All language subtitles for NASAs.Unexplained.Files.S05E04.Secret.Aliens.1080p.AMZN.WEB-DL.DD+2.0.H.264-BATMAN_track3_[eng]

♪♪

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

WHAT WE KNOW
ABOUT THE UNIVERSE

IS A TINY FRACTION
OF WHAT'S ACTUALLY OUT THERE.

Narrator:
IN THE SEARCH FOR ANSWERS,

IT LAUNCHES
ITS SCIENTISTS INTO SPACE.

IT'S CRAFT BEYOND THE LIMITS
OF THE SOLAR SYSTEM.

WE HAVE NO IDEA
WHAT'S OUT THERE.

Hey, what is that?

THERE MIGHT BE DANGERS
LURKING IN THE DARKNESS.

WE RUN ACROSS MORE MYSTERIES
THAN DISCOVERIES.

WE DON'T KNOW WHAT IT'S GOING
TO THROW AT US NEXT.

Narrator: THE CREW OF
THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION

FACE A CRISIS
NO ONE SEES COMING.

270 MILES ABOVE EARTH

WITHOUT THEIR PLANNED
RIDE HOME --

THAT'S A SCARY THOUGHT.

Narrator: SCIENTISTS
UNCOVER POSSIBLE EVIDENCE

OF AN ALIEN PRESENCE
IN OUR SEAS.

IT'S THE FIRST SEQUENCE GENOME
FROM SOMETHING LIKE AN ALIEN.

Narrator:
AND NASA GEOLOGISTS FIND CLUES

TO WHAT TRIGGERS
THE ANNIHILATION

OF NEARLY ALL LIFE ON EARTH.

WE HAVE WHAT IS ALMOST
A PERFECT STORM

TO CREATE
MASS EXTINCTION ON EARTH.

Narrator: THESE ARE
"NASA'S UNEXPLAINED FILES."

CAPTIONS PAID FOR BY
DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS

A WITNESS REPORTS
A STRANGE OBJECT

HOVERING IN THE NIGHT SKY
OVER VIRGINIA.

WHEN THE WITNESS
IS A NASA ENGINEER,

WELL, YOU SIT UP
AND PAY ATTENTION.

THE SIGHTING REMAINS UNEXPLAINED
FOR ALMOST HALF A CENTURY.

I MEAN, WHAT WAS THAT THING?
WHAT WAS IT?

Narrator: CAN NEWLY DECLASSIFIED
NASA DOCUMENTS

FINALLY SOLVE THE MYSTERY?

6 P.M...

HAMPTON, VIRGINIA.

DAVID CRIMMINS IS
AN 11-YEAR-OLD SCHOOLBOY

DRIVING HOME WITH HIS FATHER.

WE WERE IN THE CAR,
AND WE PULLED INTO OUR DRIVEWAY.

THE DOOR WAS HALF OPEN,
AND HE STOPPED.

AND HE WAS STARING
THROUGH THE WINDSHIELD.

DAD SAID,
"GO GET THE BINOCULARS."

BECAUSE HE DID NOT WANT
TO TAKE HIS EYES OFF IT.

IT'S A MILE. A GOOD MILE AWAY.
IT WAS FLYING.

YOU COULD DEFINITELY SEE
THE LIGHTS VERY CLEARLY.

THEY BLINKED IN SEQUENCE.

ONE, TWO, THREE, FOUR, FIVE.

AS CRIMMINS DESCRIBES IT,
RED AND ORANGE LIGHTS

ON WHAT APPEARS TO HIM
TO BE A ROTATING DISK.

AND THEN IT GETS
EVEN MORE BIZARRE.

THIS THING ACTUALLY LANDS.

Narrator: IN MANY WAYS,
THE HAMPTON INCIDENT

IS JUST ANOTHER U.F.O. SIGHTING,

BUT DAVID'S FATHER
IS NO ORDINARY WITNESS.

MY FATHER WAS
A SERVICE ENGINEER.

HE WORKED AT
LANGLEY AIR FORCE BASE AT NASA.

HE BASICALLY NEW THE EXOTIC,
ADVANCED EQUIPMENT

THAT NASA USED
AND HE COULD GET INTO IT,

FIGURE IT OUT, FIX IT,
MAKE IT WORK.

WHEN YOU HAVE A NASA
EMPLOYEE REPORTING A U.F.O.,

ESPECIALLY OVER A MILITARY
OR GOVERNMENT INSTALLATION,

THE GOVERNMENT
HAS TO REPORT IT.

THE U.S. AIR FORCE LAUNCHES

ITS OWN INVESTIGATION
INTO THE HAMPTON INCIDENT.

THE AIR FORCE PUT FORTH
A THEORY THAT THE OBJECT

THAT WAS SEEN WAS ACTUALLY
AN H-3 SEA KING HELICOPTER.

YOU CAN SEE THESE AT NIGHT TIME

WHERE THE BLADE
ACTUALLY GIVES OFF

SOME ELECTRIC DISCHARGE.

YOU CAN SEE THE COLORS
LIKE A LASER

JUST GOING BACK AND FORTH
AND BACK AND FORTH.

BUT THE AIR FORCE EXPLANATION

DOESN'T FIT
WITH CRIMMINS' WITNESS

REPORT OF A SILENT CRAFT.

THIS JUST DOESN'T ADD UP.

THE FACT THAT HE AIR FORCE SAID
THAT IT WAS AN H-3 SEA KING,

FIRST OF ALL, THE HELICOPTER
MAKES A TON OF NOISE.

WE LISTENED, YOU KNOW,
HOWEVER HARD YOU CAN LISTEN.

AND NO, WE COULDN'T
HEAR ANYTHING.

HE SAID, "IN MY MIND, NOW I KNOW
FOR SURE IT'S NOT A HELICOPTER."

Narrator: CRIMMINS PUSHES
THE INVESTIGATION FURTHER.

AFTER BEING INTERVIEWED
BY THE AIR FORCE,

CRIMMINS ACTUALLY GETS
IN TOUCH WITH N.I.C.A.P.

N.I.C.A.P., THE LEADING
U.F.O. INVESTIGATION GROUP

AT THAT TIME,
OPENS AN INVESTIGATION.

AND THIS IS WHEN THINGS
GET REALLY INTERESTING.

Narrator:
N.I.C.A.P. INVESTIGATORS

SUGGEST THE LOCATION
OF CRIMMINS SIGHTING

COULD PROVIDE AN EXPLANATION.

IN THE VICINITY OF WHERE
THESE TWO WITNESSES

HAD THEIR SIGHTING,
IS LANGLEY AIR FORCE BASE.

COULD THERE HAVE BEEN
SOME SECRET TESTING THERE

THAT WOULD EXPLAIN
THEIR SIGHTING?

THE AIR FORCE AT THAT TIME,

WAS BUILDING WHAT WE
CALLED PROJECT 1794.

AND THIS WAS THEIR FIRST
ATTEMPT AT BUILDING

AN ACTUAL FLYING SAUCER.

AT THE TIME OF THE SIGHTING,

PROJECT 1794 WAS DESIGNATED
TOP-SECRET.

BUT IN OCTOBER 2012,

THE DEPARTMENT
OF DEFENSE RELEASED

DECLASSIFIED DOCUMENTATION.

ACCORDING TO THE DOCUMENTS,

THE CRAFT WOULD HAVE HAD
A TOP SPEED OF MACH 4

WITH A CEILING
OF OVER 100,000 FEET.

Narrator:
THEORETICALLY, THE FLYING SAUCER

WOULDHAVE BEEN ABLE TO PERFORM

THE INCREDIBLE MANEUVERS
WITNESSES DESCRIBED.

MOST IMPORTANTLY, IT WOULD HAVE
BEEN CAPABLE OF V.T.O.L.,

VERTICAL TAKEOFF AND LANDING.

BUT EVIDENCE FROM ANOTHER

U.S. MILITARY
FLYING SAUCER PROGRAM,

SUGGESTS SUCH A CRAFT
WOULD HAVE BEEN HARD TO BUILD.

THE MILITARY DID BUILD
A PROTOTYPE CRAFT

CALLED THE AVROCAR.

BUT IT NEVER MOVED BEYOND
THE POINT OF BEING ABLE TO FLY

JUST A FEW FEET INTO THE AIR.

THE PLUG GETS PULLED
ON THE AVROCAR PROJECT IN 1960.

WELL, THAT'S FIVE YEARS EARLIER.

SO THAT CAN'T BE
THE EXPLANATION.

FOR ALMOST FIVE DECADES

THE HAMPTON INCIDENT
REMAINS UNSOLVED.

BUT IN 2012 N.I.C.A.P.
INVESTIGATORS UNCOVER DOCUMENTS

THAT COULD OFFER A NEW LEAD.

OUR DRIVEWAY THAT WE PULLED
INTO ON WINDMILL POINT,

FACES STRAIGHT ACROSS THIS PLACE
CALLED PLUM TREE ISLAND.

NOW, PLUM TREE ISLAND
WAS THIS VERY DARK, SCARY PLACE.

IT WAS GOVERNMENT PROPERTY.

IT USED TO BE A BOMBING RANGE,
WE WERE TOLD.

Narrator: THE DOCUMENTS REVEAL
PLUM TREE ISLAND

WAS ALSO THE SITE

OF HIGHLY CLASSIFIED
NASA SPACECRAFT TESTS.

IN THE MID 1960s,
NASA WOULD HAVE BEEN DOING

DROP TESTS ON THE GEMINI
AND APOLLO SPACECRAFT...

...WHICH INVOLVES LIFTING IT UP

WITH SOME SORT OF CRANE
OR A HELICOPTER

AND THEN DROPPING IT DOWN
TO TEST LANDING IN WATER,

CRASH LANDING ON THE EARTH,

PARACHUTE TESTS,
THINGS LIKE THAT.

SOME OF THESE TESTS
WERE DONE IN SECRET.

I MEAN, REMEMBER,
IN ALL OF THIS,

AMERICA WAS STILL IN THE RACE
TO GET TO THE MOON FIRST.

Narrator: BUT EVEN IF NASA
WAS CONDUCTING

SECRET DROP TESTS
AT PLUM TREE ISLAND,

THE SPACECRAFT
WOULD NOT BE CAPABLE

OF THE MANEUVERS
THE U.F.O. PERFORMED.

OKAY.
I MEAN, PLUM TREE ISLAND

WOULD HAVE BEEN
A FINE PLACE TO DO THAT.

BUT THIS THING
WASN'T DROPPING.

YOU KNOW, IT WAS HOVERING.

SURELY NASA ENGINEERS

WOULD HAVE SEEN
A DROP TEST BEFORE

AND WOULDN'T MISTAKE THE CAPSULE
FOR SOMETHING TRULY UNKNOWN.

Narrator:
50 YEARS ON, DAVID CRIMMINS

IS STILL SEARCHING
FOR ANSWERS

TO THE MYSTERY THAT
BAFFLED HIS FATHER.

WE ALL HAVE MEMORIES
THAT WE CAN IDENTIFY,

YOU KNOW, IN VERY SPECIFICALLY
AND IN VIVID TERMS.

THAT'S ONE OF THEM FOR ME.

WE'LL PROBABLY NEVER KNOW
WHAT THOSE TWO SAW.

THERE ARE STILL A LOT
OF UNANSWERED QUESTIONS HERE.

Narrator: COMING UP, FBI AGENTS
FIND CLASSIFIED DOCUMENTS

AT THE HOME OF A NASA SCIENTIST.

HIGHLY PRIZED SECRETS ARE ALL
DOWN THERE IN BLACK AND WHITE.

AND THEY'RE ALL FOR SALE.

Narrator:
AND NASA ASTRONAUTS STRANDED

ON THE INTERNATIONAL
SPACE STATION

ARE RUNNING OUT
OF FOOD AND OXYGEN.

THE EXPEDITION 6 CREW
HAD TO COME HOME.

THE QUESTION IS, HOW?

♪♪

Narrator: THE FBI ARRESTS
A NASA ROCKET SCIENTIST.

THIS IS A MAN WHO
WANTED MILLIONS OF DOLLARS

TO SELL OUT HIS COUNTRY.

HAS NASA FALLEN VICTIM
TO AN ESPIONAGE OPERATION

FROM A FOREIGN GOVERNMENT?

Narrator:
FBI AGENTS INVESTIGATE

NASA DEFENSE SCIENTIST
STEWART NOZETTE.

THE FEDS SUSPECT THIS
EXCEPTIONAL SCIENTIST

IS DEFRAUDING THE GOVERNMENT
OF THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS.

THEY HAVE REASON TO BELIEVE

THAT NOZETTE HAS BEEN
BILLING FRAUDULENTLY FOR THINGS

THAT HAVE NO BEARING
ON HIS WORK.

HE WAS DEFRAUDING
THE GOVERNMENT OF MONEY

THAT HE USED TO BUILD
A SWIMMING POOL,

TO PAY FOR VACATIONS,
OTHER RELATED EXPENSES.

AND THEY RAID HIS HOUSE
FOR THAT KIND OF EVIDENCE.

Narrator:
AGENTS FIND PROOF OF FRAUD.

BUT THEY FIND SOMETHING
EVEN MORE SINISTER.

AMONG ALL OF NOZETTE'S RECEIPTS,
THEY FIND CLASSIFIED DOCUMENTS,

DOCUMENTS HE SHOULD
NOT HAVE AT HIS HOME.

THE FBI SUSPECTS THEY'VE
STUMBLED UPON SOMETHING BIG.

WELL, NOZETTE, HE HAD A CAREER

THAT COVERED
THE DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE,

THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY.
THEN HE ALSO WORKED FOR NASA,

WORKED AT THE WHITE HOUSE
FOR A PERIOD OF TIME.

AND HE HAD ACCESS
TO CLASSIFIED INFORMATION

AT EVERY STEP OF THE WAY.

HE WORKED ON SOME
OF THE GOVERNMENT'S

MOST SENSITIVE PROGRAMS,
NUCLEAR PROGRAMS,

ANTI-BALLISTIC MISSILE PROGRAM,
THE STAR WARS PROGRAM.

SUDDENLY, WHAT STARTED AS
A ROUTINE FRAUD INVESTIGATION

HAS TAKEN A SINISTER TURN.

AND WE'RE IN
THE TERRITORY OF ESPIONAGE.

Narrator: FBI AGENTS RUN
A FORENSIC EXAMINATION

OF NOZETTE'S HARD DRIVES

TO SEE WHERE THE SECRETS
COULD BE GOING.

THEY FIND AN E-MAIL
IN WHICH HE OFFERS

TO SELL
HIGHLY CLASSIFIED DOCUMENTS

TO THE ISRAELI GOVERNMENT.

ISRAEL IS A LONG-STANDING ALLY
TO THE UNITED STATES.

BUT EVEN FRIENDS
KEEP SECRETS FROM EACH OTHER.

IT SHOULDN'T BE
A SURPRISE, UNDERSTAND,

THAT SPYING,
EVEN BETWEEN ALLIES, GOES ON.

NO INTEL SERVICE
COMPLETELY OPENS UP THE KIMONO

TO ANOTHER INTEL SERVICE.

WE'RE NOT GOING TO GIVE THEM
THE CROWN JEWELS

OF AMERICAN NUCLEAR
AND AIR DEFENSE SECRETS.

SO THEY'RE TRYING
TO GET IT FROM US.

ISRAEL WANTS
STATE-OF-THE-ART MISSILE ATTACK

AND DEFENSE CAPABILITIES
TO PROTECT ITSELF.

IRAN, A NEIGHBOR
IN THE MIDDLE EAST,

HAVE SAID THEY WANT TO WIPE IT
OFF THE FACE OF THE EARTH.

AND ISRAEL WOULD LIKE
COUNTER MEASURES

TO PREVENT THAT FROM HAPPENING.

NOZETTE KNOWS THAT
THE ISRAELI GOVERNMENT

WANTS THIS SORT OF MATERIAL.

SO HE THINKS, "THESE ARE
THE PEOPLE THAT I CAN SELL TO."

Narrator: THE FBI NEEDS
TO CATCH HIM IN THE ACT.

AGENTS TRAIL HIM
TO A SECRET RENDEZVOUS.

NOZETTE MEETS WITH SOMEONE

THAT HE BELIEVES TO BE
FROM ISRAELI INTELLIGENCE.

HE THINKS THIS IS
A MOSSAD AGENT.

IT'S NOT.

THIS PERSON IS AN FBI OFFICER.

Narrator: THE ENTIRE MEETING
IS AN FBI STING.

AND NOZETTE TAKES THE BAIT.

NOZETTE STARTS TO BOAST.

EFFECTIVELY, HE SAYS,

"ANYTHING AMERICA
HAS DONE IN SPACE,

"I KNOW ABOUT.

YOU WANT IT,
I CAN SELL IT TO YOU."

Narrator:
NOZETTE'S FBI HANDLER ARRANGES

A TIME AND PLACE
FOR A DEAD LETTER DROP.

THE AGENT DEMANDS
SPECIFIC DETAILS

OF HIGHLY CLASSIFIED SATELLITE

AND EARLY WARNING SYSTEMS
TECHNOLOGIES.

JUST 14 DAYS LATER,
NOZETTE DELIVERS.

THE FBI ARE STUNNED.

IT'S LIKE THE CROWN JEWELS
ARE BEING OFFERED.

HIGHLY PRIZED SECRETS

ARE ALL DOWN THERE
IN BLACK AND WHITE.

AND THEY'RE ALL FOR SALE.

THIS IS ASTONISHING.

NOT ONLY DOES NOZETTE
PROVIDE INFORMATION

ON NUCLEAR TECHNOLOGY,
HE PROVIDES INFORMATION

ON MILITARY SPACE TECHNOLOGIES
AS WELL.

Narrator: WHAT FOLLOWS IS
THE FBI'S SECRET RECORDING

OF A MEETING WITH NOZETTE.

IN THIS MEETING, NOZETTE DOESN'T
HOLD BACK

AND STARTS DEMANDING
A WHOLE LOT MORE MONEY.

OKAY. SO I GAVE YOU,
EVEN IN THIS FIRST RUN...

MM-HMM.

...SOME OF THE MOST CLASSIFIED
INFORMATION THAT THERE IS.

WELL, WHAT IS IT THAT
YOU'RE LOOKING FOR?

THE COST TO U.S. GOVERNMENT
WAS $200 MILLION.

SO I WOULD SAY,
YOU KNOW, THEORETICALLY,

I SHOULD CHARGE YOU
CERTAINLY...

-HOW MUCH?
-...AT MOST, A 1%.

HE SAYS, "I'M GOING TO SAVE
ISRAEL BILLIONS WITH THIS.

SO IT'S ONLY FAIR
THAT I GET A BIGGER CUT."

SO I THINK WHEN I SAID,
LIKE, 50K,

I THINK THAT WAS
PROBABLY TOO LOW.

NOZETTE WAS FAIRLY AGGRESSIVE
IN HIS DEMANDS FOR COMPENSATION.

THAT'S NOT UNCOMMON
FOR A TRAITOR

WHO'S MOTIVATED BY FINANCES.

-HERE'S A FIVE AND FIVE.
-OKAY. SO THERE'S 10.

YES.

Narrator: THE FBI'S VIDEO
EVIDENCE IS DAMNING.

ON OCTOBER 19, 2009,
NOZETTE IS ARRESTED.

THEN COMES THE BOMBSHELL.

NOZETTE HAS ACTUALLY
BEEN EMPLOYED

AS A CONSULTANT FOR A FIRM
CALLED

ISRAEL AEROSPACE INDUSTRY
FOR 10 YEARS.

ISRAEL AEROSPACE INDUSTRIES
IS A COMPANY

THAT SOME INTELLIGENCE EXPERTS
HAVE LINKED TO ESPIONAGE.

SO THE QUESTION HAS TO BE ASKED,

HAS NOZETTE PASSED INFORMATION
TO THE ISRAELIS ALREADY?

LET'S PUT IT THIS WAY.

IF NOZETTE HAD
PROVIDED INFORMATION

TO A FOREIGN GOVERNMENT BASED ON
WHAT HE HAD ACCESS TO,

THAT'S SIGNIFICANTLY
DAMAGING

TO U.S. NATIONAL SECURITY
INTERESTS.

Narrator: ON SEPTEMBER 7, 2011,
NOZETTE PLEADS GUILTY

TO ONE COUNT
OF ATTEMPTED ESPIONAGE.

STATE PROSECUTORS DEMAND
A LIFE SENTENCE.

BUT AFTER MAKING A PLEA DEAL
WITH PROSECUTORS,

NOZETTE GETS 13 YEARS.

IS THERE SOMETHING
ABOUT THIS CASE

THAT WE'RE STILL NOT BEING TOLD?

AND IS THAT WHY NOZETTE GOT AWAY
WITH SUCH A LIGHT SENTENCE?

WE'LL PROBABLY NEVER KNOW.

Narrator:
COMING UP, AN ASTRONOMER DETECTS

AN UNNATURAL PULSE COMING
FROM A NEIGHBORING STAR SYSTEM.

SHE FINDS SOMETHING
THAT COULD BE

THE GREATEST DISCOVERY
OF ALL TIME,

NAMELY THE EXISTENCE
OF INTELLIGENCE ELSEWHERE

IN THE GALAXY.

♪♪

♪♪

Narrator: AN ASTRONOMER RECORDS
AN UNUSUAL RADIO SIGNAL

FROM BEYOND OUR SOLAR SYSTEM.

BOOM, BOOM, BOOM, BOOM.

LIKE A HEARTBEAT FROM SPACE.

IT'S SO REGULAR, IT SURELY
CAN'T BE ANYTHING NATURAL.

Narrator: COULD THIS
EXTRATERRESTRIAL SIGNAL

BE PROOF OF INTELLIGENCE LIFE?

SOMETHING IS SENDING A MESSAGE
BACK TOWARDS EARTH.

Narrator: CAMBRIDGE, ENGLAND.

JOCELYN BELL
IS AN ASTRONOMY STUDENT

EXAMINING RADIO WAVE DATA

FROM THE MOST SENSITIVE
TELESCOPE OF ITS KIND.

JOCELYN BELL IS
LOOKING FOR QUASARS,

OBJECTS THAT ARE A HUNDRED TIMES
BRIGHTER THAN THE MILKY WAY.

Narrator: SHE ANALYZES
THE 100 FEET

OF RADIO WAVE DATA
GENERATED EVERY NIGHT.

AND IT'S JUST ALL
ON CHART PAPER,

I MEAN, MILES
AND MILES OF CHART PAPER.

THAT'S THE WAY
THEY DID IT BACK THEN.

AND SHE'S GOING THROUGH
AND LOOKING FOR,

YOU KNOW, RADIO SOURCES.

WHAT THEY'RE EXPECTING TO SEE
IS RADIO EMISSION

AND CONTINUOUS BUT SOMEWHAT
RANDOM BURSTS.

Narrator: INSTEAD, SOMETHING
ELSE GRABS HER ATTENTION.

[ STATIC SOUND ]

IT'S A REGULAR PULSE.

WHAT SHE SEES IS A SIGNAL SPACED
PRECISELY 1 1/3 SECONDS APART.

IT'S VERY REGULAR, LIKE A CLOCK,

BETTER THAN ANY CLOCK,
IN FACT, THAT WE COULD BUILD.

THIS IS BEYOND WEIRD.

Narrator: BELL SHARES THE DATA

WITH HER SUPERVISOR,
ANTHONY HEWISH.

THE MYSTERIOUS, REPETITIVE PULSE

IS LIKE NOTHING
HE'S SEEN BEFORE.

BUT HE DOES NOTICE
A PATTERN.

THE PULSES ARE SO PRECISE,

THEY CANNOT BE COMING
FROM ANY NATURAL PHENOMENA.

SO IT MAKES SENSE TO ASK,

IS THIS
FROM MAN-MADE INTERFERENCE?

THE MOST LIKELY SOURCE
WOULD BE THEIR OWN EQUIPMENT.

Narrator:
TO RULE OUT EQUIPMENT FAILURE,

HEWISH ASKS ANOTHER
TELESCOPE TEAM

TO SEE IF THEY CAN
DETECT THE PULSE.

AND THEY FIND THE SAME SIGNAL.

SO IT RULES OUT
MAN-MADE INTERFERENCE.

THE ONLY ANSWER WAS

IT WAS ACTUALLY COMING
FROM OUTER SPACE.

Narrator: BELL SUGGESTS
A CONTROVERSIAL EXPLANATION.

SHE CALLS IT A SIGNAL
FROM LITTLE GREEN MEN --

L.G.M.

IT'S SO UNNATURAL,

IT'S ALMOST LIKE IT
COULD BE FROM ALIENS

DELIBERATELY TRYING
TO SEND US A SIGNAL.

SHE FINDS SOMETHING
THAT COULD BE THE GREATEST

DISCOVERY OF ALL TIME,

NAMELY THE EXISTENCE
OF INTELLIGENCE ELSEWHERE

IN THE GALAXY.

Narrator: BELL AND HEWISH DIG
DEEPER INTO THEIR DATA

TO PINPOINT THE ORIGIN
OF THE MYSTERIOUS PULSE.

THEY FIGURE OUT THE SOURCE
IS COMING FROM A SPECIFIC PLACE

IN THE SKY,
IN A CONSTELLATION VULPECULA.

AND THE SOURCE IS ABOUT
200 LIGHT-YEARS AWAY.

VULPECULA IS HOME TO FIVE STARS
WITH ORBITING EXOPLANETS.

RECENT RESEARCH REVEALS
ONE OF THESE PLANETS

EVEN CONTAIN WATER.

AND WATER CAN MEAN LIFE.

BELL RUNS A MORE DETAILED
ANALYSIS OF HER DATA.

SHE BEGINS SEARCHING
ELSEWHERE IN SPACE

FOR THESE ODD PULSES.

AND LO AND BEHOLD,
SHE FINDS ONE.

Narrator:
IT'S ANOTHER PULSING SIGNAL,

THIS TIME ON
A DIFFERENT FREQUENCY

BUT TRANSMITTING
EXACTLY THE SAME WAVE.

THEN SHE FINDS
ANOTHER AND ANOTHER.

NOW, THIS TELLS HER IT'S ODD.

THERE AREN'T MULTIPLE
ALIEN CIVILIZATIONS

TRYING TO COMMUNICATE WITH US

AT THE VERY SAME TIME
USING THE VERY SAME METHOD.

SHE REALIZES, THIS MUST
BE SOMETHING ELSE.

[ STATIC SOUND ]

Narrator: THE MYSTERIOUS PULSE
IS NOT FROM LITTLE GREEN MEN

BUT FROM SOMETHING
JUST AS INCREDIBLE.

[ CRANKS ]

JOCELYN BELL'S L.G.M.1 SIGNAL

COMES FROM A NEW
COSMOLOGICAL PHENOMENON.

IN FEBRUARY 1968,

BELL AND HEWISH PUBLISH
THE DISCOVERY OF A SUPER DENSE,

HIGHLY MAGNETIZED
CELESTIAL BODY...

A NEUTRON STAR.

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN A GIANT
STAR DIES IS IT COLLAPSES.

AND IT COLLAPSES DOWN
INTO A NEUTRON STAR SO DENSE,

A SUGAR CUBE PIECE THIS BIG

WOULD WEIGH MORE THAN
10,000 AIRCRAFT CARRIERS.

AND IT'S SPINNING VERY FAST.

AND BECAUSE IT HAS THESE
STRONG MAGNETIC FIELDS,

IT'S SENDING OUT BEAMS
OF RADIO ENERGY

AND ALSO LIGHT INTO SPACE.

IT'S GIVING OFF
VERY POWERFUL JETS,

ONLY IN TWO DIRECTIONS.

AS THE STAR IS ROTATING,
THE SIGNAL,

IF IT'S POINTING
TOWARDS US, CAN BE DETECTED.

IT'S KIND OF LIKE
A LIGHTHOUSE.

SO AS THE LIGHTHOUSE SPINS,

YOU SEE THE LIGHT,
YOU SEE THE LIGHT.

Narrator: THE PULSATING
NEUTRON STAR RESPONSIBLE

FOR THE L.G.M.1 SIGNAL
GETS THE NICKNAME "PULSAR."

THE THEORY THAT
ANTHONY HEWISH PRESENTS

TO THE ASTRONAUTICAL WORLD
TURNS IT UPSIDE DOWN

AND IN FACT BRINGS HIM
THE NOBEL PRIZE

FOR ONE OF THE GREATEST
DISCOVERIES MADE.

Narrator: THE DISCOVERY LAYS
THE FOUNDATIONS

OF A PATHWAY THROUGH THE COSMOS.

BECAUSE PULSARS ARE MORE THAN
JUST ANOTHER TYPE OF STAR,

THEY ARE BEACONS
FOR GALACTIC NAVIGATION.

AS WE'VE BEGUN
TO MAP THE UNIVERSE,

WE'VE NOW DISCOVERED OVER
A THOUSAND OF THESE PULSARS.

ANY INTELLIGENT SPECIES
WILL KNOW

ABOUT ALL THE PULSARS
IN A NEIGHBORHOOD.

SO YOU CAN PUT THEM
ON SPACECRAFT

AS KIND OF MARKERS ON A MAP.

Narrator: THE NASA TEAMS
BEHIND THE VOYAGER

AND PIONEER MISSIONS

INCLUDE MAPS OF THE PULSARS
NEAREST OUR PLANET.

IF INTELLIGENT LIFE INTERCEPTS
THESE DEEP SPACE PROBES,

THEY'LL HAVE A CLEAR MAP
TO US ON EARTH.

WHETHER IT'S A GOOD THING

TO BE ADVERTISING
OUR LOCATION IS UNCERTAIN.

COMING UP,

AN INTERNATIONAL
SPACE STATION CREW

LEARNS THEIR RIDE HOME
IS CANCELED.

HOW LONG CAN THE HUMAN BEING
LIVE IN SPACE

AND STILL COME BACK HEALTHY?

OR ARE YOU GOING
TO LOSE YOUR LIFE?

[ ALARM BEEPING ]

♪♪

♪♪

Narrator: THE COLUMBIATRAGEDY
SENDS A NATION INTO MOURNING.

THE SPACE SHUTTLE COLUMBIA
DISINTEGRATED ON RE-ENTRY,

KILLING ALL SEVEN
ASTRONAUTS ON BOARD.

Narrator: NOW, THE CREW

OF THE INTERNATIONAL
SPACE STATION FACES

A CRISIS NO ONE SAW COMING.

NASA'S GOT A PROBLEM.

THEIR ENTIRE SPACE SHUTTLE FLEET
HAS BEEN GROUNDED INDEFINITELY.

270 MILES ABOVE EARTH,

WITHOUT THEIR PLANNED RIDE HOME,
THAT'S A SCARY THOUGHT.

Narrator: THE INTERNATIONAL
SPACE STATION

ORBITS 248 MILES
ABOVE THE EARTH.

COMMANDER KENNETH BOWERSOX,

FLIGHT ENGINEER DONALD PETTIT,

AND RUSSIAN ENGINEER
NIKOLAI BUDARIN

ARE EXPEDITION 6.

AFTER 4 MONTHS, THEY'RE
PREPARING TO RETURN TO EARTH.

THEIR RIDE HOME
IS GOING TO COME

WHEN THE SPACE SHUTTLE ATLANTIS

BRINGS THE NEXT EXPEDITION
TO BOARD.

THEY'RE GOING TO SWAP OFF
AND TAKE THAT SHUTTLE HOME.

Narrator: BUT JUST WEEKS BEFORE

THEY'RE DUE TO FLY
ATLANTIS HOME, TRAGEDY STRIKES.

SPACE SHUTTLE COLUMBIA
IS LOST ON RE-ENTRY.

AND ITS SEVEN CREW MEMBERS
ARE KILLED.

Narrator: THE NEWS HITS
THE I.S.S. CREW HARD.

[ Filtered voice ] WE'VE HAD
TIME TO GRIEVE OUR FRIENDS.

AND THAT WAS VERY IMPORTANT.
WHEN YOU'RE UP HERE THIS LONG,

YOU CAN'T JUST BOTTLE UP
YOUR EMOTIONS

AND FOCUS ALL THE TIME.

Narrator: THE CREW LEARNS
THE SHUTTLE PROGRAM

IS SUSPENDED INDEFINITELY.

THEIR RIDE HOME IS CANCELED.

NASA'S GOT A PROBLEM.

IT COULD BE 2 YEARS OR MORE

BEFORE THE SHUTTLE FLIES AGAIN,
IF EVER.

NO HUMAN HAS SPENT
THAT LONG IN SPACE.

NO ONE REALLY KNOWS
THE PROLONGED EFFECTS

OF MICRO GRAVITY
ON THE HUMAN BODY AND MIND.

HOW LONG CAN THE HUMAN BEING
LIVE IN SPACE

AND STILL COME BACK HEALTHY?

OR ARE YOU GOING
TO LOSE YOUR LIFE?

THE EXPEDITION 6 CREW HAVE
TO COME HOME EVENTUALLY.

THE QUESTION IS, HOW?

THERE MIGHT BE A SOLUTION
TO NASA'S PROBLEM

ONBOARD THE SPACE STATION
ALREADY -- A SORT OF LIFEBOAT.

IT'S THE SOYUZ TMA-1 SPACECRAFT.

Narrator: BUT USING
THE RUSSIAN TMA-1 CAPSULE

IS A RISKY PROPOSITION.

THE RUSSIAN SOYUZ SPACECRAFT

IS A PRETTY BASIC
DESIGN VEHICLE

FIRST FLOWN BACK IN THE 1960s.

IT'S SMALL. IT'S CRAMPED,

ESSENTIALLY A PADDED CAPSULE
WITH A PARACHUTE ATTACHED TO IT.

THE ASTRONAUTS KNOW
THE TMA-1 IS THE FIRST

IN A NEW PRODUCTION LINE
OF THE SPACECRAFT.

THIS SPACECRAFT EVEN HAS A NEW
EXPERIMENTAL GUIDANCE SYSTEM

THAT NOT ONE OF THE MEN
HAS EVER USED BEFORE.

Narrator:
THE EXPEDITION 6 TEAM ENDURES

A 3-MONTH EXTENSION
TO THEIR MISSION

WHILE ENGINEERS FIGURE OUT

IF THERE'S ANOTHER WAY
TO BRING THEM IN HOME.

THE CREW WILL SOON
RUN OUT OF FOOD

AND BREATHABLE AIR.

THERE IS NO PLAN "B."

BOWERSOX,
PETTIT, AND BUDARIN CRAM

INTO THE SOYUZ IN PREPARATION
FOR THE RETURN TRIP.

THE NASA ASTRONAUTS HAVE
NEVER FLOWN IN A SOYUZ BEFORE.

THEY MUST BE
PRETTY APPREHENSIVE.

THEY HAD GOOD REASON TO WORRY,
AS IT TURNED OUT.

THE SOYUZ WITH EXPEDITION 6
DEPARTING THE STATION.

Narrator: THREE HOURS INTO
A TEXTBOOK DESCENT...

I have a problem.

Narrator: DISASTER STRIKES
THE RUSSIAN CRAFT.

AS THE CRAFT BEGINS ITS RE-ENTRY
THROUGH EARTH'S ATMOSPHERE,

FLAMES APPEAR AT THE WINDOW.

THEN THE UNTHINKABLE HAPPENS,

AND THE SPACECRAFT
START SPINNING.

THEY GET A WARNING LIGHT
THAT THEY'RE JUST FALLING

BALLISTICALLY
THROUGH THE ATMOSPHERE.

♪♪

THE GUIDANCE COMPUTER
HAS GONE INSANE.

IT SWITCHES THE TRAJECTORY
OF THE SPACECRAFT

FROM THE NORMAL ROUTINE

TO THE BALLISTIC DESCENT,

WHERE IT SIMPLY GOES DOWN
UNDER THE FORCES OF GRAVITY.

Narrator: THE CAPSULE HURTLES
UNCONTROLLED TOWARDS THE GROUND

AT 17,000 MILES AN HOUR.

TEN TIMES THE FORCE OF EARTH'S
GRAVITY CRUSHES THE ASTRONAUTS.

BODIES NOT USED
TO PULLING ANY G's,

YOU'VE BEEN FLOATING
FOR 5, 6 MONTHS.

NOW YOUR HEART
HAS TO REMEMBER

TO GET THE BLOOD TO THE BRAIN
SO YOU DON'T BLACK OUT.

YOU CAN HARDLY TAKE A BREATH.

IT SUCKS.

AT THAT POINT,
THE RUSSIAN COSMONAUT

BEGINS RECITING THE ADVICE
HE'D BEEN GIVEN

IN CASE THAT HAPPENED.
SAYING THINGS LIKE,

"YOU'VE GOT TO COUGH
TO MAKE YOURSELF BREATHE.

YOU'VE GOT TO COUGH, COUGH."

BECAUSE IF YOU EXHALE,

YOU CAN'T REINFLATE AND INHALE.

SO YOU COUGH TO BOOST
YOUR ABILITY TO BREATHE.

Narrator: THE ASTRONAUTS NEED
TO CONTACT MISSION CONTROL

TO TELL THEM
THEIR BALLISTIC FREE FALL MEANS

THEY'RE WELL OFF TARGET.

BUT THEY CAN'T. THE SPACECRAFT'S
ANTENNA HAS BEEN RIPPED OFF

BY THE SHEER FORCE
OF RE-ENTRY.

AND THAT CREATES CONSIDERABLE
ANXIETY AMONG EVERYBODY

WHO IS MONITORING THE MISSION.

♪♪

Narrator: THE CAPSULE
CRASH LANDS SOMEWHERE

IN THE 500 SQUARE MILES

OF THE REMOTE
KAZAKHSTAN LANDING ZONE.

THE RUSSIANS MOUNT
A MASSIVE RESCUE EFFORT.

THEY FIND THE BATTERED
SOYUZ CAPSULE

300 MILES OFF COURSE
WITH NO SIGN OF LIFE.

IS IT TOO LATE?

HAVE THE ASTRONAUTS BURNED UP
IN THE EARTH'S ATMOSPHERE?

THE DOOR TO
THE SPACECRAFT OPENS,

AND THE CREW IS ALIVE INSIDE.

NASA HAS MANAGED
TO GET ITS MEN HOME.

Narrator: THE U.S. ASTRONAUTS
OF EXPEDITION 6

ARE THE FIRST TO LAND
IN A RUSSIAN SOYUZ SPACECRAFT.

TODAY, EVERY INTERNATIONAL
SPACE STATION ASTRONAUT

RIDES A SOYUZ BACK TO EARTH.

♪♪

COMING UP, SCIENTISTS
EXAMINING THE D.N.A.

OF A SHADOWY SEA CREATURE

DISCOVER GENES
THEY CANNOT EXPLAIN.

THIS IS JUST LIKE SOMETHING
OUT OF "X-MEN."

THE EARTH GETS SPRAYED
WITH RADIATION.

AND LIFE MUTATES INTO STRANGER,
NEW, MORE POWERFUL FORMS.

♪♪

Narrator: SCIENTISTS DISCOVER

UNIDENTIFIED D.N.A.
IN THE OCTOPUS.

IT'S THE FIRST
SEQUENCE OF GENOME

FROM SOMETHING LIKE AN ALIEN.

THE MOST BIZARRE ANIMAL
I'VE EVER SEEN.

THE EVIDENCE RAISES
THE POSSIBILITY LIFE ON EARTH

IS SHAPED
BY MYSTERIOUS COSMIC FORCES.

IS IT POSSIBLE THAT LIFE
COULD HAVE EVOLVED IN SPACE?

Narrator:
THERE ARE MONSTERS AMONG US.

BLUE BLOOD,
THESE LARGE COMPLEX EYES,

SKIN THAT CAN CHANGE COLOR
AND TEXTURE,

ARMS THAT ARE LINED
WITH THESE SUCKERS.

YOU CAN WATCH ONE MOVE
RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOU.

AND WITHIN A SECOND,
IT DISAPPEARS.

♪♪

I THINK EVERYBODY WOULD AGREE
THAT OCTOPUSES ARE WEIRD.

I MEAN, THEY'RE UNLIKE
ANY OTHER CRITTER

THAT YOU'RE GONNA SEE
IN THE LOCAL AQUARIUM.

THEY'RE VERY DIFFERENT FROM
WHAT WE SEE IN OTHER ANIMALS.

AND THAT'S WHAT MAKES
THEM SEEM SO ALIEN.

Narrator: IN DECEMBER 2014,

UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO
GENETICISTS

LAUNCH AN INVESTIGATION
TO UNCOVER THE SECRETS

BEHIND THE OCTOPUS'
OTHERWORLDLY ABILITIES.

THEY DISCOVER IMPORTANT
SECTIONS OF THEIR GENES

ARE UNLIKE ANY OTHER LIFE FORMS.

GENETICISTS
HAVE RECENTLY DISCOVERED

THAT THE GENOME FOR OCTOPUSES
IS QUITE A BIT DIFFERENT

FROM THAT
OF THEIR FELLOW MOLLUSKS.

WE'VE FOUND AROUND
10% OF THE GENES

DIDN'T HAVE A MATCH
TO GENES IN OTHER ANIMALS.

THE OCTOPUS IS LIKE NOTHING
THAT WE'VE EVER SEEN.

GENETICALLY, HE LOOKS
EXCEEDINGLY ALIEN.

Narrator:
GENETICISTS CALL THESE CRITICAL

SEGMENTS OF D.N.A.
DE NOVO GENES.

SO THE STUDY OF DE NOVO GENES

IS A VERY NEW FIELD

OF EVOLUTIONARY BIOLOGY
AND FUNCTIONAL BIOLOGY.

AND IT'S PRETTY
CUTTING EDGE STUFF.

Narrator: SOME SCIENTISTS
DEVELOP A CONTROVERSIAL THEORY,

THAT THIS UNEXPLAINED
GENETIC MATERIAL

COULD ORIGINATE IN SPACE.

THE SUDDEN EMERGENCE
OF DE NOVO GENES

IN THE OCTOPUS,

I THINK, MEANS THAT THESE HAVE
COME FROM OUTSIDE THE EARTH.

I THINK ALMOST
EVERY NEW DEVELOPMENT

IN THE HISTORY OF LIFE ON EARTH
HAS A SPACE CONNECTION.

IF THERE'S A NEW TRAIT
EMERGING IN A SPECIES,

IT HAS TO COME
FROM OUTSIDE OF THE SYSTEM.

SCIENTISTS PROPOSE THESE
MYSTERIOUS GENES

FIRST EVOLVED
WITHIN ALIEN MICROBES.

THEY HITCH A RIDE
THROUGH SPACE ON THE THOUSANDS

OF ASTEROIDS HURTLING
THROUGH OUR SOLAR SYSTEM.

SOME CRASH LAND
ON OUR PLANET.

IN AUGUST, 2011,

NASA SCIENTISTS
DISCOVER EVIDENCE

THAT COULD SUPPORT
THE CONTENTIOUS THEORY.

THEY FIND THE AMINO ACID

BUILDING BLOCKS
OF D.N.A. IN SAMPLES

FROM AN ANTARCTIC ASTEROID.

IS IT POSSIBLE
THAT D.N.A. EVOLVED IN SPACE

COULD HAVE INFILTRATED LIFE
HERE ON EARTH?

I THINK THAT HAS TO BE

CONSIDERED VERY SERIOUS
PROPOSITION

AT THE PRESENT TIME.

BUT NOT ALL SCIENTISTS
FIND THE THEORY CONVINCING.

IT'S TRUE. METEORS, ASTEROIDS --

THEY DO HAVE SOME
BIOLOGICAL BUILDING BLOCKS

AS PART
OF THEIR NATURAL CONTENT.

BUT WHAT ARE THOSE
BUILDING BLOCKS?

THERE'S NO D.N.A.
IN ASTEROIDS OR METEORS.

THERE ARE NO PROTEINS --

JUST THESE
VERY SIMPLE AMINO ACIDS.

Narrator: ASTRONOMERS
DEVELOP A THEORY THAT

A DIFFERENT KIND
OF COSMIC EVENT MAY ACCOUNT

FOR THE OCTOPUS'
STRANGE MUTATIONS.

THEY PROPOSE THE ANIMAL'S GENES
WERE MUTATED BY

AN EVENT MILLIONS
OF LIGHT-YEARS AWAY --

A SUPERNOVA.

♪♪

A SUPERNOVA HAPPENS
WHEN A STAR DIES.

IT RUNS OUT OF FUEL,

AND IT STARTS
COLLAPSING IN ON ITSELF.

AND THEN ALL OF A SUDDEN, BANG.

IT FIRES OUT A SHOCKWAVE
AND LOTS OF RADIATION.

SUPERNOVA RADIATION ARRIVING
ON EARTH, FOR EXAMPLE,

COULD EFFECT
BIOLOGICAL EVOLUTION.

WE KNOW THAT
RADIATION PRODUCES MUTATION.

Narrator: SCIENTISTS BELIEVE
THEY'VE FOUND A PATTERN.

PERIODS OF RAPID EVOLUTION
ON EARTH COINCIDE

WITH DATES OF NEARBY
SUPERNOVA EXPLOSIONS.

THIS IS JUST LIKE SOMETHING
OUT OF "X-MEN."

THE EARTH GETS SPRAYED
WITH RADIATION,

AND LIFE MUTATES
INTO STRANGER,

NEW, MORE POWERFUL FORMS.

Narrator:
BUT SKEPTICS AREN'T CONVINCED

A SUPERNOVA'S RADIOACTIVE BLAST

COULD MUTATE
DEEP OCEAN LIFEFORMS.

WELL, OKAY.

A SUPERNOVA WOULD PRODUCE
A LOT OF RADIATION.

BUT IF YOU'RE AN OCTOPUS,
YOU'RE UNDERNEATH THE WATER.

SO YOU DON'T SEE
THAT RADIATION.

THE WATER IS PROBABLY
A VERY EFFECTIVE BARRIER

TO MOST RELATIVELY
HIGH ENERGY RADIATION

AND AT LEAST THE STUFF
THAT'S RELEVANT FOR BIOLOGY.

Narrator: WHETHER A DISTANT
SUPERNOVA IS RESPONSIBLE

FOR MUTATING THE OCTOPUS'
INEXPLICABLE GENES

REMAINS A CONTROVERSIAL THEORY.

THE SECRETS OF WHAT
MAKES AN OCTOPUS AN OCTOPUS

ARE IN THAT GENOME SOMEWHERE.

IT'S HARD TO EXTRACT THE ANSWER.

BUT THE INFORMATION
AND PRINCIPLE IS THERE.

Narrator: COMING UP,
SCIENTISTS FIND CLUES

ABOUT WHAT TRIGGERED
THE ANNIHILATION

OF NEARLY ALL LIFE ON EARTH.

WE HAVE WHAT IS ALMOST
A PERFECT STORM

TO CREATE MASS EXTINCTION
ON EARTH.

♪♪

♪♪

Narrator: GEOLOGISTS
DISCOVER ALIEN DEPOSITS

ON THE EARTH'S SURFACE.

HOW DID THIS GET THERE
250 MILLION YEARS AGO?

Narrator:
THE ANSWER COULD SHED LIGHT

ON THE CAUSE
OF THE GREATEST EXTINCTION

IN THE HISTORY OF OUR PLANET.

THE GREAT DIE OFF WAS NOT
CAUSED BY ONE SINGLE EVENT.

THERE MUST HAVE BEEN SOMETHING
ELSE THAT HAPPENED HERE.

♪♪

GEOLOGISTS MAKE
AN ALARMING DISCOVERY.

BIZARRE SULFUROUS DEPOSITS,

WHICH SHOULD LIE BEYOND REACH
10 MILES DEEP,

ARE INSTEAD FUSED
INTO THE SURFACE ROCK.

SCIENTISTS DEVELOP A THEORY,

AN EXTRATERRESTRIAL FORCE
COULD BE RESPONSIBLE.

IT REALLY POINTS THE FINGER

THAT AN ASTEROID
MUST HAVE BEEN INVOLVED.

IF WE HAVE A LARGE IMPACTOR
COMING IN

AND DESTROYING PART
OF THE EARTH'S SURFACE,

WHAT IT CAN ACTUALLY DO
IS EXCAVATE MATERIALS

FROM MUCH DEEPER IN THE PLANET.

SUCH A POWERFUL IMPACT
WOULD HAVE SPREAD MATERIAL

FROM THE EARTH'S MANTLE
ACROSS THE SURFACE --

MATERIAL WE COULD FIND TODAY.

Narrator: SCIENTISTS MEASURE
THE DECAY

OF RADIOACTIVE ELEMENTS
TRAPPED IN THE ROCK SAMPLES.

THE RESULTS INDICATE
A GIANT ASTEROID

IMPACTS THE EARTH
250 MILLION YEARS AGO.

EVEN IF YOU WERE LUCKY ENOUGH
TO SURVIVE THE ORIGINAL IMPACT,

THE EFFECTS
AFTER THE ASTEROID IMPACT

WOULD BE REALLY DEVASTATING.

WE'RE TALKING ABOUT DUST BEING
THROWN UP INTO THE ATMOSPHERE.

THE SUN WOULD BE
COMPLETELY BLOCKED OUT.

SO THERE'D BE MASSIVE CHANGES

HAPPENING TO THE SURFACE
OF THE EARTH.

THERE WOULD ALSO BE
CATASTROPHIC

GLOBAL WARMING AND TOXIC RAIN.

Narrator: IF GEOLOGISTS HAVE
UNCOVERED EVIDENCE

OF A DEADLY ANCIENT ASTEROID,

IT COULD SOLVE A MYSTERY

THAT'S BAFFLED SCIENTISTS
FOR DECADES.

WHAT CAUSED THE EARTH'S

MOST CATASTROPHIC
GLOBAL EXTINCTION?

WELL, THE GREAT DYING
OR END PERMIAN EXTINCTION IS,

TO OUR KNOWLEDGE,
THE GREATEST,

MOST SEVERE EXTINCTION
IN THE HISTORY OF LIFE.

70% OF LAND-BASED
VERTEBRATE SPECIES WENT EXTINCT.

96% OF MARINE ANIMALS
WENT EXTINCT.

THIS IS THE ONLY TIME
IN EARTH'S HISTORY

THAT EVEN INSECTS HAD
A MASS EXTINCTION.

NO FORM OF LIFE
WAS LEFT UNTOUCHED.

Narrator: BUT NOT EVERYONE IS
CONVINCED A MASSIVE

EXTRATERRESTRIAL BODY
CRASH LANDED ON EARTH

250 MILLION YEARS AGO.

MANY SCIENTISTS DON'T BUY IT.

FIRST OF ALL,
THERE'S NO GIANT CRATER

THAT'S BEEN LEFT BEHIND.

IT MAY BE THAT THAT'S A CRATER
WILL NEVER BE FOUND.

IT MAY BE THAT THAT'S A CRATER
HAS BEEN WIPED OFF

OF THE SURFACE OF THE EARTH.

Narrator:
A NEW SUSPECT FOR THE CAUSE

OF THE GREAT DYING
SURFACES IN SIBERIA,

ONCE A VERY DIFFERENT PLACE
TO TODAY'S ICY WASTELAND.

250 MILLION YEARS AGO,

THE AREA EXPERIENCES
UNPRECEDENTED VOLCANIC ACTIVITY.

AT THE END OF THE PERMIAN,

WE HAD THE BIGGEST
GEOLOGICAL ERUPTION OF LAVA

IN THE LAST 500 MILLION YEARS.

ENOUGH WAS RELEASED
THAT WOULD, IN PRESENT DAY,

COVER THE WHOLE OF
THE CONTINENTAL UNITED STATES.

CARBON DIOXIDE SPEWING
INTO THE ATMOSPHERE,

ASH CLOUDS COVERING
THE ENTIRE PLANET,

CHOKING OUT THE SUN,
CHOKING OUT LIFE ON THE SURFACE.

THIS WOULD HAVE BEEN HELLACIOUS.

Narrator: BUT IT'S DOUBTFUL
THE ERUPTIONS ON THEIR OWN

COULD TRIGGER
GLOBAL CLIMATE CHANGE.

SIBERIA'S VOLCANISM
AT THIS TIME PERIOD

WOULD NOT HAVE
RELEASED ENOUGH CO2

OR METHANE TO ACCOUNT
FOR WHAT WAS IN THE ATMOSPHERE

AT THAT TIME --
NOWHERE NEAR ENOUGH.

SO WHERE DID THESE
EXTRA GASSES COME FROM?

Narrator: IN 2014, NASA-FUNDED
GEOPHYSICIST DANIEL ROTHMAN

CLAIMS AN UNUSUAL LIFE FORM
MAY BE TO BLAME

FOR PUMPING THE ATMOSPHERE
WITH KILLER METHANE.

MY COLLEAGUE HAD DONE RESEARCH
AS A GRADUATE STUDENT

THAT SUGGESTED THAT A PARTICULAR
KIND OF METHANE-PRODUCED MICROBE

EVOLVED SOMETIME LESS
THAN 450 MILLION YEARS AGO.

THESE MICROBES
METABOLIZE NICKEL,

AND THESE VOLCANIC ERUPTIONS
IN SIBERIA

WOULD HAVE PROVIDED EXACTLY
THAT NICKEL THAT THEY NEED.

Narrator:
ROTHMAN BELIEVES

THE VAST AMOUNTS OF NICKEL
BLASTED OUT

BY THE SIBERIAN VOLCANOES

POWERS A POPULATION EXPLOSION
IN THE KILLER MICROBE.

THE MORE NICKEL YOU PROVIDE IT,
THE MORE HAPPY IT BECOMES

AND THE MORE IT'S ABLE

TO MAKE METHANE
FROM AN ORGANIC SUBSTRATE.

WE HAVE WHAT IS ALMOST
A PERFECT STORM

TO CREATE MASS EXTINCTION
ON EARTH.

Narrator:
BUT FOR SOME SCIENTISTS,

IT'S SIMPLY TOO EARLY
TO BE CERTAIN

THE KILLER OF 90%
OF LIFE ON EARTH IS A MICROBE.

DESPITE ALL OF THIS EVIDENCE,
THERE'S NOT QUITE A SMOKING GUN.

NASA RESEARCHERS HAVEN'T
PROVEN THAT THE MICROBE

IS DEFINITIVELY THE CAUSE
OF THE GREAT DYING.

AS LONG AS THE PERPETRATOR
REMAINS A MYSTERY,

WE SCIENTISTS CAN'T BE SURE

IT WON'T COME BACK
TO STRIKE AGAIN.

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