All language subtitles for NASAs.Unexplained.Files.S06E01.Saturns.Moon.Monsters.1080p.AMZN.WEB-DL.DD+2.0.H.264-BATMAN_track3_[eng]

♪♪

Narrator: THE MONSTER OUTSIDE
YOUR SPACECRAFT.

[ KNOCKING ]

IF SOMEONE WAS KNOCKING ON
YOUR SPACE-CAPSULE DOOR,

WOULD YOU OPEN IT?

Narrator:
THE ALIENS INSIDE MUTATED,

MOVING
AND MUNCHING ON ASTRONAUTS.

Taylor: ALIEN CREATURES COME
BURSTING OUT OF YOU,

EATING THEIR WAY OUT OF YOU.

♪♪

Narrator: AND ELECTRIC CREATURES
FROM THE ELECTRIC PLANET.

[ ELECTRICITY CRACKLING ]

WHAT'S THE FIRST THING
IT WOULD GO FOR?

WOULD OUR POWER GRIDS BE
THE BEST BUFFET

THAT IT'S EVER HAD?

[ THUNDER RUMBLES ]

♪♪

Narrator: THESE ARE
NASA'S UNEXPLAINED FILES.

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

CAPTIONS PAID FOR BY
DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS

OCTOBER 15, 2003.

YANG LIWEI HAS BEEN SELECTED

TO BECOME THE FIRST
CHINESE ASTRONAUT.

♪♪

Granade:
IT'S A BIG MOMENT IN A COUNTRY

WHEN YOU SEND PEOPLE TO
OUTER SPACE FOR THE FIRST TIME,

IT'S A BIG UNDERTAKING.

IT'S VERY DIFFICULT.

A LOT OF THINGS CAN GO WRONG.

Narrator:
THIS WILL BE A SOLO MISSION.

♪♪

YANG WILL BE UTTERLY ALONE --
AT LEAST, THAT'S THE THEORY.

♪♪

Chiao: THERE'S A DIFFERENT
PRESSURE IF YOU'RE FLYING ALONE.

YOU KNOW,
AMERICANS HAVEN'T FLOWN ALONE

SINCE THE MERCURY PROGRAM.

[ CONTROLS BEEPING ]

Vakoch: TO BE THE FIRST
REPRESENTATIVE OF YOUR NATION

BEING LAUNCHED INTO SPACE
FOR THE FIRST TIME

ON AN UNTESTED SPACECRAFT
HAS TO BE TERRIFYING.

[ BEEPING CONTINUES ]

HE IS UNDER INCREDIBLE PRESSURE,
INCREDIBLE STRESS.

♪♪

Narrator: INITIALLY,
NOTHING SEEMS STRANGE.

♪♪

YANG BLASTS OFF FROM THE
ROCKET SITE IN INNER MONGOLIA.

Scott: LAUNCHING A ROCKET
IS VERY PERILOUS BUSINESS.

1,000 THINGS COULD GO WRONG.

Pickens:
THE ONLY DIFFERENCE BETWEEN

A BOMB AND A ROCKET MOTOR

IS ONE HAS A HOLE
IN THE BACK OF IT.

Narrator: 10 MINUTES LATER,
YANG IS 210 MILES ABOVE EARTH...

ON HIS OWN.

HE'S SURE HE'S ON HIS OWN.

♪♪

YOU CAN'T IMAGINE HOW YANG FELT

AFTER THE ROCKET ENGINES
STOPPED RUMBLING AND SHAKING HIM

AND HE'S SAFELY IN ORBIT.

Granade:
THE ENGINES HAVE CUT OFF

AND YOU'RE STARTING
TO EXPERIENCE

A MICROGRAVITY OR FREE FLOATING,

AND THERE'S JUST THIS QUIET
AND THIS SERENITY THAT HAPPENS.

♪♪

Narrator:
IN THE DEAD EMPTINESS OF SPACE,

EVERYTHING IS SILENCE.

YANG IS THE LONELIEST MAN ALIVE.

YANG IS GETTING READY
FOR THE WORK

THAT HE'S GOING TO BE DOING
ON ORBIT

BEFORE HE COMES BACK DOWN,

AND SOMETHING
UNEXPECTED HAPPENS.

[ KNOCKING ]

[ KNOCKING CONTINUES ]

Pickens: ALL OF A SUDDEN,
HE HEARS THIS KNOCKING.

[ KNOCKING CONTINUES ]

IT SOUNDED LIKE SOMEONE
KNOCKING AT THE DOOR.

[ KNOCKING CONTINUES ]

Scott:
ANYTHING THAT'S A LOUD BANG,

THAT'D GET
THE ADRENALINE FLOWING.

♪♪

[ KNOCKING CONTINUES ]

♪♪

I CAN IMAGINE HOW FEARFUL
HE MIGHT HAVE FELT,

THINKING IT MIGHT HAVE BEEN
SOMETHING THAT HIT HIS CAPSULE

OR SOMETHING BROKE

OR MAYBE SOMETHING
MORE SINISTER WAS OCCURRING.

[ KNOCKING CONTINUES ]

Narrator:
THE KNOCKING SHOCKS YANG.

IT SEEMS UNREAL.

THE FIRST THING YOU'D DO

IS YOU'D CHECK
YOUR INSTRUMENTATION.

Chiao: SEE IF THERE ARE
ANY EMERGENCIES

THE COMPUTER'S DETECTED
OR ANY MALFUNCTIONS.

IS THE SKIN OF THE SPACECRAFT,
IS IT PEELING OFF?

Narrator: ALL READOUTS
ON THE SHIP ARE NORMAL.

THERE ARE NO LEAKS,
NO DEPRESSURIZATION.

♪♪

[ KNOCKING ]

TO HIS HORROR,
HE HEARS THE KNOCKING AGAIN.

[ KNOCKING CONTINUES ]

♪♪

WITH ALL
RATIONAL EXPLANATIONS REJECTED,

HE HAS TO FACE A BIZARRE
AND TERRIFYING POSSIBILITY.

IS THERE SOMETHING OUTSIDE
KNOCKING TO GET IN?

[ KNOCKING CONTINUES ]

Narrator: OUTSIDE THE CAPSULE,
IT'S MINUS 455 DEGREES.

THERE IS NO OXYGEN.

A HUMAN BEING OUTSIDE THE CRAFT
WITHOUT A SUIT

WOULD FIND THEIR BODY
SWELLING TO TWICE ITS SIZE,

AS GAS BUBBLES FORM
UNDER THEIR SKIN.

♪♪

THERE IS ONLY ONE CREATURE
KNOWN TO MAN

THAT CAN WITHSTAND
THESE CONDITIONS --

A TINY, STRANGE ANIMAL
CALLED A TARDIGRADE.

TARDIGRADES ACTUALLY PRODUCE
ANTIOXIDANTS IN THEIR BODY

THAT HELPS FIGHT AGAINST
THE LACK OF OXYGEN.

Narrator:
BUT TARDIGRADES DON'T KNOCK.

AT LEAST NOT THE KIND
WE HAVE ON EARTH.

[ KNOCKING ]

YOU'RE LIKE, "WAIT A MINUTE,
WHAT'S OUT THERE?"

[ KNOCKING CONTINUES ]

HE LOOKS OUT THE WINDOW.

IS A FACE GONNA
STARE BACK AT HIM?

♪♪

[ KNOCKING CONTINUES ]

HE DOESN'T SEE ANYTHING.
THERE'S NO EXPLANATION.

THAT'S ALMOST WORSE.

IS THIS JUST A FIGMENT
OF HIS IMAGINATION,

YOU KNOW, SPACE MADNESS,
IF YOU WILL?

YOUR MIND WILL START TO WANDER,
AND NONE OF THOSE PLACES

THAT YOUR MIND STOPS
IS A GOOD PLACE.

[ KNOCKING CONTINUES ]

I BELIEVE THAT IT IS POSSIBLE
TO IMAGINE THINGS

IF YOU ALLOW YOURSELF TO DO IT.

Narrator: ONE OF THE GREATEST
FEARS OF EVERY SPACE AGENCY

IS THE EXTENT TO WHICH SPACE
TRAVEL HAMMERS THE HUMAN MIND.

Granade:
WE'VE DONE EXPERIMENTS ON EARTH,

PUTTING PEOPLE INTO
SMALL, CONTAINED SPACES

FOR LONG PERIODS OF TIME
TO SEE HOW THEY INTERACT.

♪♪

Narrator:
IN 1999, AN INTERNATIONAL CREW

ENTERS AN ISOLATION CHAMBER
IN MOSCOW

FOR A 110-DAY
PSYCHOLOGICAL EXPERIMENT

TO SEE HOW HUMANS COPE
LIVING AND WORKING IN SPACE.

Pickens:
IT DIDN'T GO VERY WELL.

Granade:
IT'S LIKE LIVING WITH ROOMMATES

THAT YOU CAN NEVER
GET AWAY FROM.

Pickens:
I THINK IT STARTED VERBALLY.

NEXT THING YOU KNOW,
THEY'RE PHYSICALLY FIGHTING,

TRYING TO KILL EACH OTHER.

THIS WAS SERIOUS BUSINESS, MAN.

THERE WAS BLOOD ON THE WALLS.

♪♪

Brensberger: NOW, IS IT POSSIBLE
THAT YANG WAS GOING THROUGH

A VERY SIMILAR TYPE
OF SPACE DEMENTIA

AND MAYBE THAT'S WHERE
THIS KNOCKING SOUND CAME FROM?

[ KNOCKING ]

Narrator: BUT YANG'S IN ORBIT
FOR LESS THAN A DAY,

HARDLY TIME FOR SPACE DEMENTIA
TO SET IN.

YOU KNOW, YANG AND I
GO BACK A LITTLE BIT.

I CAN TELL YOU
HE'S A REAL STABLE PERSON.

IF HE SAID HE HEARD SOMETHING,
I BELIEVE HE HEARD SOMETHING.

Narrator:
YANG, AWARE OF HOW RIGOROUSLY

CHINA MONITORS AND TESTS
HIS PSYCHOLOGICAL RESPONSES,

KEEPS HIS COOL WHEN SPEAKING
TO MISSION CONTROL.

IF YOU'RE AN ASTRONAUT
AND YOU WANT TO FLY AGAIN,

YOU HAVE TO BE VERY CAREFUL
OF WHAT YOU SAY AND TO WHOM.

♪♪

[ KNOCKING ]

Narrator:
YANG KNOWS THE KNOCKING IS REAL

BUT DARES NOT SHOW ANY FEAR.

HE HAS BEEN IN SPACE
FOR 21 NERVE-SHREDDING HOURS,

AND THROUGHOUT,
THE KNOCKING CONTINUES.

[ KNOCKING ]

THAT'S A TOUGH
PSYCHOLOGICAL CHALLENGE,

AND IT'S ONE
THAT IS VERY DIFFICULT

TO STAY ON AN EVEN KEEL WITH.

Narrator: HE NOW FACES
HIS FINAL TEST, RE-ENTRY.

WHEN YOU PANIC,
WHAT ARE YOU GONNA DO?

YOU'RE IN SPACE.

♪♪

Narrator: COMING UP, AS YANG
PLUNGES TOWARDS THE PLANET,

IS DEATH AT HIS DOOR?

[ KNOCKING ]

YEAH, I'D BE FREAKED OUT
IF I WAS HIM.

Narrator: AND COULD
ELECTRIC CREATURES FROM TITAN

BRING HAVOC TO LIFE ON EARTH?

[ ELECTRICITY CRACKLING ]

BASICALLY SAY BYE-BYE
TO OUR ELECTRIC WORLD.

♪♪

♪♪

Narrator:
OCTOBER 2003.

♪♪

CHINA'S FIRST ASTRONAUT,
YANG LIWEI, IS IN SPACE ALONE

WHEN HE'S TERRIFIED
TO HEAR SOMEONE...

[ KNOCKING ]

...OR SOMETHINGKNOCKING ON
THE OUTSIDE OF HIS SPACECRAFT.

♪♪

HE ATTEMPTS TO STEER HIS CRAFT
BACK INTO THE EARTH'S ATMOSPHERE

AT OVER 17,000 MILES PER HOUR.

♪♪

Scott:
YOU'RE GOING SO FAST

THAT THE AIR ACTUALLY
IONIZES OUTSIDE,

AND THAT PRODUCES
THIS HOT PLASMA.

THE PLASMA IS IN
THE THOUSANDS OF DEGREES.

Narrator:
THE CRAFT EVENTUALLY SLOWS

AS A SINGLE PARACHUTE
IS RELEASED.

LANDING ROCKETS FIRE,
AND TO YANG'S GREAT RELIEF,

HIS CRAFT TOUCHES DOWN SAFELY

IN THE GOBI DESERT,
INNER MONGOLIA.

♪♪

YANG WORRIES THAT
HE WILL BE THOUGHT MAD

OR MENTALLY DISTURBED,
SO HE KEEPS QUIET

ABOUT THE KNOCKING
ON THE OUTSIDE OF HIS CAPSULE.

BUT PRIVATELY,
HE BECOMES OBSESSED BY IT.

HIS BEST GUESS IS THAT IT'S
SOME KIND OF THERMAL EFFECT.

Vakoch: AS THE SPACECRAFT
ORBITS THE EARTH,

ITS EXTERIOR IS SUBJECTED

TO THESE TREMENDOUS
CHANGES OF TEMPERATURE,

FROM THE ROASTING SUN TO
THE FREEZING DARKNESS OF SPACE.

Pickens: SO UNLESS YOU ROTATE
A SPACECRAFT,

YOU CAN'T EVENLY DISTRIBUTE
THE TEMPERATURE.

IT'S SORT OF LIKE
A ROTISSERIE IN A GRILL.

♪♪

Narrator: YANG STARTS
SECRET TESTS IN HIS OWN LAB.

Granade:
SO HE TAKES MATERIALS

THAT ARE FROM
HIS SHENZHOU FIVE SPACECRAFT

AND TRIES TO SUBJECT THEM
TO DIFFERENT KINDS OF HEAT

AND TO TRY TO REPLICATE
THE CONDITIONS

THAT THE CAPSULE
HAD EXPERIENCED.

Narrator: DESPITE YEARS
OF REPEATED EXPERIMENTS,

SUBJECTING THE MATERIALS
FROM THE CRAFT

TO EVERY TYPE OF STRESS,

HE CANNOT REPLICATE
THE GHOSTLY KNOCKING.

AS A ENGINEER, PEOPLE DON'T LIKE

TO NOT BE ABLE TO EXPLAIN THINGS
WITH PHYSICS.

Narrator: EVENTUALLY,
YANG PRIVATELY CONFESSES

WHAT HE HEARD TO COLLEAGUES

WHO'VE GONE INTO SPACE
ON SUBSEQUENT SHENZHOU MISSIONS.

HE CAN'T LET THIS GO,
AND HE TELLS THE OTHER

ASTRONAUTS THAT FOLLOW HIM
ABOUT THIS KNOCKING SOUND.

Narrator:
THEIR RESPONSE AMAZES HIM.

THEY HEAR THE SAME THING.

[ KNOCKING ]

♪♪

THE QUESTION REMAINS, WHY DID
SO MANY ASTRONAUTS HEAR IT?

WHAT CAUSED THE NOISE?

WAS IT SOMETHING PARTICULAR
TO THAT TYPE OF SPACECRAFT,

OR WAS THERE SOMETHING
OUTSIDE KNOCKING,

MAYBE TRYING TO GET IN?

[ KNOCKING ]

♪♪

Narrator: IMAGINE EARTH
VISITED BY CREATURES

FROM AN ELECTRIC WORLD,

BEINGS CREATED BY ELECTRICITY,
WHO LIVE BY ELECTRICITY...

[ ELECTRICITY CRACKLING ]...WHO FEED ON PURE POWER,

WHO BY THEIR VERY MAKEUP

ARE ABLE TO HARNESS
AND SHAPE ELECTRICITY,

TO USE IT TO DEFEND AND ATTACK.

THIS IS THE STUFF
OF SCIENCE FICTION.

AT LEAST IT WAS,
UNTIL NASA MAKES

AN EXTRAORDINARY DISCOVERY
AMONG THE DUNES OF TITAN.

WHAT MONSTER COULD MOVE
THESE MOUNTAINS OF SAND?

♪♪

Narrator:
JUNE 30, 2004.

NASA'S CASSINI PROBE
GOES INTO ORBIT AROUND SATURN.

IT IS THE FIRST SPACECRAFT
TO DO SO,

AND BEYOND THAT,

THE FIRST TO STUDY CLOSELY
THE PLANET'S LARGEST MOON,

THE REMARKABLE
AND MYSTERIOUS TITAN.

OF ALL THE WORLDS
IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM,

TITAN IS ACTUALLY THE ONE

THAT IS ARGUABLY
THE MOST LIKE EARTH.

[ INDISTINCT CONVERSATIONS ]

Billings: YOU'VE GOT MOUNTAINS,
YOU'VE GOT RIVERS,

YOU'VE GOT OCEANS,
YOU'VE GOT CLOUDS.

Narrator:
BUT IN OTHER RESPECTS,

TITAN IS QUITE DIFFERENT
THAN EARTH.

Radebaugh: IT'S SOMETHING LIKE
MINUS 250 DEGREES.

YOU'D FREEZE TO DEATH.

Narrator: THIS FROZEN WORLD
IS A TERRIFYING PLACE.

Radebaugh: THERE'S NO OXYGEN
IN THE ATMOSPHERE.

IT'S ALL METHANE AND NITROGEN

AND EVEN MOLECULES
THAT COULD BE TOXIC TO US.

Narrator:
TITAN WOULD BE HELL FOR HUMANS

BUT A PERFECT HOME

FOR ANOTHER VERY DIFFERENT
KIND OF CREATURE.

IT'S GOT ALL THE INGREDIENTS
FOR LIFE,

BUT NOT AS WE KNOW IT.

[ BEEP ]

Narrator: IN 2004,
NASA'S CASSINI SPACECRAFT

REACHES TITAN
AND MAPS A VAST DESERT

OF WHAT LOOKS LIKE SAND DUNES
AROUND THE EQUATOR.

THESE DUNES ARE AS TALL
AS THE STATUE OF LIBERTY.

♪♪

EARTH'S DUNES
ARE MADE OUT OF SAND,

OUT OF SILICA,
OUT OF GROUND-DOWN ROCK,

BUT TITAN'S ARE MADE OUT
OF FROZEN HYDROCARBONS

AND OTHER ORGANIC MOLECULES.

Narrator:
THE DUNES SEEM ALIVE.

WHAT'S MORE,

THEY'RE POINTING IN A DIRECTION
THAT DEFIES LOGIC.

WHEN SCIENTISTS LOOKED AT
THE SHAPE OF THE DUNES

FROM CASSINI,
WE NOTICED THAT HEY, YOU KNOW,

THE DUNES ARE ALL
POINTING IN ONE DIRECTION.

THEY'RE MOVING FROM THE WEST
TO THE EAST ACROSS TITAN,

BUT WHEN WE TALKED TO
THE ATMOSPHERIC MODELERS,

THEY SAID, "NO,
THE ATMOSPHERE OF TITAN

IS MOVING FROM
THE EAST TO THE WEST."

SO HOW IS IT POSSIBLE
THAT YOU HAVE THESE GIANT DUNES

FACING THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION
THAT THE WIND IS BLOWING?

IT JUST DOESN'T MAKE SENSE.

Narrator:
TO INVESTIGATE FURTHER,

CASSINI SENDS
THE HUYGENS LANDING MODULE

TO TITAN'S SURFACE.

COULD THERE BE SOMETHING
OTHER THAN THE WIND

THAT IS ACTING ON THESE DUNES?

Narrator: SCIENTISTS COME TO
AN INCREDIBLE CONCLUSION --

THE DUNES ARE ELECTRIC...

[ ELECTRICITY CRACKLING ]

...AND THIS ELECTRICITY
IS GENERATED

BY TITAN'S SUPER POWERFUL WINDS.

AS THE WIND BLOWS THEM AROUND,

THESE GRAINS
OF FROZEN HYDROCARBONS

RUB UP AGAINST EACH OTHER
AND FORM AN ELECTROSTATIC CHARGE

LIKE CLOTHES IN A DRYER...

[ THUNDER RUMBLING ]

...AND THAT ELECTROSTATIC CHARGE
CLUMPS THEM TOGETHER

AND HOLDS THEIR SHAPE
EVEN IN THE FACE OF THE WIND.

THIS WHOLE DESERT IS
ZINGING WITH ELECTRICITY.

Narrator: AN ELECTRIC PLANET
ALIVE WITH POWER,

CURRENTS LICKING THE SURFACE
AND PERMEATING THE LANDSCAPE.

ELECTRICITY EXPLAINS THE DUNES
BUT NOT THE DIRECTION OF THEM.

WHAT COULD DRIVE A MASSIVE
SAND DUNE BACK ON ITSELF

AND REVERSE
ITS NATURAL DIRECTION?

Narrator: ONCE AGAIN,
SCIENTISTS ARE FORCED

TO CONTEMPLATE
SOMETHING TRULY AMAZING.

IS THERE SOMETHING LIVING
IN THE SANDS OF TITAN

THAT ARE ACTUALLY
CAUSING THE DIRECTION

THAT WE SEE HAPPENING?

Narrator: WE KNOW FROM OUR OWN
EARTH SCIENCE

THAT ELECTRIC CREATURES COULD
EXIST ON AN ELECTRIC PLANET.

[ ELECTRICITY CRACKLING ]

INCREDIBLE NEW RESEARCH ON EARTH

HAS UNCOVERED
A NEW KIND OF LIFE FORM

THAT MIGHT BE
RIGHT AT HOME ON TITAN.

THESE ARE MICROBES.

THEY CAN TAKE ELECTRICITY
IN ITS SIMPLEST FORM

AND PRODUCE THAT INTO ENERGY
AND GROW AND REPRODUCE.

Hadhazy: THESE MICROORGANISMS
THAT WE ARE DISCOVERING NOW

CAN ACTUALLY EAT AND BREATHE
ELECTRICITY DIRECTLY.

Proctor: BACTERIA THAT FEEDS
ON ELECTRICITY?

WELL, THAT JUST OPENS UP

ALL KINDS OF POSSIBILITIES
FOR LIFE.

THE DESERTS OF TITAN

WOULD BE LIKE
AN ALL-YOU-CAN-EAT BUFFET.

Reinhard:
TITAN IS JUST A BALL OF FUEL.

IF YOU'RE THE RIGHT
KIND OF ORGANISM,

THERE'S A HUGE AMOUNT
OF ENERGY TO BE GAINED

FROM ALL THAT STUFF.

Narrator:
THERE ARE INDEED CREATURES

WHO EAT AND BREATHE ELECTRICITY,

BUT ON TITAN,
THEY MAY BE FAR BIGGER

THAN THE TINY ELECTRICITY-EATING
MICROBES FOUND ON EARTH.

FOR THE SCALE
OF LANDSCAPE ENGINEERING

THAT WE'RE SEEING HERE, THESE
CREATURES HAVE TO BE MASSIVE.

♪♪

Narrator: COMING UP, POWER WARS
WHEN ELECTRICITY-EATING MONSTERS

IN OUR OWN SOLAR SYSTEM
GET HUNGRY.

WE WOULD GO BACK
TO THE DARK AGES.

Narrator: AND AN ASTRONOMER
DECODES A STAR CHART

SAID TO HAVE BEEN MADE
BY ALIENS.

Brensberger:
THE MAP ACTUALLY LEADS US

TO A CONSTELLATION
KNOWN AS ZETA RETICULI.

♪♪

♪♪

Narrator:
WRITERS HAVE CONJURED UP

THE IDEA OF ELECTRIC MONSTERS,

EMBODIMENTS OF POWER DRIVEN
BY THE NEED TO ACQUIRE IT

AND WILLING TO USE IT
FOR THEIR OWN ENDS.

SCIENCE FANTASY, IT SEEMED,

UNTIL NASA DISCOVERS WHAT SEEMS
LIKE AN ELECTRIC PLANET

HABITABLE BY ELECTRIC CREATURES
IN OUR OWN SOLAR SYSTEM.

[ ELECTRICITY CRACKLING ]

♪♪

TITAN, SATURN'S LARGEST MOON...

...A WORLD CRACKLING
WITH ELECTRICITY.

ITS LANDSCAPE APPEARS UNNATURAL,

FORMED NOT BY
THE SUPER POWERFUL WINDS

THAT BLAST THE SURFACE,
BUT RATHER, IT MAY BE

BY GIANT SAND-DWELLING CREATURES
WHO LIVE OFF ELECTRICITY.

[ ELECTRICITY CRACKLING ]

LIFE FORMS ON EARTH

SHOW THE POTENTIAL
FOR SUCH CREATURES TO EVOLVE.

ON EARTH, WE HAVE SAND WORMS.

WE HAVE CREATURES
THAT GENERATE ELECTRICITY,

EVEN CREATURES
THAT COULD SURVIVE ON TITAN.

ONE OF THE MOST SUCCESSFUL
BODY PLANS IN EFFECT

ARE NEMATODE WORMS.

Narrator: NEMATODE WORMS
ARE EXTREMOPHILES,

ABLE TO SURVIVE IN THE MOST
HOSTILE ENVIRONMENTS ON EARTH,

SUCH AS VOLCANIC DEEP-SEA VENTS.

YOU CAN FIND THEM LIVING
ALMOST EVERYWHERE ON EARTH.

IN FACT, ABOUT FOUR OUT OF ABOUT
EVERY FIVE CREATURES

ON THIS EARTH
IS A NEMATODE WORM.

THEY ARE ALL OVER THE PLACE.

YOU'VE EATEN SOME TODAY,
I GUARANTEE IT.

♪♪

Narrator:
IN THE ATMOSPHERE OF TITAN,

CREATURES THAT ARE TINY ON EARTH
COULD GROW TO ENORMOUS SIZES.

♪♪

LIFE ON EARTH IS LIMITED
BY THE FORCES OF GRAVITY.

THIS IS WHY WE DON'T SEE
ORGANISMS LIKE A BUTTERFLY

THAT GETS AS BIG AS AN EAGLE,

BECAUSE GRAVITY
KEEPS THEM SMALLER.

[ ELECTRICITY CRACKLING ]

TITAN HAS GRAVITY
THAT'S ABOUT 1/7 THE EARTH'S,

AND THAT COULD POTENTIALLY
ALLOW CREATURES

IF THEY EVOLVED ON TITAN

TO BE BIGGER THAN
WHAT YOU WOULD EXPECT ON EARTH.

Hadhazy: YOU COULD EVEN IMAGINE
THAT ON TITAN

THAT WE HAVE SOMETHING LIKE
FRANK HERBERT'S "DUNE,"

A FAMOUS SCI-FI NOVEL AND MOVIE,

WHERE YOU HAVE THESE
GIGANTIC WORM-LIKE CREATURES

THAT ARE JUST MARAUDING THROUGH
THE DESERTS ON THEIR PLANET.

♪♪

MAYBE THE SAME THING'S
HAPPENING ON TITAN.

♪♪

[ ELECTRICITY CRACKLING ]

Narrator:
WHAT IF SPACE DEBRIS

FROM SOME ASTEROID COLLISION
OR AN INFECTED PROBE

WERE TO CARRY ORGANIC MATERIAL

THE SHORT DISTANCE
FROM TITAN TO EARTH?

WHAT'S THE FIRST THING
IT WOULD GO FOR?

WOULD OUR POWER GRIDS BE THE
BEST BUFFET THAT IT'S EVER HAD?

♪♪

THEY WOULD HAVE
A VOLTAGE SMORGASBORD

AND SUCK ALL THE POWER OUT
OF THE EARTH'S ELECTRIC SYSTEM.

WE WOULD GO BACK
TO THE DARK AGES.

[ ELECTRICITY POWERING DOWN ]

Narrator: THE NEXT NASA CRAFT
HEADING TO TITAN

COULD BE DRAGONFLY,
DUE TO LAND THERE IN 2034.

♪♪

UNTIL THEN, WE DON'T KNOW

WHAT MIGHT BE ROAMING
THE SANDS OF TITAN.

Narrator: WE CANNOT TELL
WHAT ELECTRIC BEINGS

MIGHT LOOK LIKE.

WE CAN ONLY HOPE
THAT WHEN DRAGONFLY ARRIVES,

WHAT HAPPENS ON TITAN
STAYS ON TITAN.

♪♪

IN 2008, SCIENTISTS DETECT
20 LARGE OBJECTS A YEAR

PASSING CLOSE TO THE EARTH.

BY 2018, THAT NUMBER
HAS MORE THAN TRIPLED TO 76.

♪♪

IT'S TERRIFYING.

Narrator:
THE RECENT ALARMING RISE

IN THE NUMBER OF ASTEROIDS
ALMOST HITTING OUR PLANET

IS GREATLY INCREASING
THE LIKELIHOOD

OF AN EARTH-SHATTERING
APOCALYPSE.

IT'S GONNA BE A DISASTER
UNLIKE ANYTHING

WE HAVE SEEN
IN RECORDED HUMAN HISTORY.

♪♪

DEATH FROM THE SKIES
COULD BE DUE ANY DAY.

Narrator:
BUT WHY IS THERE SUCH A RAPID

AND WORRYING RISE IN
THE NUMBER OF NEAR-MISSES?

ASTRONOMERS HAVE RECENTLY
DISCOVERED WE ARE ABOUT TO ENTER

WHAT IS IN EFFECT A KIND OF
GIGANTIC ASTEROID MINEFIELD.

♪♪

THE EARTH MOVES AROUND THE SUN,
BUT OUR WHOLE SOLAR SYSTEM

IS ACTUALLY MOVING
IN THE MILKY WAY.

♪♪

Narrator: OUR SOLAR SYSTEM
SLOWLY MOVES UP AND DOWN

LIKE A COSMIC
FAIRGROUND CAROUSEL

THROUGH THE PLAIN OF THE GALAXY,

AND THAT MOVEMENT
HAS TERRIFYING CONSEQUENCES.

Paris:
SO THE UNIVERSE IS MASSIVE,

BUT THERE'S ABOUT 80%
OF THAT STUFF WE CANNOT SEE.

WE CALL THAT DARK MATTER.

Billings: THE LEADING THEORY
FOR DARK MATTER

IS THESE PARTICLES PROBABLY
FORM A THIN DISK OF DARK MATTER

THROUGHOUT OUR GALAXY.

Narrator: RESEARCHERS BELIEVE
THAT THIS DISK

OF DARK MATTER HAS ENORMOUS
GRAVITATIONAL POWERS.

♪♪

AS OUR SUN MOVES UP AND DOWN
THROUGH OUR GALAXY,

IT HITS DENSER BANDS, AND IT
JUST MIGHT BE THAT DARK MATTER

IS CAUSING OBJECTS
TO BE THROWN OUR WAY.

♪♪

EFFECTIVELY, DARK MATTER
IS USING ITS GRAVITY WELL

TO SLINGSHOT ASTEROIDS
AND COMETS TOWARDS US.

Narrator:
EARTH HAS NOT PASSED THROUGH

THIS TERRIFYING DANGER ZONE
OF DARK MATTER

FOR TENS OF MILLIONS OF YEARS,

BUT THE INCREASING NUMBER
OF ASTEROIDS SUGGESTS

WE MAY BE HEADED FOR
THE DARK-MATTER DISK ONCE MORE

AND AT SPEED.

♪♪

THE RESULT COULD BE NOTHING LESS
THAN A PLANETARY CATASTROPHE.

WE'RE GOING UP AND DOWN
WITHIN THE PLAIN OF THE GALAXY.

THE PERIOD BETWEEN THOSE PEAKS
IS ABOUT 64 MILLION YEARS.

CUT THAT IN HALF
AND YOU HAVE ABOUT THE PERIOD

BETWEEN EXTINCTION EVENTS
ON EARTH.

66 MILLION YEARS AGO, THE
DINOSAURS HAD A VERY BAD DAY.

Narrator:
AT THAT TIME, A CELESTIAL OBJECT

OVER SEVEN MILES ACROSS
PLOWED INTO THE PLANET.

[ DINOSAURS ROARING ]

ALL THE DINOSAURS COULD DO
WAS LOOK UP AT SPACE,

LOOK AT THIS HUMONGOUS ASTEROID
COMING INTO THE ATMOSPHERE,

AND ENJOY THE SPECTACLE.

Narrator: IT SMASHED DOWN
NEAR CHICXULUB, MEXICO.

Major: THE CHICXULUB CRATER
IS ENORMOUS.

IT'S ALMOST AS WIDE
AS THE STATE OF CONNECTICUT.

Narrator: THE IMPACT ON EARTH
WAS APOCALYPTIC.

THE GIANT REPTILES
THAT HAD RULED THE PLANET

FOR HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS
OF YEARS WERE WIPED OUT.

WHEN YOU GET A LARGE IMPACT,

ALL THE MATERIAL THAT'S
THROWN UP INTO THE ATMOSPHERE

THEN CREATES BASICALLY LIKE
A NUCLEAR WINTER,

KILLING OFF
ALL KINDS OF ORGANISMS.

YOU START KILLING OFF
THE PLANTS,

YOU START CHANGING
THE FOOD CHAIN,

AND THEN EVENTUALLY,
LARGE DINOSAURS, THEY'RE GONE.

Narrator: JUST OVER
30 MILLION YEARS LATER,

HISTORY REPEATED ITSELF.

THE EARTH WAS
CATASTROPHICALLY STRUCK AGAIN.

THE POPIGAI CRATER IN SIBERIA
IS LARGE ENOUGH

TO SWALLOW NEW YORK CITY
EIGHT TIMES OVER.

THIS IMPACT CAUSES
THE EOCENE EXTINCTION,

IN WHICH MANY EUROPEAN SPECIES
WERE WIPED OUT.

WHEN WE LOOK AT
THE GEOLOGICAL HISTORY OF EARTH,

AND EARTH'S LAYERS ARE
KIND OF LIKE A BOOK,

IT TELLS US THAT EVERY
33, 35 MILLION YEARS,

WE GET HIT BY SOMETHING BIG.

♪♪

THE BIG WORRY IS,
WELL, WE'RE DUE NOW.

♪♪

Narrator:
COMING UP, CAN WE FIGHT BACK

AGAINST THE DARK-MATTER DISK
OF DEATH?

WHAT WEAPONS CAN WE USE
AGAINST THIS GLOBAL KILLER?

Narrator: AND SPACE MUTATES
THE BUGS IN OUR BODIES

INTO ALIEN KILLERS.

IT'S ONLY A MATTER OF TIME
BEFORE SOME STRAIN EMERGES

THAT WE HAVE NO DEFENSE AGAINST.

♪♪

♪♪

Narrator:
SCIENTISTS HAVE CALCULATED

THE SOLAR SYSTEM PASSES THROUGH
A DEADLY DARK-MATTER DISK

EVERY 30 MILLION YEARS.

EVERY TIME IT DOES SO,
A BARRAGE

OF LIFE-EXTERMINATING ASTEROIDS
GET FLUNG AT THE EARTH...

AND SURE ENOUGH,
ASTRONOMERS ARE WARNING

THAT OVER THE PAST FEW YEARS,

THE NUMBER OF MAJOR ASTEROIDS
NARROWLY MISSING THE EARTH

IS INCREASING RAPIDLY.

SO IF WE'RE TALKING ABOUT
AN IMPACT ON LAND,

THE CRATER IS GONNA BE
20,000 FOOT IN DIAMETER,

AND THEN THE DEVASTATION
IS GONNA BE

50 TO 100 MILES BEYOND THAT.

Narrator: A BLAST OF
500-MILE-AN-HOUR WINDS

CARRYING A BARRAGE OF ROCKS
THE SIZE OF WASHING MACHINES

WOULD FLATTEN 90% OF TRESS,
BUILDINGS, AND BRIDGES.

♪♪

AS DEVASTATING
AS A LAND STRIKE WOULD BE,

A HIT OFF THE COAST
COULD BE EVEN MORE DEADLY.

WE'RE TALKING ABOUT
SETTING OUT RADIAL TSUNAMIS

IN ALL DIRECTIONS.

Billings: IF YOU DON'T GET OUT
OF THE STRIKE ZONE,

YOU'RE GONNA BE DEAD.

♪♪

Narrator: AS WE ENTER
THE DARK-MATTER DISK AGAIN,

SCIENTISTS ARE RACING
TO PLAN DEFENSES

AGAINST DEATH BY ASTEROID.

♪♪

THE FIRST SOLUTION
IS THE SAME THING

YOU MAY HAVE SEEN IN MOVIES --
NUKE IT.

Narrator: BUT THE MOST
A NUKE WOULD LIKELY DO

IS FRACTURE THE ASTEROID INTO
SEVERAL NO LESS DEADLY PIECES.

Major:
THE SCALE OF THESE OBJECTS

AND THE SPEED AT WHICH
THEY'RE TRAVELING IS SO LARGE

THAT A NUCLEAR BOMB PROBABLY
WOULDN'T STOP THEM ANYWAY.

IT'S GONNA BE LIKE A GNAT
HITTING A JUMBO JET.

IT'S NOT GONNA BE ENOUGH,

BUT MAYBE YOU COULD
NUDGE IT OUT OF THE WAY,

THE SAME WAY THAT
YOU MIGHT HIT ONE BALL

AGAINST ANOTHER ONE
IN A GAME OF POOL.

Narrator: NASA IS INVESTIGATING
WHETHER IT'S POSSIBLE

TO NUDGE THESE PLANET KILLERS
OUT OF THE WAY.

WELL, WE'VE ACTUALLY HIT
AN OBJECT IN SPACE BEFORE.

IN 2005, NASA LAUNCHED A MISSION
CALLED DEEP IMPACT.

Narrator:
DEEP IMPACT'S MISSION

WAS TO FIRE
AN 820-POUND COPPER CORE

INTO THE TEMPEL ONE COMET
TO BRING MATERIAL UP

FROM BENEATH ITS SURFACE
FOR ANALYSIS.

Proctor:
NOW, THAT COPPER WAS TRAVELING

AT 23,000 MILES PER HOUR,
AND WHEN IT IMPACTED THAT COMET,

IT MOVED IT JUST A LITTLE BIT.

Narrator:
EVEN A TINY CHANGE IN DIRECTION

OVER HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS
OF MILES COULD BE ENOUGH

TO CAUSE AN ASTEROID
TO MISS THE EARTH.

IF YOU CAN MOVE ITS ORBIT
JUST A LITTLE BIT

AND IF YOU DO IT EARLY ENOUGH,
BY THE TIME IT GETS

TO WHERE EARTH IS,
IT MISSES US ENTIRELY.

Narrator:
IF WE CAN CATCH EARTHBOUND
ASTEROIDS EARLY ENOUGH

AND IF WE HIT THEM HARD,
WE MAY BE ABLE TO DEFLECT THEM.

NASA IS ALREADY WORKING

ON SUCH AN ASTEROID-DEFLECTION
DEFENSE SYSTEM.

DIDYMOS B WILL BE PASSING
CLOSE BY THE EARTH IN 2022,

AND NASA'S DART MISSION
IS GOING TO INTERCEPT IT.

IT'S A BIT LIKE
PLAYING POOL IN SPACE,

EXCEPT IF YOU MAKE THE RIGHT
SHOT, THE PRIZE IS OUR SURVIVAL.

Narrator:
BUT NASA'S MISSION TO DIDYMOS

IS STILL THREE YEARS AWAY
AND HAS NO GUARANTEE OF SUCCESS.

IN THE MEANTIME, THE NUMBER
OF SPACE ROCKS HEADED OUR WAY

SEEMS TO BE GROWING FAST.

WE MAY SOON BE FACING

A BLITZKRIEG OF
EARTH-SHATTERING ASTEROIDS.

IF WE SAW
A RELATIVELY LARGE OBJECT

ON A COLLISION COURSE WITH EARTH
OVER THE NEXT FEW YEARS,

WE WOULDN'T BE ABLE
TO DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT.

AT THIS MOMENT,
THERE COULD BE ASTEROIDS

COMING TOWARDS EARTH
TO SPELL OUR DOOM.

♪♪

Narrator: IT IS CURIOSITY
THAT HAS DRIVEN HUMANS

TO SEND ITS ASTRONAUTS
AND SPACESHIPS INTO THE COSMOS,

BUT WHAT THEY ARE BRINGING BACK

IS SO MUCH MORE
THAN MERE SCIENTIFIC DATA.

THERE IS LIFE OUT THERE,

AND IT IS ABOUT
TO IMPACT US ON EARTH.

♪♪

MARCH 2, 2016.

AFTER 340 DAYS IN SPACE,

ASTRONAUT SCOTT KELLY
RETURNS HOME.

BUT DOCTORS ARE SHOCKED
TO DISCOVER

HIS BODY
IS RAVAGED BY THE TRIP.

WE'RE SENDING PRIME-SPECIMEN
HUMANS INTO SPACE.

♪♪

THE ASTRONAUTS ARE
TOP-NOTCH ATHLETES.

THEY'RE SUPPOSED TO BE
CREAM OF THE CROP,

BUT THEY GET SICK
JUST FROM GOING INTO SPACE

AND BEING IN SPACE.

Narrator:
KELLY IS SUPER FIT,

BUT LIKE ALL HUMANS,

HE CARRIES THOUSANDS
OF DIFFERENT TYPES OF GERMS

ON OR IN HIS BODY.

♪♪

WHEN THEY ARE TAKEN UP
INTO SPACE,

IT SEEMS THESE GERMS
ARE BEGINNING TO MUTATE

IN DEADLY WAYS.

♪♪

THEY GROW FASTER IN SPACE.
WE DIDN'T KNOW THAT.

♪♪

Narrator: THE THE LONGER
ASTRONAUTS SPEND IN SPACE,

THE WORSE IT GETS, AS EVER MORE
MUTATIONS TAKE PLACE

AT AN EVER-FASTER RATE.

♪♪

AND YET,
GOING FURTHER INTO SPACE

WILL DEMAND
EVER-LONGER JOURNEYS.

Wise:
THE LONGER WE STAY IN SPACE,

THE GREATER THE CHANCE
OF A BIOLOGICAL CATASTROPHE

ARISING FOR WHEN
THESE MICROORGANISMS MUTATE

AND TURN HOSTILE.

♪♪

Narrator: COMING UP,

SPACE PIONEERS PLAGUED
BY PARASITIC PASSENGERS.

WHAT HAPPENS IF THEY MUTATE
AND THEY GROW BIGGER

AND THEY'RE HUNGRIER
THAN NORMAL?

Narrator:
AND A STAR MAP

SAID TO HAVE BEEN
SHOWN TO HUMANS BY ALIENS.

IF THIS MAP IS TRUE...

IT'S THE MOST IMPORTANT MAP
IN HUMAN HISTORY.

♪♪

♪♪

Narrator:
EVERY ASTRONAUT IS INFESTED WITH

TRILLIONS OF TINY LIFE FORMS.

THEY MAKE UP
AS MUCH AS FIVE POUNDS

OF A HUMAN'S TOTAL BODY WEIGHT.

A HUMAN BEING IS ACTUALLY
LIKE A SPACESHIP.

WE'RE A VESSEL.

WE'RE CARRYING WITH US
ALL SORTS OF ORGANISMS --

BACTERIAS, VIRUSES,
ALL SORTS OF MICROBIAL LIFE

THAT GO WITH US WHEREVER WE GO.

♪♪

WHEN YOU SEND
A PERSON INTO SPACE,

YOU'RE NOT JUST SENDING
ONE ORGANISM,

YOU'RE SENDING
A WHOLE ECOSYSTEM.

♪♪

Narrator:
INSIDE OUR GUTS

ARE AN AVERAGE
OF 40 TRILLION BACTERIA.

THEY ALSO COAT OUR SKIN
AND POPULATE OUR LUNGS.

ON EARTH,
THEY'RE MOSTLY NOT HARMFUL.

MANY ARE ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY.

THEY'RE REQUIRED
FOR DIGESTING FOOD,

THEY'RE REQUIRED
IN OUR IMMUNE SYSTEM,

THEY'RE REQUIRED
FOR ALL SORTS OF THINGS,

AND WHEN THEY GO AWAY
OR WHEN THEY CHANGE,

WE USUALLY NOTICE THIS
THROUGH SOME SORT OF AILMENT.

Narrator: SCIENTISTS CALL
THIS INTERNAL CARGO

OF HELPFUL ALIEN CREATURES
THE MICROBIOME,

BUT IN SPACE,
THE ALIENS INSIDE US

ARE TURNING FROM FRIEND TO FOE.

AWAY FROM THE PROTECTION
OF EARTH'S MAGNETIC FIELDS,

YOU GET MUCH MORE EXPOSURE
TO RADIATION

FROM THE SOLAR WIND,

AND YOU'RE FACING THE POTENTIAL
FOR HIGHER RATES OF MUTATION.

YOU'RE FACING THE POSSIBILITY
OF BUGS TURNING BAD QUICKER.

THE MICROBIOME, THE CREATURES
THAT WE ARE CARRYING

INTO SPACE WITH US AS WE GO,

COULD BECOME SUPERBUGS AND COULD
BECOME EXTREMELY DEADLY.

Narrator:
WHEN THEY MUTATE,

THESE ALIEN MICROBES INSIDE US
DON'T JUST MAKE US ILL.

SCIENTISTS HAVE DISCOVERED
THAT THEY ARE ALSO ABLE

TO TAKE OVER OUR MINDS.

♪♪

THE MICROBIOME IS CONSIDERED
ALMOST A SECOND BRAIN.

THERE ARE CONNECTIONS
TO THE BRAIN

VIA NERVES IN THE BODY

THAT AFFECT OUR EMOTIONS
AND HOW WE RESPOND.

Narrator:
THESE TINY ORGANISMS

AFFECT AND CAN EVEN CONTROL
OUR MEMORY,

OUR DECISIONS,
EVEN OUR STATE OF MIND.

IT RAISES THE POSSIBILITY
THAT IN THIS RELATIONSHIP,

THE BACTERIA ARE
THE PUPPET MASTERS.

THE WHOLE HUMAN RACE COULD BE
LIVING UNDER THEIR INFLUENCE.

Narrator:
MUTANT SPACE VIRUSES

WOULD PRODUCE
ALTERED HUMAN BEHAVIOR

NEVER SEEN BEFORE ON EARTH.

WE DON'T WANT THAT
TO HAPPEN IN SPACE,

WHERE LOTS OF RISK
COULD BE INVOLVED

BY HAVING ONE PERSON
GO OFF THE WHEEL.

Narrator: AWARE OF THE DANGER,
NASA IS LOOKING FOR WAYS

TO FEED HEALTHY GERMS
TO ASTRONAUTS,

BUT ITS EFFORTS SO FAR
ARE BOTH CRUDE AND DISGUSTING.

Taylor: WHAT DOCTORS
HAVE FOUND THEY CAN DO

IS DO A MICROBIOME TRANSPLANT,

WHICH IS DONE
BY A FECAL TRANSPLANT.

THEY ACTUALLY TAKE A HEALTHY
FECAL SAMPLE FROM A DONOR

AND THEN INGEST IT.

SO THINK ABOUT THAT.

YOU WOULD BE EATING
YOUR OWN EARTHLY POOP.

THERE'S NO AMOUNT OF
MAYONNAISE, KETCHUP, OR MUSTARD

THAT YOU CAN PUT ON THIS.

Narrator: FEEDING ASTRONAUTS
HUMAN EXCREMENT

IS A MEASURE THAT CAN FIGHT
BREAKING-BAD BACTERIA,

BUT SCIENTISTS HAVE
NO WAY OF PROTECTING THEM

AGAINST MUTANT PARASITES.

♪♪

HUMAN BODIES CAN PLAY HOST
TO OVER 350 KNOWN SPECIES,

FROM SINGLE-CELLED PROTOZOA
LIKE MALARIA

TO LARGE MULTICELLULAR TAPEWORMS

THAT BURROW INTO YOUR
MUSCLES, SKIN, EYES, OR BRAIN.

♪♪

SOME OF THESE
ARE EXTREMELY INVASIVE,

AND THEY FIND
THEIR WAY TO YOUR GUT.

THERE THEY'LL LAY EGGS.

WHAT HAPPENS IF THEY MUTATE
AND THEY GROW BIGGER

AND THEY'RE HUNGRIER
THAN NORMAL?

WHAT'S GONNA HAPPEN TO YOU
WHEN THAT HAPPENS?

♪♪

Wise:
YOU MIGHT JUST WATCH IN HORROR

AS THESE PARASITES
JUST GROW AND EXPAND

AND POSSIBLY EVEN MUTATE,
BECOME MORE GROTESQUE.

♪♪

Taylor:
IT COULD BE VERY HORRIFIC,

LIKE IN SCIENCE-FICTION STORIES,

WHERE ALIEN CREATURES
COME BURSTING OUT OF YOU

OR EATING THEIR WAY OUT OF YOU.

THAT COULD BE
EXTREMELY HORRIFIC.

♪♪

Narrator: ZETA RETICULI
IS A TWIN STAR SYSTEM

39 LIGHT YEARS FROM EARTH.

SOME SUSPECT SPACE AGENCIES
KNOW MORE ABOUT THIS SYSTEM

THAN THEY'RE PREPARED TO TELL.

NOW, IN 1996, ASTRONOMERS
ANNOUNCED THE DISCOVERY

OF A PLANET FOUND IN THE ZETA
RETICULI BINARY STAR SYSTEM,

BUT SHORTLY AFTER THAT,

THEY RETRACTED THAT INFORMATION
FROM THE PUBLIC.

THERE'S A SORT OF
CLOUD OF AMBIGUITY

ABOUT THIS WHOLE TOPIC.

DOES THIS DOES THIS STAR
HAVE A PLANET OR NOT?

Narrator: SOME LINKED
THIS OFFICIAL AMBIGUITY

WITH AN INCIDENT THAT HAPPENED
IN AMERICA IN 1961.

♪♪

BETTY HILL IS A SOCIAL WORKER.

HER HUSBAND, BARNEY,
WORKS FOR THE POSTAL SERVICE

AND IS ON A LOCAL BOARD OF
THE COMMISSION ON CIVIL RIGHTS.

AS THEY ARE DRIVING HOME
TO NEW HAMPSHIRE AT NIGHT,

THEY SEE A LIGHT IN THE SKY.

Birnes:
IT'S NOT THE MOON.

THE MOON'S IN THE WRONG PLACE.

IT'S NOT THE PLANET VENUS.

Marden:
AND IT APPEARED TO BE ROTATING.

IT APPEARED TO BE LIGHTED
ON ONLY ONE SIDE,

BECAUSE THEY WOULD SEE
A BLIP KIND OF THING.

Narrator:
ACCORDING TO THE HILLS,

BEFORE THEY CAN SPEED AWAY,

A WEIRD BUZZING NOISE
FILLS THE CAR.

♪♪

Marden:
IT CAUSED THE CAR TO VIBRATE

AND A TINGLING SENSATION
TO PASS THROUGH THEIR BODIES.

AS IF ONLY A MOMENT HAD PASSED,

THEY WERE 35 MILES
DOWN THE HIGHWAY.

WHEN THEY LOOK AT THEIR WATCHES,

AND THEY CAN'T ACCOUNT
FOR THREE HOURS.

IT'S MISSING TIME.

AND SO THE QUESTION IS DURING
THOSE HOURS, WHAT HAPPENED?

♪♪

♪♪

Narrator: 1961, AMERICAN COUPLE
BETTY AND BARNEY HILL

SEE A STRANGE LIGHT IN THE SKY

AND LOSE ALL MEMORY OF
THE THREE HOURS AFTERWARDS.

BETTY REPORTS
THE ALLEGED INCIDENT

TO PEASE AIR FORCE BASE.

♪♪

IT'S FILED IN AIR INTELLIGENCE
INFORMATION RECORDS,

BUT THE STORY
DOES NOT END THERE.

AFTER HAVING STRANGE NIGHTMARES,
THE COUPLE IS REFERRED

TO A HYPNOTHERAPIST
CALLED BENJAMIN SIMON.

DURING HYPNOSIS,
SIMON INVITES THE HILLS

TO RECALL EVERY DETAIL
OF WHAT HAPPENED

IN THOSE LOST THREE HOURS.

Birnes: AND THE STORY THEY TELL
IS UNBELIEVABLE.

BOTH BETTY AND BARNEY ARE
BROUGHT ABOARD A SPACECRAFT.

ON THE SPACECRAFT,
THERE ARE ALIENS.

THEY EXTRACTED DNA
FROM BOTH BETTY AND BARNEY...

REPRODUCTIVE MATERIAL, AS WELL.

Narrator: BARNEY AND BETTY'S
PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION

OF THE ALIENS
GIVES BIRTH TO A LEGEND.

♪♪

Brensberger: PEOPLE USUALLY
OBSERVE THIS ALIEN SPECIES

AS A BIG BULB HEAD, GRAY SKIN,
AND BIG BLACK EYES,

WITH A TINY LITTLE
NOSE AND MOUTH.

Paris: THEY HAVE TWO ARMS,
TWO HANDS, TWO FEET,

AND THEY FUNCTION AND THEY WALK
AROUND JUST LIKE HUMANOIDS.

THIS SPECIES IS REFERRED TO
AS THE GRAYS.

♪♪

Paris:
THE GRAYS.

THE GRAYS.THE GRAYS.

43% OF ALL THE ABDUCTION STORIES
THAT PEOPLE REPORT

DESCRIBE THE SAME
EXACT CREATURE, THE GRAY.

♪♪

Narrator:
BETTY HILL AND HER HUSBAND

ARE THE VERY FIRST PEOPLE
TO CLAIM TO HAVE MET

AND BEEN EXAMINED BY A GRAY.

AFTER BETTY'S EXAMINATION
WAS OVER,

SHE WAS LEFT ALONE WITH THE ONE
THAT SHE CALLED THE LEADER.

BETTY ACTUALLY ASKS THE
HEAD GRAY, "WHERE ARE YOU FROM?"

WHEN SHE SAID THAT, HE PRODUCED
A THREE-DIMENSIONAL-LOOKING MAP.

♪♪

SO UNDER HYPNOTIC REGRESSION,
SHE ACTUALLY DRAWS THE STAR MAP.

♪♪

Narrator: BETTY DRAWS A SERIES
OF CIRCLES AND DOTS.

BETWEEN 12 OF THESE ARE LINES,

WHICH BETTY SAYS SHOW
TRADE ROUTES OF THE GRAYS.

♪♪

SO NOW WHEN SHE COMES OUT
OF HYPNOSIS,

NOW THEY HAVE A PHYSICAL RECORD
OF THIS STAR MAP

THAT THE ALIENS
SUPPOSEDLY SHOWED HER.

Birnes:
PEOPLE WERE LAUGHING AT BETTY.

"OH, THOSE STARS DON'T EXIST.
THAT IS STUPID."

THE PROBLEM IS
THERE IS NO PATTERN OF SKY

VISIBLE FROM EARTH
THAT LOOKS LIKE THE PICTURE

THAT SHE MADE.

Narrator:
BUT THE SCIENCE OF ASTRONOMY

IS ADVANCING FAST.

EIGHT YEARS LATER, AN AMATEUR
ASTRONOMER, MARJORIE FISH,

DECIDES TO INVESTIGATE
BETTY'S STAR MAP

USING THE NEWLY RELEASED
GLIESE STAR CATALOG.

SO BY THIS TIME,
AND THIS IS IN THE EARLY '70s,

SCIENTISTS HAVE BEEN ABLE
TO MEASURE

THE DISTANCE
TO THE NEAREST STARS.

MARJORIE FISH
USES THIS INFORMATION

TO CREATE
A THREE-DIMENSIONAL MAP

OF THE SUN'S SORT OF
GALACTIC NEIGHBORHOOD.

Narrator: FISH ASSUMES
THAT THE GRAYS' 3-D MAP

SHOWS A VIEW FROM
SOMEWHERE OTHER THAN EARTH.

SHE SPENDS FIVE LONG YEARS

COMPARING BETTY'S PATTERN
OF DOTS WITH HER 3-D MODEL,

HOPING TO DISCOVER THE LOCATION
OF THE GRAYS' HOME WORLD.

Wise:
SHE TWISTS IT AND TURNS IT

AND KIND OF LOOKS AT IT
FROM DIFFERENT ANGLES,

UNTIL FINALLY, SHE'S ABLE
TO KIND OF MAKE A MATCH

BETWEEN THE MAP THAT
WAS RECOVERED UNDER HYPNOSIS

AND WHAT SHE SEES WITH
HER STAR SCULPTURE.

AND THIS IS HOW SHE FOUND
THAT TWO MAJOR DOTS

IN THE STAR MAP
COULD BE THE ZETA RETICULI.

IN THIS MOMENT, SHE REALIZED

THIS WAS EXACTLY
WHAT BETTY DREW.

Narrator:
IT'S A TRIUMPH FOR FISH.

THE FINDINGS ARE PUBLISHED
IN ASTRONOMYMAGAZINE,

BUT DESPITE THE HILLS'
DESCRIPTION OF THE GRAYS

AND BETTY'S BRAVE ATTEMPT
TO RECALL

WHERE THESE ALIENS CAME FROM,

THE CLAIMS FAILED
TO CONVINCE ASTRONOMERS.

IT JUST PROVES THAT LIKE
IF YOU LOOK THROUGH

ENOUGH COMBINATIONS
OF RANDOM DOTS,

YOU'LL GET ANOTHER COLLECTION
OF RANDOM DOTS.

Narrator:
BUT SOME INVESTIGATORS

DON'T ACCEPT
THE RANDOM-DOT THEORY.

BETTY'S STAR MAP IS
PRETTY RUDIMENTARY,

BUT IT IS POSSIBLE

THAT IT ACTUALLY DOES DEPICT
ZETA RETICULI.

IT DOES LOOK QUITE SIMILAR.

IF THIS MAP IS TRUE...

IF THIS MAP IS TRUE,

IT'S THE MOST IMPORTANT MAP
IN HUMAN HISTORY.

Narrator: WHATEVER THE TRUTH
OF BETTY AND BARNEY'S STORY,

FOR MANY, ZETA RETICULI
WILL REMAIN IN OUR IMAGINATION,

THE SPIRITUAL HOME OF ALIENS,

AT LEAST UNTIL
THE REAL THING COMES ALONG.