Follow the investigators on the trail of the bombers and see what it takes to crack a bombing case. To show what science can do to help, NOVA profiles several notorious bombing incidents. Get an inside look at the celebrated case of the Unabomber, the World Trade Center, and lesser known cases like the Army of God, the rash of bombings in the Southeast in 1989, and even the tragic story of a booby-trapped toothpaste container placed by a teenager that cost a 5 year old girl her arm.
Subjects: History
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Mountain of Ice
In this high-altitude adventure, author Jon Krakauer and world-class mountaineer Conrad Anker lead an expedition to the top of Antarctica’s tallest peak, Vinson Massif. Along the way, their experiences are contrasted with those of Norwegian adventurer Roald Amundsen and British explorer Robert Falcon Scott who in 1911 raced to be the first to reach the South Pole.
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Great Peaks:Everest, Kilimanjaro, McKinley, Mont Blanc, and the Vinson Massif
Climb Five of the World’s Great Peaks with NOVA. Everest: The Death Zone: Get ready for a breathtaking trek up Mt. Everest, from Base Camp through the chilling, corpse-strewn Death Zone; to the very pinnacle of the Earth, five and a half miles above sea level. Join the expedition as scientists follow a team of hikers to measure the toll high-altitude climbing takes on the heart, lungs, blood and brain.
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Spies That Fly
It has no pilot, no windows, and it’s flown by remote control. But this odd-looking plane is already credited with helping destroy nearly 750 enemy targets. It’s the Predator, an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). Join NOVA for this rare look at some of the most significant developments in military weaponry, and learn about the UAV’s dangerous and costly history, how flying insects are helping researchers create the first micro UAV, and how the military’s unmanned aerial vehicles may someday lead to pilotless commercial air travel.
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Top Gun Over Moscow
For half a century we feared them. Now, for the first time, meet the rugged pilots of the Russian Air Force- and take a close-up look at the heart-stopping maneuvers that still fill Western flyers with awe.
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B-29 Frozen in Time
Travel on a perilous mission to repair and refly a rare B-29 bomber stranded on a Greenland icecap for almost 50 years. NOVA follows bold pilot Darryl Greenamyer and his team on two expeditions to revive Kee Bird and make it fly again in one of the most isolated and harshest environments on Earth. Despite severe weather, illness and difficulties with the shuttle plane in 1994, Greenamyer returns in May 1995 with a larger crew, a more reliable shuttle plane and a new plan to bring Kee Bird back to life and back home.
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War Planes
Set includes B-29 Frozen in Time, Battle of the X-Planes, Spies That Fly, and Top Gun Over Moscow. 280 min on 4 discs
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Shackleton’s Voyage of Endurance – DVD
A definitive and spellbinding record of the legendary Antarctic expedition. Trapped in the Antarctic ice over 1,000 miles from civilization, polar explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton and his 28 brave crewmembers endured nearly 15 harrowing months stranded on the ice pack in a daring and courageous adventure that became the greatest survival story of all time.
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America’s Stone Age Explorers
Who were the first Americans and where did they come from? The conventional view is that they arrived here around 13,500 years ago, but startling new archaeological discoveries suggest it may have been long before that. And experts are testing contentious theories regarding how they got here, including the idea of a dangerous canoe-born voyage from Asia down the west coat of the Americas, or even across the Atlantic from Europe.
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Secrets of Lost Empires Set – 1
Uncover the secrets of ancient civilizations as NOVA journeys to five archaeological sites where teams of experts use traditional techniques to test their hypotheses. Stonehenge watches a band of experts move, raise and cap a structure like the mysterious Stonehenge– armed with Stone Age tools. Inca explores magnificent mountainside citadels– and marvels as villagers create a 150-foot suspension bridge using nothing but grass. Obelisk faces the challenge of quarrying, chiseling, hauling and mounting an obelisk— using stones, ropes, logs and dirt. Colosseum tries out two possible designs for the canopy that once covered the Colosseum– one of them borrowed from ancient ships. Pyramid joins the race to erect an 18-foot stone pyramid in three weeks– while testing out some clever construction theories.
Special DVD features include: materials and activities for educators, access to the NOVA Web site, scene selections and closed captions. 300 min on 3 DVDs