Original subtitles

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

Man: 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: THE DANGERS OF SPACE TRAVEL PUSH ASTRONAUTS

TO THEIR BREAKING POINT.

PSHOO! PSHOO! PSHOO!

THERE'S A PROCEDURE FOR A PSYCHOTIC CREW MEMBER.

ASTRONAUTS CAN SNAP.

Narrator: NASA DISCOVERS A HELLISH WORLD

THAT DEFIES THE LAWS OF PHYSICS.

Sieger: SOME PEOPLE THINK IT SHOULDN'T EXIST.

ONE ASTRONOMER HAS CALLED IT AN ABOMINATION.

Narrator: AND DO STRANGE LIGHTS IN THE SKY SIGNAL ARMAGEDDON?

Oberg: IT'S ONE OF THE MOST INCREDIBLE THINGS

THAT THE PEOPLE HAD EVER SEEN.

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

SOMETHING IN SPACE IS ATTACKING THE BRAINS OF OUR ASTRONAUTS.

PSHOO! PSHOO! PSHOO!

THEY CAN PENETRATE YOUR BODY. THEY CAN DAMAGE CELLS.

THEY'RE NASTY.

Narrator: THE EFFECTS ARE NOT FULLY UNDERSTOOD,

BUT THE CONSEQUENCES COULD BE FATAL.

THE BRAIN ULTIMATELY BECOMES OVERWHELMED.

RATIONAL THOUGHT CAN MEAN THE DIFFERENCE

BETWEEN LIFE AND DEATH.

Narrator: SINCE THE DAWN OF THE SPACE PROGRAM,

NASA HAS SELECTED

HUMANITY'S BEST AND BRIGHTEST TO BE ASTRONAUTS.

WE WENT TO THE AIR FORCE HOSPITAL IN SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS,

AND WE HAD A PHYSICAL.

IT WAS A 10-DAY PHYSICAL,

AND WHEN WE FINISHED THE PHYSICAL,

THEY KNEW MORE ABOUT ME THAN I WOULD EVER EVEN WANT TO KNOW.

Narrator: THEY TAKE FIGHTER PILOTS, ENGINEERS AND SCIENTISTS

AT THE PEAK OF THEIR PHYSICAL AND MENTAL POWERS.

Man: THEY WERE COMBAT PILOTS. THEY WERE TEST PILOTS.

THEY WERE NOT GONNA LOSE IT.

Narrator: BUT IN SPITE OF THE RIGOROUS SCREENING,

WHEN THESE MEN GET INTO SPACE, STRANGE THINGS START TO HAPPEN.

THE FIRST INCIDENT HAPPENS WHEN ASTRONAUT RUSTY SCHWEICKART

STEPS OUT INTO SPACE DURING THE APOLLO 9 MISSION.

THE EXPERIENCE LASTS ONLY FIVE MINUTES

BUT CHANGES SCHWEICKART FOREVER.

Schweickart: ALL OF THESE QUESTIONS CAME FLOODING --

FLOODING INTO MY MIND.

I MEAN, WHAT AM I DOING HERE? WHO AM I?

WHAT DOES IT MEAN WHEN I SAY "I"?

WHAT WAS HAPPENING?

WHAT WAS GOING ON?

D'Antonio: SCHWEICKART IS CLEARLY OVERWHELMED.

HE'S LOST ALL SENSE OF THE MISSION.

AND FOR A SHORT PERIOD OF TIME,

HE WAS NO LONGER A VALUABLE ASSET.

Narrator: AND SCHWEICKART'S EXPERIENCE IS NOT AN ISOLATED INCIDENT.

D'Antonio: ON THE SKYLAB 4 MISSION,

THE ASTRONAUTS WOULD HAVE ARGUMENTS WITH EACH OTHER.

BUT MOST CONCERNING WAS THAT AT ONE POINT,

THEY ACTUALLY SHUT OFF MISSION CONTROL.

THEY STOPPED LISTENING.

THAT'S A SERIOUS PROBLEM, A SERIOUS BREACH.

THAT'S EFFECTIVELY A MUTINY.

Narrator: FROM SCHWEICKART

THROUGH THE SKYLAB MISSIONS OF THE '70s INTO THE SHUTTLE ERA,

ASTRONAUTS FROM EVERY GENERATION REPORT STRANGE EXPERIENCES.

ASTRONAUTS CAN SNAP, EMBARKING ON A COURSE

WHICH DOESN'T MAKE ANY SENSE TO ANYONE ELSE OR TO THEM.

IT'S NOT, UH, SOMETHING YOU CAN PREPARE FOR.

IT'S AN EMOTIONAL EXPERIENCE

THAT -- THAT REALLY CAN'T DESCRIBE.

Narrator: NASA HAS ALWAYS BEEN CONCERNED ABOUT THE POSSIBILITY

THAT SOMETHING IN SPACE COULD HARM THE MINDS

OF THEIR ASTRONAUTS.

YEARS BEFORE MANKIND FIRST STEPPED INTO SPACE,

THE AGENCY BEGAN GRAPPLING WITH THE ISSUE.

IN THE 1950s, AN AMERICAN PSYCHIATRIC REPORT

WARNED THAT ASTRONAUTS

NEED TO HAVE STRINGENT PSYCH EVALUATIONS DONE

BECAUSE THEY FOUND THAT THEY HAD BIZARRE MOTIVATIONS

FOR WANTING TO GO TO SPACE.

Pope: THEY CALL IT SPACE MADNESS.

IT'S A BIG DEAL FOR NASA.

IF AN ASTRONAUT LOSES IT,

THAT'S THE BIGGEST POTENTIAL THREAT TO ANY SPACE MISSION.

Narrator: DEALING WITH THE THREAT OF SPACE MADNESS

IS STILL A PART OF EVERY ASTRONAUT'S TRAINING.

Chiao: THERE'S A PROCEDURE FOR A PSYCHOTIC CREW MEMBER.

IN THAT CASE, YOU WOULD USE DUCT TAPE

TO TRY TO RESTRAIN THE PERSON, AND THEN ADMINISTER A SEDATIVE.

Narrator: NEUROSCIENTIST DR. ANDY NEWBERG HAS CONDUCTED HIS OWN ANALYSIS

OF WHAT'S HAPPENING TO ASTRONAUT BRAINS.

I ALWAYS NOTICED THAT THERE WAS A BIG DIFFERENCE

BETWEEN THOSE WHO HAD ACTUALLY GONE UP INTO SPACE

AND THOSE WHO HAD NOT.

IT SEEMS TO RESHAPE THE WAY OUR BRAIN WORKS.

THE NORMAL PARTS OF OUR BRAIN CAN GET ALL OUT OF WHACK.

OTHER THINGS THAT CAN HAPPEN IN ZERO GRAVITY

INCLUDE THINGS LIKE HALLUCINATIONS,

WHERE YOU MIGHT HEAR SOMETHING OR SMELL SOMETHING.

A -- A COMMON PHENOMENON, FOR EXAMPLE, WITH ASTRONAUTS

WAS THAT THEY WOULD SEE FLASHES OF LIGHT.

Narrator: INITIAL RESEARCH SUGGESTS THAT MICROGRAVITY

CAN INHIBIT THE RELEASE OF VITAL MOOD-ALTERING HORMONES

IN THE BRAIN.

BUT NOT EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENS TO ASTRONAUTS' BRAINS

CAN BE EXPLAINED BY GRAVITY.

THERE'S ANOTHER DESTRUCTIVE FORCE

ASSAULTING SPACE TRAVELERS, POTENTIALLY EVEN MUTATING THEM.

Dr. Newberg: WHEN ASTRONAUTS ARE UP IN SPACE,

THEY GET EXPOSED TO A LOT MORE RADIATION

THAN WE ARE DOWN HERE, ON EARTH.

Durrance: IT CAN PENETRATE YOUR BODY.

IT CAN BREAK THE DNA AND THE CELLS THEMSELVES.

THEY'RE NASTY.

Dr. Newberg: A DESTRUCTION FROM THE RADIATION OF BRAIN TISSUES

THAT WILL MAKE THE BRAIN NOT WORK AS WELL.

Narrator: NO ONE KNOWS EXACTLY HOW BADLY

RADIATION IS MUTATING OUR ASTRONAUTS' BRAINS.

ONE THING IS FOR CERTAIN -- THE DEEPER WE TRAVEL INTO SPACE,

THE GREATER THE THREAT IT POSES TO NASA'S MISSION

AND THE LIVES OF OUR ASTRONAUTS.

AS WE VENTURE FARTHER AWAY FROM THE EARTH,

ESPECIALLY OUTSIDE OF THE MAGNETOSPHERE,

RADIATION WILL BECOME EVEN MORE INTENSE.

AND YOU START HAVING MORE PSYCHOLOGICAL CONCERNS, AS WELL.

Dr. Newberg: THEY'RE GONNA HAVE TO FIND WAYS

OF RESOLVING THOSE THINGS, OR ELSE THOSE MISSIONS

ARE GONNA REALLY HAVE POTENTIAL FAILURES.

Narrator: A ROGUE ASTRONAUT COULD,

THEORETICALLY, DO A LOT OF DAMAGE TO A SPACECRAFT.

BUT THERE ARE OTHER FORCES IN SPACE

CAPABLE OF DOING EVEN GREATER HARM.

AND SOME OF THEM ARE HARDER TO SEE COMING.

A SERIES OF WEIRD, FLASHING OBJECTS SHADOWS COSMONAUTS

WORKING ON THE EXTERIOR OF THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION.

DANCING LIGHTS SEEM TO MOVE UNDER INTELLIGENT CONTROL.

IT'S IMPOSSIBLE TO FIGURE OUT

EXACTLY WHAT THESE OBJECTS COULD BE.

Narrator: SOON AFTER THE SIGHTING,

THE SPACE STATION MALFUNCTIONS.

Rutkowski: IT'S A BIT UNCANNY.

THE ASTRONAUTS' LIVES COULD BE IN DANGER.

Narrator: APRIL 19, 2013.

COSMONAUTS PAVEL VINOGRADOV AND ROMAN ROMANENKO

STEP OUT INTO THE VACUUM OF SPACE.

THEY'RE ABOUT TO BEGIN SIX HOURS OF WORK

ON ONE OF THE STRANGEST EXPERIMENTS

IN THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION'S HISTORY.

THE RUSSIAN EXPERIMENT IS CALLED BIORISK,

AND ONE HAS TO WONDER WHAT'S REALLY GOING ON THERE.

Narrator: ACCORDING TO THE RUSSIANS, THE BIORISK PROJECT

IS DESIGNED TO INVESTIGATE THE EFFECTS OF SOLAR RADIATION

ON LIVING ORGANISMS IN SPACE.

CULTIVATING LIFE FORMS ON THE OUTSIDE OF A SPACECRAFT

IS A HIGH-RISK ACTIVITY AT THE BEST OF TIMES.

Narrator: WHILE THE TWO COSMONAUTS FOCUS ON COMPLETING THEIR TASKS,

SOMETHING APPEARS IN THE DARKNESS BEHIND THEM.

THE OBJECTS ARE SEEN TO BE FLICKERING.

THESE LITTLE DOTS SEEM TO BE BLINKING.

THEY SEEM TO BE WINKING.

Orwall: IT'S IMPOSSIBLE TO FIGURE OUT

EXACTLY WHAT THESE OBJECTS COULD BE.

Narrator: THE OBJECTS ARE EERILY REMINISCENT OF A PHENOMENON

FIRST ENCOUNTERED BY JOHN GLENN

ON THE FIRST MERCURY PROGRAM MISSION.

THE OBJECTS BECOME KNOWN AS SPACE FIREFLIES.

WHEN THERE WERE FIRST REPORTS ABOUT SO-CALLED FIREFLIES,

PEOPLE RAISED A LOT OF EYEBROWS TO SAY, "THAT'S RIDICULOUS.

THERE'S NOTHING UP THERE. CAN'T BE."

NOBODY BELIEVED IT.

THEY THOUGHT THEY WERE SIMPLY ILLUSIONS.

Narrator: NASA'S INVESTIGATION INTO GLENN'S SIGHTING

CONCLUDED THAT THE FIREFLIES WERE ICE CRYSTALS

SHED FROM HIS MERCURY CAPSULE.

BUT THE MYSTERIOUS OBJECTS SURROUNDING THE I.S.S.

AREN'T FOLLOWING THE SAME PATTERN OF BEHAVIOR.

NASA EXPLAINS THESE THINGS CALLED FIREFLIES

AS ICE PARTICLES.

AND SURE, THERE ARE ICE PARTICLES IN SPACE.

BUT ICE PARTICLES DON'T CHANGE DIRECTION.

THEY FLOAT IN THE SAME DIRECTION.

THESE THINGS SEEM TO MOVE UNDER INTELLIGENT CONTROL.

Narrator: IMAGE ANALYST MARK D'ANTONIO HAS CONDUCTED HIS OWN ASSESSMENT

TO ESTABLISH THE SIZE OF THE OBJECTS

AND DETERMINE WHETHER THEY COULD HAVE POSED A THREAT

TO THE MISSION.

THE OBJECTS APPEAR IN THE BACKGROUND OF THE IMAGE,

WHICH MAKES IDENTIFYING THEM HARDER.

THE PROBLEM IS THAT MANY OF THESE OBJECTS

ARE SEEN BEHIND THE I.S.S. AGAINST THE BLACKNESS OF SPACE.

IN SUCH A POSITION, IT'S REALLY HARD TO GAUGE THEIR SIZE.

YOU DON'T KNOW IF THEY'RE LARGE OR SMALL, NEAR OR FAR.

Narrator: WHATEVER THEY WERE,

THE MYSTERY OBJECTS' APPEARANCE MARKS THE BEGINNING OF A CHAPTER

IN ONE OF THE MOST DISTURBING EPISODES

IN THE HISTORY OF THE I.S.S.

SOON AFTER, THE SPACE STATION'S AMMONIA COOLING SYSTEM

SUFFERS A MAJOR MALFUNCTION.

A SERIOUS AMMONIA LEAK CAN CREATE A SERIOUS PROBLEM

ON THE STATION BECAUSE, WITH THE COOLING LOOP DOWN,

YOUR ELECTRONICS THAT ARE ON A LOOP HAVE TO BE TURNED OFF,

AND YOU LOSE MAJOR FUNCTION.

Narrator: THE I.S.S. CARRIES TWO COOLING LOOPS.

WITH ONE DOWN, THE SITUATION COULD BECOME CRITICAL.

IN THE EVENT THE BACKUP FAILS,

THE ASTRONAUTS' LIVES COULD BE IN DANGER.

Narrator: ASTRONAUTS CHRIS CASSIDY AND THOMAS MARSHBURN

CONDUCT AN UNSCHEDULED SPACEWALK TO FIX THE PROBLEM.

THERE ARE NO UNSCHEDULED SPACEWALKS

ON THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION,

UNLESS THERE'S AN EMERGENCY.

Narrator: BUT WHEN CASSIDY AND MARSHBURN

REACH THE SUPPOSEDLY FAULTY PUMP,

THEY FIND NO TRACE OF ANY LEAK.

NASA'S OFFICIAL POSITION IS THAT THERE WAS AN AMMONIA LEAK,

AND THEY TRACED ITS CAUSE TO A FAULTY VALVE

IN THE COOLING PUMP.

WHETHER THERE WAS ANY POSSIBLE CONNECTION BETWEEN THE LEAK

AND THE APPEARANCE OF THE FIREFLIES

REMAINS UNCERTAIN.

UP NEXT,

WHEN MYSTERIOUS LIGHTS IN THE SKY SPARK RUMORS WORLDWIDE,

NASA GETS THE BLAME.

PEOPLE WERE RUNNING AROUND ASKING EACH OTHER,

"WHAT THE HELL IS THIS THING?"

Narrator: A SPIRALING BEAM OF LIGHT RISES INTO THE SKY.

IT'S ONE OF THE MOST INCREDIBLE THINGS

THAT THE PEOPLE HAD EVER SEEN.

Rutkowski: PEOPLE WERE RUNNING AROUND ASKING EACH OTHER,

"WHAT THE HELL IS THIS THING?"

Narrator: THE MYSTERIOUS LIGHT SHOW

SPARKS A WORLDWIDE SEARCH FOR ANSWERS.

A PORTENT, AN OMEN,

A WARNING, A TIME TUNNEL TO ANOTHER DIMENSION,

MAYBE EVEN THE SECOND COMING.

Narrator: NASA TACKLES SOME OF THE GREATEST PROBLEMS

FACED BY MANKIND.

BUT ITS REPUTATION FOR ACHIEVING THE IMPOSSIBLE

ALSO CREATES UNEASE AMONG THOSE WHO DO NOT TRUST

THE UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT.

ON DECEMBER 9, 2009, THE PEOPLE OF NORWAY

ARE PREPARING FOR THE HISTORIC ARRIVAL

OF PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA.

BUT FOR THE INHABITANTS OF ONE NORTHERN TOWN,

THE DAY WILL BE REMEMBERED FOR A VERY DIFFERENT REASON.

IT'S JUST BEFORE SUNRISE.

PEOPLE ARE GETTING READY TO GO OUT AND TAKE THE KIDS TO SCHOOL.

SUDDENLY, THEY SEE A STRANGE LIGHT RISING IN THE EAST,

BEHIND THE MOUNTAIN.

Narrator: NEWS OF THE WEIRD LIGHT IN THE MOUNTAINS SPREADS FAST.

PEOPLE WERE RUNNING AROUND ASKING EACH OTHER,

"WHAT THE HELL IS THIS THING?"

Narrator: AS THE STUNNED RESIDENTS LOOK ON,

THE PHENOMENON MORPHS FROM A SIMPLE, GLOWING BEAM

INTO A TWISTING VORTEX OF LIGHT.

WITHIN A FEW SECONDS,

A GIANT SPIRAL HUNDREDS OF MILES WIDE

DOMINATES THE PRE-DAWN SKIES.

WITNESSES ARE STILL TRYING TO UNDERSTAND

WHAT THEY'RE SEEING WHEN, WITHOUT WARNING, IT DISAPPEARS.

AS PEOPLE WATCH THIS AMAZING SIGHT,

SUDDENLY, A BLACK HOLE APPEARS IN THE MIDDLE

AND SWALLOWS THE ENTIRE APPARITION.

IT'S ONE OF THE MOST INCREDIBLE THINGS

THAT THE PEOPLE HAD EVER SEEN.

Narrator: DOZENS OF VIDEOS AND PHOTOS OF THE SIGHTING

SOON EMERGE FROM WITNESSES AS FAR AWAY AS SWEDEN.

IT BECOMES KNOWN AS THE SPIRAL ANOMALY.

Pope: MANY OBSERVERS DECLARE THIS EVENT AN ELABORATE HOAX.

NO NATURAL PHENOMENON

COULD CREATE SUCH A PERFECT SHAPE IN THE SKY.

BUT AS MORE AND MORE EYEWITNESS ACCOUNTS EMERGE,

IT SOON BECOMES CLEAR THIS IS A GENUINE MYSTERY.

Narrator: ONE THEORY EMERGES THAT THE SPIRAL COULD BE

NOTHING MORE THAN AN EXTREME FORM OF AURORA BOREALIS,

OR NORTHERN LIGHTS.

Grazier: IF YOU LIVED IN NORWAY,

YOU'RE USED TO SEEING SHIMMERING CURTAINS

OF GREEN AND PINK IN THE SKY.

YOU'RE NOT USED TO SEEING A BIG SPIRAL IN THE SKY.

PEOPLE IN NORWAY KNOW WHAT THE NORTHERN LIGHTS LOOK LIKE.

THIS WASN'T IT.

Narrator: WITH NATURAL PHENOMENA RULED OUT AS A POSSIBLE CAUSE,

NORWEGIANS START TO SUSPECT THE INVOLVEMENT

OF RUSSIAN MILITARY FORCES ACROSS THE NEARBY BORDER.

Pope: RUSSIA FLATLY DENIES ALL KNOWLEDGE

OF ANY STRANGE CLOUD OR BEAM OF LIGHT.

SO, THAT BEGS THE QUESTION, WHAT THE HECK IS THIS THING?

Narrator: THE ABSENCE OF ANY SOLID INFORMATION

ABOUT THE CAUSE OF THE PHENOMENON SPARKS FEARS

THAT IT MIGHT BE SOMETHING MORE SINISTER

THAN ANY RUSSIAN WEAPON.

ALL OVER THE INTERNET, THERE ARE A DOZEN THEORIES

EXPLAINING IT IN TERMS OF SOME KIND OF BLACK HOLE,

SOME KIND OF SPACE-TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM.

A PORTENT, AN OMEN,

A WARNING, A TIME TUNNEL TO ANOTHER DIMENSION,

MAYBE EVEN THE SECOND COMING.

Oberg: ALL THESE WILD IDEAS ARE JUSTIFIED

BECAUSE IT WAS ONE OF THE WILDEST, WEIRDEST EVENTS

EVER VIDEOTAPED IN HUMAN HISTORY.

Narrator: ONE OF THE MOST EXTREME THEORIES ABOUT THE BIZARRE SPIRAL

IS THAT IT IS THE FIRST STEP

IN A TOP-SECRET NASA OPERATION KNOWN AS PROJECT BLUE BEAM.

PROJECT BLUE BEAM IS ONE OF THE MOST WIDELY BELIEVED

CONSPIRACY THEORIES IN THE WORLD.

IT'S THE IDEA THAT NASA

AND SOME OTHER GOVERNMENTAL CONSPIRATORS

ARE TRYING TO ESSENTIALLY STAGE OR FAKE, LIKE,

THE SECOND COMING OF CHRIST OR SOME OTHER RELIGIOUS EVENT

TO CONTROL THE POPULATION OF THE WORLD.

Narrator: ACCORDING TO BLUE BEAM CONSPIRACY THEORISTS,

NASA WOULD BE THE PERFECT AGENCY TO EXECUTE THE PLAN

BECAUSE OF ITS UNIQUE TECHNICAL EXPERTISE

AND ACCESS TO ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY.

PROJECT BLUE BEAM THEORISTS

ACCUSE NASA OF DEVELOPING THE TECHNOLOGY

TO PROJECT HOLOGRAPHIC IMAGES.

Narrator: CONSPIRACY THEORISTS

REFUSE TO ACCEPT THAT NASA WASN'T INVOLVED.

BUT WITHIN HOURS,

THE SPACE AGENCY GETS BACKUP FROM AN UNEXPECTED SOURCE.

IN MOSCOW, THE DEFENSE MINISTRY

ANNOUNCED THE TEST LAUNCH OF A MILITARY MISSILE.

THE RUSSIAN BALLISTIC MISSILE SUBMARINE, DMITRI DONSKOY,

LAUNCHED A BULAVA MISSILE

AS A TEST OF THIS NEW WEAPONS PLATFORM.

THIS MISSILE IS THE ANSWER TO THE TRIDENT II MISSILE

THAT'S CURRENTLY IN USE BY THE U.S. AND THE U.K.

Narrator: THE RUSSIAN MISSILE USES THREE FUEL STAGES

TO LAUNCH IT INTO SPACE.

THE RUSSIANS CLAIM THAT ONE OF THESE STAGES

FAILED DURING A TEST LAUNCH AND, AS IT SPAN OUT OF CONTROL,

BURNING FUEL VENTING FROM THE SIDES

CREATED THE SPIRAL.

Oberg: IT TURNS OUT THAT SPIRALS OF THIS TYPE

HAVE BEEN SEEN AND REPORTED FOR MORE THAN 30 YEARS,

BUT THIS WAS THE FIRST TIME

THAT SUCH AN EVENT HAD BEEN CAPTURED ON VIDEO CAMERA.

Narrator: WHILE THE TIMING OF THE RUSSIAN MISSILE TEST

SEEMS TO ALIGN WITH THE APPEARANCE OF THE SPIRAL,

CRITICS POINT OUT

THAT THE BULAVA MISSILE USES SOLID FUEL

AND WOULD BE UNLIKELY TO SPRAY OUT

IN THE MANNER DESCRIBED.

FOR MANY,

THE MYSTERY OF THE SPIRAL REMAINS UNEXPLAINED.

STILL TO COME,

NASA REACHES THE MOST EARTH-LIKE PLACE IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM

AND DISCOVERS A MAGIC ISLAND.

Hayes: NOTHING'S THERE. THERE'S THIS ISLAND.

IT'S GONE AGAIN. AND THEN IT'S BACK AGAIN.

Narrator: WHEN A NASA PROBE

SURVEYS THE SEAS OF SATURN'S LARGEST MOON...

IT'S REALLY WEIRD. IT'S A MYSTERIOUS WORLD.

Narrator: ...IT DISCOVERS THE SEAS

OF THIS STRANGELY EARTH-LIKE WORLD ARE HIDING A SECRET.

Hayes: NOTHING'S THERE. THERE'S THIS ISLAND.

IT'S GONE AGAIN. AND THEN IT'S BACK AGAIN.

THERE'S NO SATISFACTORY EXPLANATION

OF JUST HOW ISLANDS APPEAR ON TITAN.

Narrator: AS NASA CONTINUES TO SEARCH FOR LIFE ON OTHER WORLDS,

TITAN HAS EMERGED AS PERHAPS THE MOST PROMISING PLACE

TO FIND ALIEN LIFE WITHIN OUR SOLAR SYSTEM.

THE CASSINI PROBE OBSERVES SATURN'S MYSTERIOUS MOON

FROM A DISTANCE OF 600 MILES.

CASSINI IS ONE OF THE LAST TRUE MISSIONS OF EXPLORATION.

Narrator: THE FIRST CLOSE-UP IMAGES CAME IN JANUARY 2005,

WHEN THE HUYGENS LANDER

TOUCHED DOWN ON THE MOON'S SURFACE.

TITAN IS THE FIRST PLACE

IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM THAT IS FAMILIAR TO US.

I MEAN, WE LOOK AT IT AND GO, "WOW. THIS LOOKS LIKE HOME."

IT'S GOT BOTH A SOLID SURFACE,

AND THEN IT HAS HUGE RESERVOIRS OF LAKES AND STREAMS AND PONDS.

IT'S GOT CLOUDS IN THE ATMOSPHERE.

IT'S GOT, UH, RAIN.

Narrator: BUT FOR ALL THE SIMILARITIES,

IT'S STILL A VERY ALIEN WORLD.

THE RAINS AND THE CLOUDS AND THE LAKES, IT'S NOT WATER.

THEY'RE COMPRISED OF METHANE AND ETHANE,

HYDROCARBONS THAT ARE OUT THERE.

GEOLOGY YOU'RE LOOKING AT

IS NOT EVEN SANDSTONE OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT.

IT'S WATER ICE THAT IS REALLY HARD,

THAT'S EVEN HARDER THAN GRANITE. IT'S SO COLD.

IT'S 300 OR 400 DEGREES ON THE FAHRENHEIT SCALE,

NEGATIVE 300 DEGREES.

Narrator: IN JULY 2013, PLANETARY SCIENTIST ALEX HAYES

IS ANALYZING NEW IMAGES OF LIGEIA MARE

WITH ONE OF HIS STUDENTS, JASON HOFGARTNER.

AS THEY LOOK AT THE HUGE METHANE SEA

IN TITAN'S NORTH POLAR REGION,

THEY SPOT SOMETHING TOTALLY UNEXPECTED.

Hayes: THERE WAS THIS BRIGHT BLOB IN THIS AREA

THAT USED TO BE DARK SEA,

AND I IMMEDIATELY JUST WROTE IT OFF.

I JUST THOUGHT, "THERE'S NO WAY IT'S A NEW ISLAND.

IT HAS TO BE SOME KIND OF ARTIFACT WITH --

WITH THE WAY WE WERE LOOKING AT THE IMAGE

OR THE WAY THAT THE RADAR WAS PROCESSING THE IMAGE."

Narrator: BUT WHEN THE RESEARCH TEAM AT CORNELL UNIVERSITY

GOES OVER THE DATA,

THEY DISCOVER THAT THE SO-CALLED ISLAND IS SOMETHING VERY REAL,

AND TWICE THE SIZE OF MANHATTAN,

ON THE SURFACE OF THE METHANE SEA.

TITAN HAS OCEANS OF METHANE AND ETHANE,

THESE LIQUID HYDROCARBONS.

THERE'S NO SATISFACTORY EXPLANATION

OF JUST HOW ISLANDS APPEAR.

Narrator: NASA SCIENTISTS ARE STILL STRUGGLING WITH THE MYSTERY

WHEN NEW DATA FROM CASSINI TURNS THE INVESTIGATION ON ITS HEAD.

Hayes: 2013, IT'S THERE,

BUT THEN, TWO WEEKS LATER, THE SAME AREA'S OBSERVED BY CASSINI,

AND IT'S GONE.

BUT THEN, ALL OF A SUDDEN, IN AUGUST 2014, THERE IT IS AGAIN.

IT'S JUST AN EXCITING TIME, RIGHT?

NOTHING'S THERE. THERE'S THIS ISLAND.

IT'S GONE AGAIN. AND THEN IT'S BACK AGAIN.

Narrator: AND WHEN IT REAPPEARS,

IT IS THREE TIMES THE SIZE IT WAS PREVIOUSLY.

SCIENTISTS SEARCHING FOR ANSWERS TO THE MYSTERY

LOOK AT HOW NATURAL PHENOMENA CREATE NEW LAND CLOSER TO HOME.

ON EARTH, NEW ISLANDS SOMETIMES APPEAR,

USUALLY BECAUSE OF VOLCANIC ERUPTIONS MAKING NEW LAND,

WHICH APPEARS THROUGH THE SURFACE IN THE SEA.

Bell: WE DON'T KNOW WHAT IT'S LIKE IN THE SUBSURFACE OF TITAN.

IT IS A PLANET-SIZED OBJECT.

IT IS PROBABLY DIFFERENTIATED INTO CORE, MANTLE AND CRUST,

LIKE THE TERRESTRIAL PLANETS HAVE.

THERE COULD EASILY BE HEAT SOURCES DOWN BELOW THERE,

THE CORE ITSELF.

Narrator: BUT FOR AN ISLAND TO REPRODUCE THIS WAY,

TITAN WOULD HAVE TO BE VOLCANICALLY ACTIVE.

Hayes: WE'VE NEVER SEEN A SMOKING GUN

OF WATCHING AN EVENT OCCUR.

SO THE QUESTION OF WHETHER OR NOT

TITAN IS CURRENTLY VOLCANICALLY ACTIVE

IS STILL AN OUTSTANDING QUESTION.

Narrator: WITH NO EVIDENCE TO SUPPORT THE IDEA

THAT ICY VOLCANOES PRODUCED TITAN'S NEW ARRIVAL,

SCIENTISTS LOOK AT THE POSSIBILITY

THAT IT MAY BE MORE ICEBERG THAN ISLAND.

Bell: ONE COULD IMAGINE, YOU KNOW, AN ICEBERG FOR AN EXAMPLE,

OF FROZEN ORGANIC, UH, MOLECULES THAT ARE --

THAT'S MOVING AROUND.

I DON'T KNOW THAT THE FROZEN METHANE, UH,

AND ETHANE WILL FLOAT ON LIQUID METHANE AND ETHANE.

THEY MAY NOT. MAYBE WAVES BROUGHT IT UP.

Narrator: BUT THE PROBLEM WITH THE ICEBERG HYPOTHESIS

IS THAT THE EVIDENCE SUGGESTS TITAN'S SEAS BARELY MOVE,

AND THEY SHOULDN'T CONCEAL OR REVEAL A MASSIVE OBJECT.

FOR THE FIRST 8, 9, 10 YEARS OF THE CASSINI MISSION,

OBSERVATIONS OVER THESE LAKES AND SEAS

TOLD US THAT THEY WERE MILLIMETER-FLAT.

Narrator: AS IF THE REAPPEARING ISLAND WASN'T STRANGE ENOUGH,

THE TEAM AT CORNELL

DISCOVERS THE SAME PHENOMENON IN ANOTHER OF TITAN'S SEAS.

Hayes: JUST TO MAKE THINGS EVEN MORE INTRIGUING,

IN AUGUST 2014, WE OBSERVED KRAKEN MARE,

WHICH IS THE LARGEST SEA ON TITAN, AND A NEW MAGIC ISLAND

SHOWED UP THERE THAT WE HAD NOT SEEN BEFORE.

Narrator: RESEARCH INTO THE MYSTERY OF THE MAGIC ISLANDS IS ONGOING.

Hayes: WE DON'T KNOW WHAT THEY ARE YET.

TITAN IS THIS DYNAMIC, INTERESTING, COMPELLING PLACE

THAT NEEDS TO BE EXPLORED.

AND WHAT WE NEED TO DO IS LAND ON TITAN'S SURFACE

AND HAVE THE SPACECRAFT LOOK AT IT

AND TELL US WHAT REALLY IS THERE.

Narrator: COMING UP, NASA DISCOVERS A NIGHTMARE WORLD.

SOME PEOPLE THINK IT SHOULDN'T EXIST.

THIS PLANET COULD HAVE BEEN DELIBERATELY MOVED.

Narrator: 400 LIGHT-YEARS AWAY, THERE IS A NIGHTMARE WORLD.

THE SURFACE OF THIS PLANET MUST BE HELLISH.

LAVA LAKES JUST BUBBLING EVERYWHERE.

Narrator: THE FEARSOME PLANET

HAS ASTRONOMERS GRASPING FOR ANSWERS.

IT SEEMS TO DEFY THE LAWS OF NATURE.

SOME PEOPLE THINK IT SHOULDN'T EXIST.

Man: ASTRONOMERS ARE TOTALLY BAFFLED BY IT.

ONE ASTRONOMER HAS CALLED IT AN ABOMINATION.

Narrator: JANUARY 2013, NASA'S KEPLER SPACE TELESCOPE

STARES INTO DEEP SPACE, SEARCHING THE MILKY WAY

FOR EARTH-LIKE PLANETS.

YOU KNOW, WE'VE LOOKED SO HARD AND SO LONG FOR A PLANET

THAT'S THE SIZE OF EARTH IN THE HABITABLE ZONE,

BUT IT'S NEARLY IMPOSSIBLE TO FIND.

Narrator: AGAINST THE ODDS, 400 LIGHT-YEARS AWAY,

KEPLER SCIENTISTS

DETECT THE FAINT SIGNAL OF AN EARTH-SIZED PLANET.

Christiansen: WE WERE OBSERVING KEPLER-78, THE HOST STAR,

AND WE COULD SEE THESE TINY DIPS HAPPEN

EVERY EIGHT AND A HALF HOURS,

WHICH SEEMS RIDICULOUSLY SHORT FOR A PLANET.

SO, AT FIRST, WE WERE VERY SKEPTICAL.

BUT SURE ENOUGH, WHEN WE FOLLOWED IT UP

AND GOT MORE DATA, IT WAS A PLANET, RIGHT THERE.

Narrator: IT SHOULDN'T BE POSSIBLE

FOR A PLANET TO EXIST SO CLOSE TO ITS STAR.

IT'S JUST UNBELIEVABLE.

Christiansen: JUST WHEN WE THINK WE KNOW WHAT'S HAPPENING,

SOMETHING LIKE KEPLER-78 COMES ALONG

AND MAKES US REWRITE ALL OF THE THEORIES.

Narrator: THE PLANET, KEPLER-78B, IS SO CLOSE TO ITS STAR

THAT ITS ORBIT TAKES JUST EIGHT AND A HALF HOURS.

THIS PLANET

IS ABOUT ONE-FORTIETH THE DISTANCE TO ITS STAR

THAT MERCURY IS FROM OURS.

THAT'S REALLY CLOSE.

Sieger: WE THINK OF MERCURY AS A HOT, BARREN PLANET.

IT'S JUST SO MUCH MORE EXTREME FOR KEPLER-78B.

Narrator: THE PLANET'S DAYTIME TEMPERATURES

PEAK AT OVER 5,000 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT.

Sieger: THE SURFACE TEMPERATURE IS HOT ENOUGH TO MELT ROCK.

LAVA LAKES JUST BUBBLING EVERYWHERE.

BUT IT'S A LIVING HELL.

Narrator: BUT FOR PLANETARY SCIENTISTS, IT IS NOT THE HEAT

THAT MAKES THIS HELLISH WORLD AN ABOMINATION.

ITS VERY EXISTENCE APPEARS TO DEFY THE LAWS OF PHYSICS.

THE EXISTENCE OF THIS PLANET CERTAINLY FLIES IN THE FACE

OF EVERYTHING WE UNDERSTAND ABOUT PLANETARY FORMATION.

Sieger: SOME PEOPLE THINK IT SHOULDN'T EXIST

BECAUSE IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN

LITERALLY SUCKED INTO THE STAR BY GRAVITY.

IT CAN'T HAVE FORMED THERE.

WE KNOW IT CAN'T HAVE FORMED THERE.

THE STAR WAS ORIGINALLY MUCH BIGGER

AND WOULD HAVE ACTUALLY ENGULFED THE PLANET.

Narrator: WHEN A STAR IS BORN,

IT SUCKS UP ALL THE DUST AND GAS SURROUNDING IT.

PLANETS CAN ONLY FORM IF THEY ARE FAR ENOUGH AWAY

TO DEFY THE STAR'S GRAVITY.

AS FAR AS WE KNOW,

IT IS PHYSICALLY IMPOSSIBLE FOR A PLANET

TO FORM AS CLOSE TO A STAR AS KEPLER-78B.

SO SCIENTISTS MUST FACE THE POSSIBILITY

THAT SOME UNKNOWN FORCE HAS MOVED IT

TO ITS CURRENT LOCATION.

Christiansen: THE BIG MYSTERY WITH KEPLER-78B IS HOW IT GOT THERE,

RIGHT NEXT TO ITS STAR.

THE PLANET COULD MOVE ON A DIFFERENT COURSE,

BUT YOU'D NEED SOMETHING WITH SOME UNHOLY POWER

TO SHIFT IT OUT OF AN EQUATORIAL ORBIT.

Narrator: THEORETICALLY, NATURAL PHENOMENON LIKE BLACK HOLES,

OR EVEN A ROGUE STAR,

COULD EXERT IN A FORCE TO SHIFT AN ENTIRE PLANET,

BUT THEY DO NOT ENTIRELY EXPLAIN KEPLER-78B'S IMPOSSIBLE ORBIT.

SOMETHING MUST HAVE SLOWED THE PLANET ENOUGH

FOR IT TO SETTLE SO CLOSE TO THE STAR.

WE NEED SOME BRAKING MECHANISM TO MAKE IT STOP,

AND WE HAVE NO IDEA WHAT THAT IS.

Narrator: THE DOUBLE MYSTERY

OF HOW KEPLER-78B GOT TO WHERE IT IS

AND HOW IT SLOWED ENOUGH TO START ORBITING ITS STAR

DEFIES CONVENTIONAL THEORIES OF PLANET FORMATION.

Mahin: I THINK THAT FOR A PLANET LIKE THIS

THAT HAS SUCH UNUSUAL CHARACTERISTICS,

YOU REALLY HAVE TO GO OUTSIDE OF THE BOX

TO, UH, COME UP WITH AN --

SOMETHING UNUSUAL TO TRY AND EXPLAIN IT.

Narrator: WHILE CONVENTIONAL THEORIES FALL SHORT,

THERE ARE UNCONVENTIONAL IDEAS THAT COULD FIT SOME OF THE FACTS

FOR KEPLER-78B.

KEPLER-78B COULD BE PART

OF AN ASTRONOMICAL ENGINEERING PROJECT.

THIS PLANET COULD HAVE BEEN DELIBERATELY MOVED.

YOU CAN MOVE PLANETS USING OLD PHYSICS,

USING SIMPLE, OLD, UH, NEWTONIAN PHYSICS

THAT, UH, DON'T REQUIRE ANY NEW THINGS TO BE DISCOVERED.

Capps: EVEN IF YOU HAD THE POWER TO MOVE A PLANET'S ORBIT

IN TOWARDS ITS STAR, WHY WOULD YOU DO IT?

AND, TO ME, THE OBVIOUS ANSWER WOULD BE NATURAL RESOURCES.

Narrator: FOR MANKIND, PLANETARY MINING ON THIS COSMIC SCALE

IS FIRMLY IN THE REALMS OF SCIENCE FICTION,

BUT THE CONCEPT IS BASED ON SOUND SCIENCE.

THE KEPLER-78B WE SEE TODAY COULD BE A ROCKY REMNANT

OF SOMETHING THAT USED TO BE A GAS GIANT

LIKE NEPTUNE OR JUPITER.

THE CENTERS OF THESE GIANT PLANETS

MAY CONTAIN HUGE RESERVES OF VALUABLE METALS.

Capps: IF YOU HAVE A GAS GIANT

AND YOU WANT TO GET TO THE CENTER OF IT,

ONE GREAT WAY TO DO THAT WOULD BE TO CLEAR OFF ALL THAT HELIUM

OR WHATEVER GASSES ARE ON THE OUTSIDE.

IF YOU MOVE IT CLOSER TO THE SUN,

SOLAR WINDS ARE GONNA START STRIPPING THAT GAS AWAY.

Mahin: AND IF THEY WERE THEN LEFT WITH THIS METALLIC, ROCKY CORE,

THAT COULD BE A MILLION-YEAR BONANZA IN TERMS OF RESOURCES.

Narrator: FOR NOW, THE IDEA THAT KEPLER-78B

IS EVIDENCE OF EXTRATERRESTRIAL ENGINEERING

IS JUST WILD SPECULATION.

BUT, SO FAR, NASA'S SCIENTISTS

HAVEN'T BEEN ABLE TO EXPLAIN THE ROGUE PLANET'S FORMATION.

Sieger: I'D LOVE TO THINK OF THE CONCEPT THAT ADVANCED CIVILIZATIONS

ARE SOMEHOW TRYING TO GET OUR ATTENTION

BY WHAT IS HIDDEN AS A NATURAL PHENOMENA.

SO THE MYSTERY REMAINS.

KEPLER-78B SHOWS US JUST HOW FAR WE HAVE TO GO

IN UNDERSTANDING PLANET FORMATION AND EVOLUTION.

Narrator: UP NEXT,

HAS NASA'S CURIOSITY ROVER DISCOVERED FIRE ON MARS?

IT LOOKS LIKE THERE'S SOME SORT OF GEYSER OR ERUPTION

COMING FROM THE MARTIAN SURFACE.

WE KNOW THERE ARE NO MAN-MADE OBJECTS AT THAT LOCATION,

SO HOW DOES THAT LIGHT OCCUR?

Narrator: THE CURIOSITY ROVER CAPTURES AN IMAGE

OF WHAT APPEARS TO BE PILLARS OF FIRE

ERUPTING FROM THE MARTIAN LANDSCAPE.

WHERE DOES THIS LIGHT COME FROM?

ARE WE SEEING ANOMALIES ON MARS CLOSE UP AND PERSONAL?

Narrator: IF THIS TRULY IS SOMETHING INSIDE THE RED PLANET,

IT IS UNKNOWN TO HUMAN SCIENCE.

THE VAST MAJORITY OF MARS IS A MYSTERY TO US.

I REALLY DON'T KNOW WHAT TO MAKE OF THESE, UH,

FIRES OFF OF MARS.

Narrator: APRIL 2, 2014,

AT NASA'S JET PROPULSION LAB,

THE MARS EXPLORATION TEAM

DRIVES THE $2.5 BILLION CURIOSITY ROVER

AROUND A CRATER THE SIZE OF CONNECTICUT.

JIM BELL IS THE SCIENTIST IN CHARGE

OF INTERPRETING THE IMAGES FROM THE ROVER'S CAMERAS.

Bell: WE'RE, UH, PARTWAY ALONG THE PATH

FROM WHERE WE LANDED ALONG THE PLANES,

TRYING TO GET TO THE BASE OF MOUNT SHARP,

THIS BIG MOUNTAIN THAT'S IN FRONT OF US.

Narrator: THE NAVIGATION CAMERAS

ON THE FRONT OF THE CAR-SIZED VEHICLE

ARE CAPABLE OF CAPTURING ONE IMAGE EVERY EIGHT SECONDS.

WHILE THE PATH IN FRONT OF THE ROVER IS CLEAR,

THE IMAGE FROM 9:00 A.M. UNIVERSAL TIME

SEEMS TO SHOW SOMETHING IN THE FAR DISTANCE,

SOMETHING THAT SHOULD NOT BE THERE.

WE'RE LOOKING OFF TOWARDS THE HORIZON,

TOWARDS THIS DISTANT RIDGE,

AND THERE'S THIS BRIGHT DOT.

Narrator: THE IMAGE TRIGGERS A MEDIA STORM.

COULD IT BE EVIDENCE OF FIRES ON MARS?

I REALLY DON'T KNOW WHAT TO MAKE OF THESE, UH,

SO-CALLED FIRES ON MARS.

Birnes: IT DOES MAKE YOU WONDER.

ARE WE SEEING ANOMALIES ON MARS CLOSE UP AND PERSONAL?

Narrator: ONE EXPLANATION FOR THE SO-CALLED ANOMALY

IS THAT CURIOSITY HAS SIMPLY FILMED ANOTHER NASA ROVER

EXPLORING A DISTANT PART AT THE SAME CRATER.

BUT SATELLITE POSITIONING DATA

CONFIRMS THAT THE NEAREST ROVER IS THOUSANDS OF MILES AWAY.

WE KNOW THERE ARE NO MAN-MADE OBJECTS AT THAT LOCATION,

SO HOW DOES THAT LIGHT OCCUR?

Narrator: AT FIRST, NASA SUGGESTS

THAT THE WEIRD STREAK OF LIGHT IS A GLITCH

CAUSED BY COSMIC RAYS BOMBARDING THE MARTIAN ATMOSPHERE

AND HITTING THE CAMERA'S SENSORS.

Bell: WITH NO MAGNETIC FIELD,

THE SOLAR HIGH-ENERGY PARTICLES ARE COMING IN ALL THE TIME,

PEPPERING THE PIXELS.

SO THAT BRIGHT SPOT IS THE SAME KIND OF FEATURE

ONE WOULD EXPECT FROM A VERY ENERGETIC COSMIC RAY.

Narrator: BUT IT'S HARDER FOR COSMIC RAYS TO EXPLAIN

WHAT CURIOSITY SEES

WHEN IT RETURNS TO THE AREA THE FOLLOWING DAY.

ON THE SAME CRATER RIM,

THE MYSTERIOUS FIRE IS STILL THERE.

WHAT'S INTERESTING IS THAT THE SPOT OF LIGHT

IS SEEN IN TWO PHOTOS TAKEN A DAY APART IN THE SAME PLACE,

BUT VIEWED FROM DIFFERENT ANGLES.

SO THAT DOESN'T REALLY FIT WITH A COSMIC RAY HITTING THE CAMERA.

Rutkowski: BECAUSE IT'S ON TWO SEPARATE IMAGES

IN THE EXACT SAME LOCATION,

ONE HAS TO ASSUME THERE'S SOMETHING PHYSICALLY THERE

THAT'S CAUSING THE -- THIS LIGHT TO APPEAR.

Narrator: THE SECOND IMAGE CAUSES SCIENTISTS AT NASA

TO SEARCH FOR ANOTHER POSSIBLE EXPLANATION

FOR THIS STREAK OF LIGHT.

Bell: MARS HAS A LOT OF ROCKS.

WHEN YOU GET ROCKS THAT ARE EITHER GLASSY

AND VERY REFLECTIVE OR FLAT

AND VERY MIRROR-LIKE IN THE RIGHT ORIENTATION,

WITH THE SUNLIGHT COMING IN AT THEM,

IT'S POSSIBLE TO BOUNCE THAT SUNLIGHT, LIKE A MIRROR,

RIGHT INTO THE CAMERA AND CREATE A GLINT.

Narrator: BUT THE CHALLENGE WITH THIS APPARENTLY SIMPLE EXPLANATION

IS THAT THE TWO IMAGES FROM CURIOSITY

ARE TAKEN FROM TWO DIFFERENT ANGLES.

IT'S NOT SOMETHING WHERE YOU'RE SEEING SUNLIGHT

HITTING SOMETHING.

THIS LOOKS LIKE IT'S SELF-ILLUMINATING.

IT LOOKS COMPLETELY ANOMALOUS.

IT LOOKS LIKE THERE'S SOME SORT OF A GEYSER OR ERUPTION

COMING FROM THE MARTIAN SURFACE.

Narrator: FLAMES ERUPTING FROM BENEATH THE MARTIAN SURFACE

SOUNDS IMPOSSIBLE.

BUT RECENT NASA RESEARCH

SUGGESTS THAT THE RED PLANET'S INTERIOR ONCE CONCEALED

SOME OF THE BIGGEST VOLCANOES IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM.

IF CURIOSITY WERE ROAMING THE FLANKS OF A GIANT VOLCANO

AND SOMEHOW, ON THE HORIZON,

IT SAW SOMETHING BILLOWING OUT OF THE GROUND,

WELL, THAT COULD BE THE SIGN OF VOLCANIC ACTIVITY.

IT WOULD -- IT WOULD POSSIBLY MAKE SENSE.

Narrator: BUT VISUAL ANALYSIS DOESN'T SUPPORT THE IDEA

THE MARTIAN FIRE IS OF GEOLOGICAL ORIGIN.

IT DOESN'T REALLY LOOK LIKE VOLCANIC ACTIVITY AT ALL.

SO, AGAIN, WE'VE GOT A PROBLEM.

WHERE DOES THIS LIGHT COME FROM?

Narrator: UNTIL WE HAVE THE TECHNOLOGY

TO PENETRATE BENEATH THE SURFACE OF MARS,

THE RED PLANET'S INTERIOR WILL KEEP ITS SECRETS.

Bell: THE VAST MAJORITY OF MARS IS A MYSTERY TO US.

WE KNOW THE OUTSIDE VERY WELL.

BUT ONCE YOU PEEL THAT LAYER BACK,

WE STILL HAVE A LOT TO LEARN.

Narrator: STILL TO COME,

HAS A SOLAR EXPLOSION REVEALED SOMETHING HIDING NEAR MERCURY?

IT'S LIKE THOSE MOMENTS IN "STAR TREK,"

WHERE THE KLINGON BIRD-OF-PREY SUDDENLY REVEALS ITS PRESENCE.

Narrator: A NASA SATELLITE CAPTURES A HUGE COSMIC EXPLOSION.

SUDDENLY, THIS GIANT OBJECT JUST APPEARS OUT OF NOWHERE.

IT LOOKS LIKE THERE'S SOMETHING IN THE ORBIT OF MERCURY.

RIGHT THERE. WHAT IS THAT?

LOOKS LIKE A FLYING SAUCER. WHAT'S THAT DOING THERE?

Narrator: NASA SCIENTISTS LOOK TO DISTANT STARS

TO UNLOCK THE SECRETS OF THE UNIVERSE.

BUT SOMETIMES, THE ANSWERS CAN COME FROM SURPRISING PLACES.

AND SOME OF THE GREATEST MYSTERIES

APPEAR AT MOMENTS WHEN NO ONE IS LOOKING FOR THEM.

NASA'S STEREO PROGRAM USES TWIN SPACECRAFT

TO LOOK AT THE SUN FROM TWO ANGLES.

THE CUTTING EDGE, EXTREME ULTRAVIOLET SENSORS

CREATE UNIQUE IMAGES OF THE MOST DESTRUCTIVE EVENTS

IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM.

THESE ARE THESE HUGE EXPLOSIONS FROM THE SURFACE OF THE SUN.

AND THEY PUT OUT A LOT OF MASS, A LOT OF PLASMA,

THAT IS EMITTING LIGHT.

AND AS THIS PLASMA TRAVELS, IT ENCOUNTERS THE PLANET MERCURY.

MERCURY'S PROXIMITY TO THE SUN

MAKES IT A PRIME TARGET FOR THESE SOLAR EJECTIONS.

Narrator: THESE MAGNETIZED BUBBLES OF BURNING PLASMA

ARE CALLED CORONAL MASS EJECTIONS.

AND USUALLY, AS LONG AS THEY DON'T FIRE AT EARTH,

THEY DO NO HARM.

BUT IN DECEMBER 2011,

A BLAST LASHING TOWARDS MERCURY APPEARS TO STRIKE SOMETHING.

JUST BEFORE STRIKING THE PLANET MERCURY,

SUDDENLY, OUT OF NOWHERE, SOMETHING APPEARS.

IT LOOKS LIKE A SPACECRAFT.

IT'S ALMOST AS IF A SPACESHIP'S CLOAKING DEVICE

JUST GOT DESTROYED.

Oluseyi: IT'S LIKE THOSE MOMENTS IN "STAR TREK"

WHERE THE KLINGON BIRD-OF-PREY SUDDENLY REVEALS ITS PRESENCE.

Narrator: THE OBJECT BECOMES KNOWN AS THE MERCURY MOTHERSHIP.

THE APPEARANCE OF THE UNIDENTIFIED OBJECT

ON IMAGES FROM NASA SPACECRAFT GENERATES INTENSE SPECULATION.

Birnes: A LOT OF PEOPLE LOOK AT THAT VIDEO AND SAY,

"THIS PROVES THAT SPACECRAFT ARE HIDING OUT THERE

IN OUR SOLAR SYSTEM.

AND THIS ONE, THE CAMOUFLAGE

WAS SIMPLY BLOWN OFF BY THE SOLAR EJECTION."

Capps: I'M NOT SURE WHICH IS COOLER,

THE IDEA THAT THERE'S A CLOAKED SHIP HIDING NEAR MERCURY

OR THAT WE CAUGHT IT WITH ITS PANTS DOWN

WHEN THAT SOLAR FLARE HIT.

Narrator: A CLOAKED SPACESHIP SOUNDS LIKE PURE SCIENCE FICTION,

BUT THE IDEA IS CLOSER TO REALITY THAN YOU MIGHT THINK.

Capps: THE NOTION OF CLOAKING TECHNOLOGY FOR SPACESHIPS,

BEING ABLE TO HIDE, IS SUPER POPULAR IN SCIENCE FICTION

AND "STAR TREK," BUT IT'S ACTUALLY REAL TECHNOLOGY

THAT WE HAVE RIGHT NOW.

Narrator: ONE OF THE WORLD'S LEADING DEFENSE CONTRACTORS

ALREADY HAS WORKING PROTOTYPES OF AN ADVANCED CLOAKING DEVICE

CAPABLE OF MASKING THE INFRARED SIGNATURE

OF WAR MACHINES AS BIG AS A TANK.

Capps: SO OUR CLOAKING TECHNOLOGY TODAY

IS LIMITED BY THE SIZE OF THE CLOAKING DEVICES.

WE CAN BLOCK MICROWAVES OR RADARS

BUT NOT ANYTHING LIKE VISIBLE LIGHT.

BUT JUST BECAUSE WE DON'T HAVE THE TECHNOLOGY

TO BLOCK VISIBLE LIGHT, MUCH LESS CLOAK A SPACESHIP,

DOESN'T MEAN IT COULDN'T EXIST.

Narrator: EVEN THOUGH CLOAKED SPACESHIPS ARE A THEORETICAL POSSIBILITY,

ANALYSIS OF THE NASA IMAGERY

REVEALS THERE MAY BE A SIMPLER EXPLANATION

FOR THE MERCURY MOTHERSHIP.

I HATE TO BE THE BEARER OF BAD NEWS,

BUT THIS IS NOT AN UNCLOAKING ALIEN SHIP.

IT'S AN ARTIFACT OF THE IMAGE PROCESSING.

EACH DAY THAT SOHO TAKES PHOTOGRAPHS,

THOSE IMAGES ARE COMBINED INTO A MOVIE.

THINGS THAT AREN'T MOVING GET TAKEN OUT.

THINGS THAT ARE MOVING STAY BEHIND.

AND IN THIS VIDEO, WHAT'S MOVING?

THE STARS ARE MOVING. MERCURY IS MOVING.

THE SOLAR ENERGY IS MOVING.

WHAT WE'RE SEEING HERE IS ACTUALLY A GHOST IMAGE

OF MERCURY FROM THE PREVIOUS DAY.

WHAT LOOKS LIKE AN UNCLOAKING SHIP WAS, IN FACT,

MERCURY THE DAY BEFORE.

Narrator: MANKIND'S TELESCOPES AND SPACECRAFT

CATCH ONLY A TINY GLIMPSE OF OUR VAST SOLAR SYSTEM.

OBSERVERS LURKING IN THE DARKNESS OF SPACE

WOULD NOT REQUIRE ANY ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY TO REMAIN UNDETECTED.

AS NASA'S MISSIONS BECOME MORE AMBITIOUS,

PUSHING FARTHER INTO SPACE,

THE AGENCY FACES EVER-GREATER CHALLENGES,

AND NOT ALL ARE OF EXTRATERRESTRIAL ORIGIN.

WITH EACH NEW DISCOVERY, IT BECOMES CLEAR

THAT WE ARE BEGINNING A NEW ERA OF EXPLORATION.

WE CAN ONLY IMAGINE WHAT THE FUTURE HOLDS FOR HUMANITY.

CAPTIONS PAID FOR BY DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS