WHAT ARE THE CANALS OF MARS?

TODAY, NASA'S CUTTING-EDGE SPACECRAFT

ALLOW US TO SEE OTHER WORLDS AND EVEN DISTANT STARS.

THE WHITE HEAT OF TECHNOLOGICAL PROGRESS

HAS EVEN BURNED AWAY MANY ANCIENT SUPERSTITIONS.

BUT SOME BELIEFS ARE HARDER TO DISMISS.

ON SEPTEMBER 5, 1877,

THE PLANET MARS MAKES ONE OF ITS CLOSEST APPROACHES TO EARTH

SINCE THE AGE OF THE NEANDERTHALS.

AN ITALIAN ASTRONOMER, GIOVANNI SCHIAPARELLI,

SEIZES THE OPPORTUNITY TO GET A CLOSE LOOK AT THE RED PLANET.

Bell: GIOVANNI SCHIAPARELLI

WAS A VERY METICULOUS AND RIGOROUS CHRONICLER

OF WHAT HE SAW THROUGH HIS TELESCOPES.

AND MARS WAS A SUBJECT OF FASCINATION TO HIM.

Narrator: DURING HIS OBSERVATIONS,

SCHIAPARELLI SEES SOMETHING EXTRAORDINARY

ON THE SURFACE OF MARS.

HE SAW THESE LINES OF THE SURFACE,

WHICH HE CALLED CANALS.

Narrator: THE DISCOVERY OF WHAT LOOKS LIKE A NETWORK OF CANALS

ACROSS THE RED PLANET INFLUENCES SOME OF THE MAJOR PLAYERS

IN THE AMERICAN SCIENTIFIC COMMUNITY.

Pournelle: PERCIVAL LOWELL WAS A FOREMOST AMERICAN ASTRONOMER,

AND HE DREW WHAT HE SAW IN THE PATTERNS ON MARS.

AND HE SAW CANALS.

WITH THE NOTION

THAT MARS MIGHT EVEN HAVE A NETWORK OF CANALS.

ASTRONOMERS EVEN SPECULATED

THAT THERE COULD BE A MARTIAN CIVILIZATION.

LOWELL REALLY POPULARIZED THE IDEA

THAT THERE WAS A DYING CIVILIZATION ON MARS,

AND THEY HAD TO BUILD CANALS

TO TRANSPORT POLAR WATER TO THE EQUATOR AND SO FORTH.

AND HE MADE A GREAT STORY OUT OF IT ALL.

Shostak: MARTIANS ARE EVERYBODY'S FAVORITE ALIEN,

AND THEY HAVE BEEN FOR HUNDREDS OF YEARS.

AND IN PARTICULAR, A CENTURY AGO,

PEOPLE ARE TALKING ABOUT THE CANALS ON MARS.

WELL, THE CANALS ON MARS

WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN MADE BY MICROBES.

Narrator: THE IDEA OF A MARTIAN CIVILIZATION

BASED AROUND A NETWORK OF CANALS

BECOMES PART OF MAINSTREAM POP CULTURE IN THE 20th CENTURY.

EDGAR RICE BURROUGHS IS FAMOUS FOR CREATING TARZAN,

BUT HIS MARTIAN ADVENTURE STORIES ARE ALSO HUGE

AND STILL WITH US.

THE 2012 DISNEY MOVIE "JOHN CARTER"

WAS BASED ON HIS STORIES.

AND FEW PEOPLE REALIZED

THE FOURTH MOST EXPENSIVE MOVIE OF ALL TIME

WAS INSPIRED BY 19th-CENTURY ASTRONOMY.

THE IDEA THAT THERE COULD BE AN ADVANCED CIVILIZATION THERE

STRUGGLING AGAINST THEIR DYING PLANET, YOU KNOW,

IT'S A DRAMA PLAYED OUT ON ANOTHER PLANET.

IT HELPS MAKE THIS PLACE PART OF -- OF HUMAN CULTURE,

PART OF THE HUMAN STORY.

Pournelle: FOR A LONG TIME,

MOST OF THE EARTH BELIEVED THAT THERE WERE MARTIANS.

THEN, WE SENT THE SATELLITES, THE PROBES OUT TO MARS.

AND WE GOT CLOSE-UP PICTURES OF MARS.

NO CANALS. NO WATER.

NO ATMOSPHERE.

Shostak: IT'S A VERY HARSH ENVIRONMENT,

MINUS 50 DEGREES ON A WARM SUMMER DAY,

VERY LITTLE AIR AND ALL THE WRONG KIND OF AIR.

I MEAN, YOU KNOW, THE IDEA THAT THERE'S SORT OF MARTIANS

WALKING AROUND HAVING A GOOD AFTERNOON,

UH, YOU KNOW, THAT DOESN'T PLAY VERY WELL.

Narrator: THE CHANNELS LOWELL OBSERVED

ARE NOT SIGNS OF MARTIAN CIVILIZATION.

NASA'S SURVEY MISSIONS PROVIDE AN ALTERNATIVE EXPLANATION

FOR WHAT HE SAW THROUGH HIS PRIMITIVE TELESCOPE.

D'Antonio: SCHIAPARELLI AND LOWELL

WERE LOOKING AT MARS FROM THE EARTH

THROUGH A TURBULENT ATMOSPHERE

AND WITH TELESCOPES THAT HAD GLASS THAT WAS INFERIOR.

Narrator: DEFOCUSING A MODERN MARS IMAGE SIMULATES

WHAT YOU WOULD SEE THROUGH A 19th-CENTURY TELESCOPE.

DARK AREAS OF THE PLANET MORPH INTO LINES

AND WHAT LOOKS LIKE NETWORKS OF INTERCONNECTED WATERWAYS.

D'Antonio: THIS IS WHAT SCHIAPARELLI SAW AS CANALI.

BUT IN REALITY,

THE SHAPES ARE CHARACTERISTIC OF THE MARTIAN TOPOGRAPHY.

McEwen: THE HUMAN BRAIN TENDS TO CONVINCE US

THAT WE SEE PATTERNS WHEN MAYBE THEY AREN'T THERE.

Narrator: THE PATTERNS MAY BE AN ILLUSION,

BUT THE CRYSTAL-CLEAR IMAGES FROM NASA'S RECENT MARS MISSIONS

DO SUGGEST THERE ONCE WAS WATER ON MARS.

IT WAS THE BIGGEST CANYON IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM.

IT'S WHAT THE GRAND CANYON WOULD LIKE TO BE IF IT EVER GROWS UP.

IT'S PRETTY GOOD PROOF, AMONG OTHER THINGS,

THAT THERE WAS WATER ON MARS.

MAYBE THERE WERE CANALS 2 MILLION YEARS AGO,

BUT THEY'RE NOT ANYMORE, I'M SORRY TO SAY.

Narrator: FROM THE 1960s,

MOST SCIENTISTS AGREED THAT MARS IS ALMOST COMPLETELY DRY.

BUT IN 2011,

PROFESSOR ALFRED McEWEN SPOTS SOMETHING ASTONISHING IN IMAGES

FROM NASA'S MARS RECONNAISSANCE ORBITER.

WE SEE THESE DARK LINES ON STEEP SLOPES

THAT APPEAR AND GROW SLOWLY OR INCREMENTALLY DOWN THE SLOPE

DURING THE WARMEST SEASON.

WHAT'S EXCITING ABOUT THESE LINES

IS THAT, UH, WE CAN EXPLAIN THIS AS ACTUAL LIQUID WATER TODAY,

SLOWLY SEEPING DOWN THESE SLOPES.

Baines: WE'VE GOT GULLIES

THAT ARE COMING OUT OF THE SIDE OF CRATERS

WITH LITTLE BITS OF WATER, LIKE LITTLE WATERFALLS,

MAYBE ONLY LASTING A HALF AN HOUR OR SO.

BUT WE HAVE EVIDENCE TODAY

THAT WATER'S STILL PERCOLATING OUT OF THE PLANET.

WE FOUND OUT THAT, IN A SENSE, PERCIVAL LOWELL WAS RIGHT.

THERE ARE CHANNELS IN THE SURFACE OF MARS

CARVED TO TRANSPORT WATER FROM ONE PLACE TO ANOTHER.

Narrator: BUT DOES WATER ALSO MEAN LIFE?

AT 10:30 A.M. ON THE 16th OF DECEMBER, 2014,

NASA MADE AN ASTONISHING ANNOUNCEMENT.

WE NOW HAVE FULL CONFIDENCE THAT THERE IS METHANE

OCCASIONALLY PRESENT IN THE ATMOSPHERE OF MARS

AND THAT THERE ARE ORGANICS PRESERVED IN ANCIENT ROCKS

ON MARS IN CERTAIN PLACES,

CONSISTENT WITH THE FORMER PRESENCE OF LIFE.

IT'S NOT AN ARGUMENT

THAT WE HAVE FOUND EVIDENCE OF LIFE ON MARS.

BUT IT IS ONE OF THE FEW HYPOTHESES

THAT WE CAN PROPOSE IN THE FUTURE.

Narrator: FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER,

NASA HAS OFFICIALLY CONCEDED

THAT THERE MAY HAVE BEEN LIFE ON MARS.

NASA'S NEXT MARS ROVER IS NOT SCHEDULED TO LAUNCH UNTIL 2020.

FOR NOW, AT LEAST,

THE IDEA OF LIFE IN MARTIAN CANALS WILL REMAIN FICTION.

STILL TO COME, FAR BEYOND MARS,

AN ASTEROID IS BEHAVING STRANGELY.

Garvie: IT SEEMS TO HAVE SEVERAL COMETARY TAILS.

EVERY TIME THEY LOOK AT IT, IT LOOKS DIFFERENT.

Narrator: COULD THERE BE UNKNOWN FORCES AT WORK?

Oluseyi: AN ASTEROID IS PRETTY MUCH A PERFECT READY-MADE SHELL

FOR A SPACECRAFT.

THIS THING IS IN A CATEGORY BY ITSELF.

Narrator: A MYSTERIOUS ASTEROID IS BEHAVING STRANGELY.

WHAT ON EARTH IS HAPPENING HERE?

THIS IS SOMETHING SO UNUSUAL.

Narrator: COULD A SPACE ROCK BE UNDER INTELLIGENT CONTROL?

IF THIS IS AN ASTEROID,

IT'S NOT LIKE ANY OTHER ASTEROID WE'VE EVER SEEN.

Narrator: SOME SCIENTISTS

REALLY BELIEVE AN ASTEROID COULD BE TRANSFORMED INTO A SHIP.

AN ASTEROID IS PRETTY MUCH A PERFECT READY-MADE SHELL

FOR A SPACECRAFT.

HUMANS, WE DON'T BUILD THINGS THAT BIG.

Narrator: AUGUST 2013, HAWAII.

ASTRONOMERS AT THE PAN-STARRS SURVEY TELESCOPE

SPOT AN INTRIGUING OBJECT BETWEEN JUPITER AND MARS.

IT DEFIES INITIAL ATTEMPTS AT IDENTIFICATION,

BUT THEY NAME IT ASTEROID P5.

WHAT'S PARTICULARLY UNUSUAL ABOUT THIS ASTEROID

IS THAT IT SEEMS TO HAVE SEVERAL COMETARY TAILS.

ASTRONOMERS ARE PERPLEXED BY WHAT THEY SEE.

Narrator: A MONTH LATER, ASTRONOMERS TRACK THE OBJECT

USING NASA'S SUPER-POWERFUL HUBBLE TELESCOPE.

WHAT THEY SEE BLOWS THEIR MINDS.

NOT ONLY ARE THERE JUST A FEW TAILS,

THERE ARE ACTUALLY SIX DISTINCT TAILS

EMANATING FROM THE NUCLEUS OF THE ASTEROID.

EVERY TIME THEY LOOK AT IT, IT LOOKS DIFFERENT.

ONE TAIL ON AN ASTEROID IS UNUSUAL.

SIX TAILS IS COMPLETELY UNHEARD OF.

THESE TAILS KEEP APPEARING, DISAPPEARING,

SHIFTING DIRECTION.

SOMETHING ELSE IS GOING ON HERE.

Narrator: ASTEROIDS SHOULDN'T HAVE A TAIL,

LET ALONE SIX OF THEM.

AS SCIENTISTS TRY TO SOLVE THE MYSTERY, SPECULATION MOUNTS.

ONE THEORY IS THAT THE TAILS

MIGHT BE THE DEBRIS CAUSED BY A SPACE COLLISION,

BUT THE DATA DOESN'T ADD UP.

Oluseyi: COLLISION DOESN'T MAKE ANY SENSE IN THIS PARTICULAR SITUATION

AS COLLISION WON'T CREATE SIX TAILS.

Garvie: WE'RE NOT LOOKING AT A COLLISION HERE

AS THAT WOULD BE A ONE-OFF EVENT.

HERE, WE SEE TAILS EVOLVING OVER TIME,

OVER THE COURSE OF SEVERAL MONTHS,

SO A DIFFERENT MECHANISM IS INVOLVED.

Narrator: BUT IF THEY'RE NOT CAUSED BY A COLLISION,

WHAT COULD EXPLAIN AN ASTEROID WITH SIX TAILS?

TO SOME, THESE LOOK LIKE TRACES OF ATTITUDE-CONTROL THRUSTERS.

ATTITUDE JETS ARE PULSES OF THRUST

THAT ARE USED TO CONTROL THE MOTION OF A SPACECRAFT.

Narrator: ALTHOUGH THE IDEA COMES FROM SCIENCE FICTION,

IT MAKES GOOD SCIENTIFIC SENSE.

AN ASTEROID IS PRETTY MUCH A PERFECT READY-MADE SHELL

FOR A SPACECRAFT.

AERODYNAMICS DON'T MATTER

WHEN YOU'RE TRAVELING THROUGH THE VACUUM OF SPACE,

AND THE ROCK PROVIDES AN EXCELLENT STRUCTURE

AND EXCELLENT PROTECTION AGAINST RADIATION.

Garvie: ONE OF THE DIFFICULTIES OF SPACE TRAVEL

IS GALACTIC COSMIC RAYS

THAT CAN ACTUALLY KILL YOU, FOR INSTANCE.

SO THE ADVANTAGES OF BEING JUST A FEW FOOT

BELOW AN ASTEROID SURFACE IS THAT YOU'RE ACTUALLY SHIELDED

FROM THESE HIGH-ENERGY GALACTIC COSMIC RAYS.

Narrator: BUT ASTRONOMERS THINK A NATURAL EXPLANATION

FOR THE STRANGE PHENOMENON IS MORE LIKELY.

Kavelaars: IT LOOKS LIKE WHAT WE'RE SEEING WITH P5 IS,

IT'S AN OBJECT THAT WAS SPUN UP

BY THIS EFFECT OF THE SUN'S RADIATION,

AND TO THE POINT WHERE IT WAS SPINNING SO FAST

THAT MATERIAL STARTED TO LEAVE THE SURFACE.

SO WHEN YOU LOOK AT IT ONE DAY,

ITS TAIL ORIENTATION IS ONE DIRECTION.

YOU LOOK AT IT ANOTHER DAY,

WELL, THE THING'S BEEN SPINNING AROUND MULTIPLE TIMES

SINCE THE LAST TIME YOU LOOKED.

AND NOW, STUFF'S COMING OFF OF IT IN A DIFFERENT WAY.

SO IT'S REALLY A SPINNING PROBLEM, NOT A STEERING PROBLEM.

SOME ASTEROIDS MAY JUST FALL APART AT THESE HIGH SPIN RATES,

BUT THIS ONE IS SO TOUGH AND SO ROCKY AND SO HARD

THAT IT ACTUALLY JUST STAYS TOGETHER.

THE UNSTABLE MATERIAL

AVALANCHES DOWN FROM THE PEAKS INTO THE TROUGHS

AND IS EJECTED INTO SPACE AS A FINE STREAM OF MATERIAL

THAT LOOKS LIKE A TAIL.

Narrator: EVEN IF P5 IS JUST AN ASTEROID,

THE IDEA OF CONVERTING SPACE ROCKS INTO SPACECRAFT

IS NOT AS FAR-FETCHED AS IT SOUNDS.

NASA HAS PLANS TO TURN THIS SCIENCE FICTION INTO FACT

SOME TIME AFTER 2020.

Kavelaars: NASA WOULD LIKE TO TAKE ASTEROIDS

OUT OF THEIR CURRENT ORBITS

AND PUT THEM INTO SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT ORBITS

MORE USEFUL FOR HUMAN EXPLORATION.

ASTEROIDS WOULD MAKE GREAT SPACE VEHICLES.

YOU JUST LAND ON THEM, AND YOU GO WHERE THEY'RE GOING.

THIS IS IN FACT PART OF HUMAN EXPLORATION OF SPACE.

THIS IS OUR PLAN, IS TO LAND ON ASTEROIDS

AND HAVE THEM TAKE US WHERE THEY'RE GOING.

Narrator: WITHIN THE ARCHIVES OF NASA'S UNEXPLAINED FILES,

MOST STRANGE SIGHTINGS

ARE ONE-OFF EVENTS THAT LEAVE NO TRACE BEHIND.

UP NEXT, NASA SCIENTISTS INVESTIGATING A COLD CASE

DISCOVER NEW EVIDENCE HUNDREDS OF YEARS AFTER THE APPEARANCE

OF A MYSTERIOUS FIREBALL ON THE MOON.

"JACKPOT. WE FOUND IT."

Capps: WHEN YOU HEAR SOMETHING LIKE THAT, YOUR FIRST THOUGHT

IS GOING TO BE, "SOME SORT OF DEVASTATING WEAPON."

Narrator: TWO EYEWITNESSES HUNDREDS OF YEARS APART

REPORT SEEING SOMETHING INEXPLICABLE IN THE NIGHT SKY.

THEY WERE DESCRIBING SOMETHING VERY SIMILAR --

A HUGE FIREBALL ON THE SURFACE OF THE MOON.

Narrator: BUT OUR MOON IS SUPPOSED TO BE GEOLOGICALLY DEAD.

NO KNOWN FORCE COULD PRODUCE SUCH A PHENOMENON.

EVERY DAY, NASA'S SPACECRAFT AND TELESCOPES

ACCUMULATE NEW DATA ABOUT DISTANT PLANETS AND STAR SYSTEMS

AT AN INCREDIBLE RATE.

BUT SOME OF THE MOST COMPELLING MYSTERIES

COME FROM TOTALLY UNEXPECTED SOURCES.

NOVEMBER 15, 1953.

PHYSICIAN AND AMATEUR ASTRONOMER DR. LEON STUART

PREPARES TO CONDUCT METICULOUS OBSERVATIONS

OF THE LUNAR SURFACE.

AS THE WINTER NIGHT CLOSES IN,

HE SPOTS SOMETHING STRANGE.

HE SAW A TINY SPECK

WHICH REPRESENTED A HUGE FIREBALL

ON THE SURFACE OF THE MOON.

Narrator: STUART IMMEDIATELY GRABS A CAMERA

AND TAKES AN IMAGE OF THE WEIRD EVENT.

THE STUART PHOTOGRAPH SHOWS A BRIGHT SPOT ON THE FACE

OF THE -- OF THE MOON.

IT'S A BIT OF A PUZZLE WHAT IT COULD BE.

Narrator: STUART BELIEVES HE HAS WITNESSED

A MASSIVE OBJECT EXPLODE ON THE MOON'S SURFACE.

HE PUBLISHES AN ACCOUNT OF HIS SIGHTING,

BUT DESPITE THE SUPPORTING PHOTOGRAPHIC EVIDENCE,

HE'S DISMISSED BY THE SCIENTIFIC COMMUNITY.

FOR YEARS, STUART'S OBSERVATIONS WERE IGNORED,

OR WORSE, EVEN RIDICULED.

Narrator: THE INCIDENT BECOMES KNOWN AS THE STUART EVENT,

AND IT HAS BAFFLED INVESTIGATORS FOR OVER HALF A CENTURY.

FOR SOME ASTRONOMERS,

IT IS EERILY REMINISCENT OF THE ACCOUNT OF AN EVENT IN 1178

BY AN ENGLISH MONK NAMED GERVASE OF CANTERBURY.

Genge: FIVE MONKS DESCRIBED SEEING THE MOON

BEING SPLIT IN TWO BY A FIERY SPEAR

THAT MADE THE ENTIRE MOON SHAKE.

Gervase: "NOW, THERE WAS A BRIGHT NEW MOON,

AS WAS USUAL IN THAT PHASE,

ITS HORNS TILTED TOWARDS THE EAST.

SUDDENLY, THE UPPER HORN SPLIT INTO TWO,

AND FROM THIS FISSURE CAME A FLAMING TORCH

SPEWING OUT OVER A CONSIDERABLE DISTANCE FIRE,

HOT COALS AND SPARKS."

SO THEY WERE DESCRIBING SOMETHING VERY SIMILAR TO THE --

THE STUART EVENT BUT ON AN EVEN LARGER SCALE.

AND GERVASE GIVES SUCH A DETAILED ACCOUNT

THAT IT'S HIGHLY BELIEVABLE.

Narrator: A FIERY SPEAR STRIKING FROM THE SKY.

Capps: WHEN YOU HEAR OF SOMETHING LIKE THAT,

YOUR FIRST THOUGHT IS GOING TO BE,

"SOME SORT OF DEVASTATING WEAPON."

Narrator: BUT OTHERS LOOK FOR A NATURAL PHENOMENON

TO EXPLAIN THE SIGHTINGS.

ONE THEORY WAS ACTUALLY THAT THIS WAS JUST A METEOR

COMING RIGHT AT YOU.

AND IN FACT, THAT'S WHAT METEORS LOOK LIKE,

A LITTLE -- WHOOSH -- SPLASH OF LIGHT

IF THEY'RE COMING RIGHT AT YOU.

THE PROBLEM WITH THAT THEORY, HOWEVER,

IS THAT METEORS DON'T LAST SEVERAL SECONDS

LIKE STUART'S SIGHTING DID.

Narrator: A METEOR FLASH CANNOT EXPLAIN THE VAST LUNAR EXPLOSION

DESCRIBED IN GERVASE'S ACCOUNT.

NASA TAKES THE SIGHTINGS SO SERIOUSLY THAT, IN 2002,

A TEAM FROM THE JET PROPULSION LABORATORY

ATTEMPTS TO ANALYZE STUART'S PHOTO

AND UNRAVEL THE MYSTERY.

Genge: THEY START WITH THE ASSUMPTION

THAT THIS IS AN ASTEROID IMPACT.

AND THEN, THEY DO WHAT SCIENTISTS ALWAYS DO.

THEN, THEY LOOK FOR EVIDENCE.

THE JPL TEAM LOOKED AT STUART'S PHOTO,

AND THEY TRIED TO WORK OUT THE IMPACT ENERGY

REQUIRED TO MAKE AN EXPLOSION LIKE ON HIS PHOTO.

AND THEY TRIED TO WORK ON, IN ADDITION,

THE SIZE OF THE CRATER

THAT MIGHT BE GENERATED BY SUCH AN IMPACT.

Narrator: THE NASA TEAM BEGINS SEARCHING FOR THIS CRATER

USING 600,000 HIGH-RESOLUTION PHOTOS

OF THE MOON'S SURFACE CAPTURED BY THE CLEMENTINE SPACECRAFT

IN 1994.

BY CROSS-REFERENCING THESE IMAGES

WITH THE LIKELY SIZE OF THE CRATER,

THEY LOCATE A POSSIBLE CANDIDATE.

WHEN THE CLEMENTINE LUNAR ORBITER

PASSED OVER THE PROBABLE LOCATION OF THE IMPACT,

THEY DISCOVERED THAT THERE WAS A FRESH CRATER THERE,

AND IT WAS, "JACKPOT. WE FOUND IT."

Narrator: THE MOON'S SURFACE

IS SCARRED WITH COUNTLESS CRATERS,

SOME DATING BACK BILLIONS OF YEARS.

BUT CLOSER ANALYSIS OF THE CRATER

IN THE CLEMENTINE IMAGE

DATES IT TO AROUND THE TIME OF STUART'S SIGHTING.

WE KNOW IT'S FRESH BECAUSE OF THE DEEP BLUE COLOR

OF THE DEBRIS THAT HAD BEEN EJECTED FROM THE CRATER.

AND IT'S EXACTLY WHERE YOU WOULD EXPECT THE CRATERS TO BE

FROM STUART'S OBSERVATIONS.

Narrator: NASA'S DATA SUGGESTS THAT STUART

WITNESSED A 65-FOOT-WIDE ASTEROID SMASHING INTO THE MOON

AT ALMOST 25,000 MILES PER HOUR.

THE RESULTING BLAST WAS 35 TIMES MORE POWERFUL

THAN THE NUCLEAR EXPLOSION OVER HIROSHIMA.

WHEN IT HITS THE MOON, IT COMES TO A DEAD STOP,

AND ALL OF THAT KINETIC ENERGY GETS CONVERTED TO HEAT.

IT'LL HEAT UP THE SURFACE SO MUCH THAT IT'LL GLOW WHITE.

THE FLASH WOULD BE VISIBLE TO SOMEBODY FROM THE EARTH.

Narrator: THE NASA INVESTIGATION

SEEMS TO VINDICATE DR. STUART'S ORIGINAL ACCOUNT

OF A HUGE FIREBALL ON THE MOON'S SURFACE.

BUT MORE RECENTLY UNCOVERED EVIDENCE

CHALLENGES NASA'S OFFICIAL CONCLUSION.

WHAT OPENS UP THE MYSTERY AGAIN

IS THE OLD PHOTOS SEEM TO SUGGEST

THAT THIS CRATER THAT HAD BEEN FOUND

EXISTED BEFORE STUART MADE HIS OBSERVATIONS.

Jakosky: SO THE MYSTERY REMAINS -- WHAT DID STUART SEE?

IT HAS TO JUST BE DISMISSED AS AN UNEXPLAINED PUZZLE.

Narrator: STILL TO COME --

FOOTAGE FROM THE SHUTTLE, TAKEN DURING A SECRET MISSION,

REVEALS UNIDENTIFIED OBJECTS FLYING AWAY FROM THE EARTH.

WHAT THE HECK COULD BE RUNNING SCARED FROM OUR PLANET

LIKE THAT, AND WHY?

D'Antonio: MAYBE IT WAS A SATELLITE, OR MAYBE IT WAS A WEAPON.

NO ONE REALLY KNOWS FOR SURE.

Narrator: AS SPACE SHUTTLE DISCOVERY DEPLOYS A CLASSIFIED PAYLOAD,

A SERIES OF STRANGE OBJECTS MAKES A DRAMATIC EXIT.

Man: A WHOLE SERIES OF ROCKETS GOING OFF SIMULTANEOUSLY.

IT'S A REMARKABLE IMAGE.

WHAT THE HECK COULD BE RUNNING SCARED FROM OUR PLANET

LIKE THAT, AND WHY?

Narrator: JUST WHAT WAS MISSION STS-39 DEPLOYING IN SPACE?

THE DETAILS OF WHAT WAS IN THAT CANISTER

REMAIN CLASSIFIED TO THIS DAY.

WHEN NASA'S SCIENTIFIC MISSIONS

PUSH BACK THE FRONTIERS OF HUMAN KNOWLEDGE,

THE SPACE AGENCY WELCOMES THE GLARE OF PUBLICITY.

BUT AWAY FROM THE LIMELIGHT,

THERE ARE OTHER MISSIONS WRAPPED IN A CLOAK OF SECRECY.

APRIL 28, 1991.

AFTER NUMEROUS TECHNICAL DELAYS, SPACE SHUTTLE DISCOVERY

FINALLY BLASTS OFF FROM NASA'S KENNEDY LAUNCH PLATFORM.

Woman: THREE, TWO, ONE.

WE HAVE IGNITION AND LIFTOFF OF DISCOVERY

ON A RESEARCH FLIGHT FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE.

THIS IS THE FIRST UNCLASSIFIED DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE MISSION

THAT NASA IS PERFORMING,

BUT THERE IS ONE CLASSIFIED PAYLOAD ON BOARD.

Pope: THE CLASSIFIED ONE

IS CALLED THE MULTI-PURPOSE RELEASE CANISTER.

THE NAME SOUNDS HARMLESS,

BUT THERE COULD BE ANYTHING IN THERE.

Narrator: AS SOON AS THEY COMPLETE THEIR INITIAL TASKS,

THE CREW BEGINS TO OFFLOAD DISCOVERY'S TOP-SECRET CARGO.

Orwall: SHORTLY AFTER DEPLOYING THE CLASSIFIED PAYLOAD,

CAMERAS ONBOARD THE SHUTTLE START TO SEE SOME OBJECTS

THAT ARE MOVING FROM THE BOTTOM OF THE SCREENS

TO UP TOWARDS THE TOP.

Man: THIS LOOKS LIKE A WHOLE SERIES OF ROCKETS

GOING OFF SIMULTANEOUSLY.

THERE ARE 10 OF THESE THINGS MOVING AWAY FROM THE SHUTTLE

ON THE SAME COURSE, AT SPEED, OVER A SUSTAINED PERIOD.

IT'S A REMARKABLE IMAGE.

Narrator: THE OBJECTS ARE CLEARLY VISIBLE

ON THE LIVE VIDEO FEED,

BUT NEITHER THE CREW NOR MISSION CONTROL

MAKES ANY REFERENCE TO THE BIZARRE EVENT.

Woman: DISCOVERY, WE'RE TWO MINUTES FROM L.O.S.

WE'LL SEE YOU AT FIVE PLUS TWO-SIX.

Man: ROGER THAT.

D'Antonio: CLASSIFIED MISSION COMMUNICATIONS

ARE STRICTLY CONTROLLED.

ANYTHING RELATED TO THE DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

IS FOR MILITARY EARS ONLY.

Narrator: WITH NASA UNWILLING

OR UNABLE TO COMMENT ON THE OBJECTS,

SOME OBSERVERS BEGIN TO SPECULATE

ABOUT A POSSIBLE CONNECTION

BETWEEN THE OBJECTS' SUDDEN APPEARANCE

AND DISCOVERY'S MILITARY CARGO.

D'Antonio: HERE, YOU HAVE A TOP-SECRET MISSION ON ONE HAND.

AND ON THE OTHER HAND, YOU HAVE ALL THESE OBJECTS

SEEMINGLY STREAMING AWAY FROM THE EARTH.

IT'S HARD NOT TO TALK ABOUT THE TWO OF THEM TOGETHER.

A RUMOR THAT WAS CIRCULATING WAS THAT THE PAYLOAD HAD SOMETHING

TO DO WITH STAR WARS,

IN OTHER WORDS, THE PROJECT TO MILITARIZE SPACE.

Narrator: THE STRATEGIC DEFENSE INITIATIVE,

OTHERWISE KNOWN AS STAR WARS,

WAS A FUTURISTIC PROGRAM DEVELOPED IN THE 1980s

TO SHOOT DOWN MISSILES USING SPACE-BASED WEAPONRY.

BUT SOME ARGUE

THAT IT COULD HAVE HAD OTHER OBJECTIVES AS WELL.

Pope: THE STAR WARS PROGRAM IS A LEGACY OF THE REAGAN ERA.

BY THIS TIME,

MANY OF THE MORE AMBITIOUS PARTS OF IT HAVE BEEN ABANDONED.

BUT THEY'VE DEVELOPED SOME PRETTY SERIOUS TECHNOLOGY,

AND WE WOULDN'T NECESSARILY KNOW ABOUT ALL OF IT, EVEN TODAY.

MAYBE IT WAS A SATELLITE, OR MAYBE IT WAS A WEAPON.

NO ONE REALLY KNOWS FOR SURE.

Narrator: THE STRANGE OBJECTS HAVE NEVER BEEN SEEN AGAIN.

AS THEY EXPLORE THE MYSTERIES OF THE UNIVERSE,

NASA'S SCIENTISTS DISCOVER THAT THERE ARE STILL LESSONS

TO BE LEARNED FROM OUR PAST.

TRUTH REALLY CAN BE STRANGER THAN FICTION.

SPACE CAN BE DEADLY IN WAYS NO ONE EXPECTS.

Man: WATER'S IN HIS EYES NOW, AND IT SEEMS TO BE INCREASING.

Narrator: AND EVEN ON EARTH,

THERE ARE STILL THINGS THAT CANNOT BE EXPLAINED.