All language subtitles for NASAs.Unexplained.Files.S06E02.Aliens.vs.Stalin.at.Area.51.1080p.AMZN.WEB-DL.DD+2.0.H.264-BATMAN_track3_[eng]

Narrator:
THE NEW RED TERROR --

MARTIAN MUTANTS
BACK FROM THE DEAD...

TERRAFORMING MARS COULD BE
A DEADLY MISTAKE.

[ GROWLS ]

Narrator:
...NEVER-ENDING NIGHTMARES
IN DEEP-SPACE DEEP-FREEZE...

IMAGINE YOUR WORST NIGHTMARE
LASTING FOR DECADES.

[ SCREAMS ]

Narrator:
...AND, THE GOVERNMENT SENDS IN

ARMED SPECIAL AGENTS
TO SHUT DOWN AN OBSERVATORY.

HAVE THESE ASTRONOMERS SPOTTED
SOMETHING THEY SHOULDN'T HAVE?

[ RUMBLING ]

♪♪

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

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

CAPTIONS PAID FOR BY
DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS

Narrator:
NOVEMBER 26, 2018 -- MARS.

[ RUMBLING ]

NASA'S InSight PROBE
APPROACHES THE RED PLANET.

IT TOUCHES DOWN
AT ELYSIUM PLANITIA.

♪♪

IT JOINS A GROWING REGIMENT
OF LANDERS AND ORBITERS.

THE DATA THEY PROVIDE WILL TELL
SCIENTISTS IF, WHEN, AND HOW

THE RED PLANET CAN BE MADE FIT
FOR HUMAN HABITATION.

♪♪

THERE'S A DESIRE TO DO
SOMETHING VERY DRAMATIC

TO CHANGE THE PLANET
SO THAT IT IS HABITABLE.

♪♪

Major:
THE PRIZE IS MASSIVE --

LITERALLY, AN ENTIRE PLANET
READY FOR POPULATING.

Narrator: FOR MANY, IT'S A PLAN
THAT'S NOT JUST POSSIBLE --

IT'S NECESSARY.

Seager: SOME PEOPLE BELIEVE THAT
OUR PLANET IS IN GREAT DANGER,

AND THAT SOMEDAY WE'LL
HAVE TO LEAVE EARTH.

[ SIRENS WAILING ]

Taylor:
EARTH WON'T LAST FOREVER.

SO IN ORDER TO SURVIVE, WE'RE
GOING TO NEED TO MOVE TO MARS.

Narrator:
IT'S EASY TO EXAGGERATE
THE THREATS FACING EARTH,

BUT IT WOULD BE FOOLISH
TO IGNORE THEM --

[ SHOUTING ]

♪♪

FROM WITHIN,
THE GROWING DESTRUCTIVE POWER

OF WEAPONS TECHNOLOGY.

[ RUMBLING ]

FROM OUTSIDE, THE INCREASING
NUMBER OF ASTEROIDS

NARROWLY MISSING EARTH.

THIS IS NOT SCIENCE FICTION.

THIS IS GUARANTEED BY THE LAWS
OF PHYSICS AND PROBABILITY.

TO STAY RISKS ANNIHILATION.

[ LOUD BURST ]

THE DINOSAURS
NEVER CONQUERED SPACE.

[ GROWLING ]

AND LOOK WHAT HAPPENED TO THEM.

♪♪

Narrator: BUT MARS ISN'T
GOING TO HAND ITSELF OVER

TO HUMAN COLONISTS
WITHOUT A FIGHT.

[ RUMBLING ]

THE ATMOSPHERE IS 100 TIMES
THINNER THAN EARTH'S.

WITHOUT THIS HEAT-RETAINING
INSULATING BLANKET,

TEMPERATURES ON MARS
PLUNGE TO -225 DEGREES.

Schultz:
IT'S LIKE BEING AT AN ALTITUDE
OF ABOUT BEING 20 MILES

AND SAYING, "OKAY, I'M GOOD."

NO, YOU'RE NOT GOOD.
YOU'RE DEAD.

Major: YOU WOULDN'T LAST MUCH
LONGER THEN 10 OR 15 SECONDS.

YOUR BODY WOULD JUST BECOME
A FREEZE-DRIED CARCASS.

♪♪

Narrator: BUT MARS HASN'T ALWAYS
BEEN LIKE THIS.

[ PINGING ]

Orzel:
THERE ARE LOTS OF OBSERVATIONS

THAT SUGGEST THAT IN THE PAST,
MARS HAD CONDITIONS

THAT WERE RIGHT FOR LIFE.

MARS MAY HAVE ACTUALLY HAD AN
ATMOSPHERE A LOT LIKE EARTH'S.

Schultz:
WE KNOW THERE ARE PLACES
ON MARS WHERE THERE WERE

MASSIVE FLOODS OF WATER,

A THOUSAND TIMES THE FLOW
OF THE MISSISSIPPI.

♪♪

Narrator: TODAY ON MARS,
THIS WATER AND GAS

LIES BENEATH THE SURFACE.

IF THEY WERE TO BE RELEASED,

THE ATMOSPHERE AND LANDSCAPE
WOULD FUNDAMENTALLY CHANGE.

♪♪

Major: WE KNOW THAT MARS
HAS HUGE RESERVES

OF WATER AND CARBON DIOXIDE
IN ITS POLAR ICE CAPS.

THESE COULD POTENTIALLY BE USED
TO CREATE AN ATMOSPHERE.

♪♪

Narrator: WATER VAPOR AND CARBON
DIOXIDE ARE GREENHOUSE GASES --

VITAL ELEMENTS FOR AN ATMOSPHERE
FIT FOR HUMANS.

Seager: THE THEORY WOULD BE
TO MELT THE ICE CAPS.

BY PUTTING GREENHOUSE GASES
BACK INTO MARS' ATMOSPHERE,

IT MAY BE ABLE TO SUSTAIN ITSELF

AS A WARM ENOUGH PLANET
FOR US TO SURVIVE ON.

♪♪

Narrator:
THERE ARE A NUMBER OF IDEAS FOR
MELTING THE MARTIAN ICE CAPS.

BUT MOST OF THEM ARE
UNREALISTIC, VASTLY EXPENSIVE,

OR PRACTICALLY IMPOSSIBLE.

Major:
TECH BILLIONAIRE ELON MUSK
THINKS THAT WE CAN REGENERATE

MARS' ATMOSPHERE BY NUKING
THE ICE CAPS AT THE POLES.

YOU'D NEED THOUSANDS
OF THESE WEAPONS --

PROBABLY MORE THAN
WE'VE ACTUALLY BUILT --

TO MAKE A DENT IN SOMETHING
AS BIG AS

THE ICE CAPS
THAT YOU SEE ON MARS.

♪♪

Narrator:
BUT BIOLOGISTS NOW BELIEVE

THERE'S A MUCH SIMPLER AND
CHEAPER WAY TO TRANSFORM MARS.

[ RUSTLING ]

Taylor:
ONE THING WE KNOW FOR CERTAIN

IS ONE OF THE MOST POWERFUL
FORCES IN NATURE IS LIFE ITSELF.

♪♪

Schultz: THE ATMOSPHERE OF MARS
IS DOMINANTLY C02.

SOMEHOW, YOU HAVE TO TURN
THAT C02 INTO OXYGEN.

SO YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE TO PLANT
PLANTS ALL OVER THE PLACE.

THEY BREATHE CARBON DIOXIDE
AND OUTPUT OXYGEN.

♪♪

LET THEM START GROWING
AND GRADUALLY, ORGANICALLY,

TERRAFORM THE PLANET.

Narrator: ALTHOUGH THE CLIMATE
ON MARS IS TOO HARSH

FOR MOST OF EARTH'S PLANT LIFE
TO SURVIVE,

SCIENTISTS HAVE BEGUN TO
ENGINEER NEW, ENHANCED

SUPER VEGETATION THAT IS
CAPABLE OF GROWING,

PROCREATING, AND SPREADING
ACROSS THE RED PLANET.

WE NEED TO GENETICALLY ENGINEER
PLANTS THAT WILL GROW ON MARS.

Narrator: SCIENTISTS ARE NOW
ABLE TO MOVE GENETIC TRAITS

BETWEEN ORGANISMS.

WE HAVE STRAWBERRIES
THAT GROW IN WINTER,

THANKS TO ANTIFREEZE GENES
TAKEN FROM ARCTIC FLOUNDER.

WE HAVE CORN THAT HAS BEEN MADE
POISONOUS TO INSECTS.

ALL KINDS OF CROPS AND ANIMALS

HAVE BEEN GENETICALLY
MANIPULATED

TO MAKE THEM GROW BIGGER
OR ACT DIFFERENTLY.

Taylor: SCIENTISTS HAVE CROSSED
SOME EXTREMOPHILE DNA

WITH SOME ARCTIC TUNDRA PLANTS,

AND HAD THEM GROW IN A JAR THAT
HAD A MARS-LIKE ATMOSPHERE.

♪♪

Narrator: THE RESULTS
ARE INCREDIBLY EXCITING,

AND SHOW THAT GENETICALLY
MODIFIED ORGANISMS

COULD BREATHE NEW LIFE
INTO MARS,

TRANSFORMING THE PLANET'S
ATMOSPHERE --

NOT JUST PLANTS,
BUT MAYBE ANIMALS TOO.

♪♪

Taylor: WE COULD SEND
FIRE ANTS AND KUDZU,

'CAUSE THOSE THINGS
LIVE EVERYWHERE

AND YOU CAN'T KILL THEM.

AND I THINK IT WOULD TERRAFORM
MARS IN NO TIME.

♪♪

Major:
WE COULD HAVE AN ATMOSPHERE

AND LIQUID OCEANS WITHIN
A FEW GENERATIONS.

MARS MIGHT JUST BE ABLE TO
SUSTAIN HUMAN LIFE.

Orzel: WE COULD POTENTIALLY
TRANSFORM THE RED PLANET

INTO ANOTHER BLUE PLANET,
AND EVEN ANOTHER GREEN PLANET.

THAT'S AN AMAZING THING
TO CONTEMPLATE.

♪♪

Narrator: IMAGINE A TIME
IN THE NEAR FUTURE --

THE FIRST COLONISTS SET FOOT
ON NASA'S BIOENGINEERED PLANET.

♪♪

YOU GET THERE,
AND YOUR INSTRUMENTS SAY

IT'S OKAY TO OPEN YOUR VISOR.

[ RUMBLING ]

Major:
TO BREATHE THE AIR

OF A PLANET THAT
YOU HELPED ENGINEER

WOULD BE LITERALLY
EARTH-SHATTERING --

OR SHOULD I SAY,
MARS-SHATTERING.

Narrator:
BUT THE EXPLORERS' ENJOYMENT

OF THE NEW MARTIAN LANDSCAPE
COULD BE VERY SHORT-LIVED.

WHAT HAPPENS
IF OUR SUPER FERTILE

GENETICALLY MODIFIED ORGANISMS

COME IN CONTACT
WITH MARTIAN LIFE?

[ ROARS ]

♪♪

[ GUNFIRE ][ ROARS ]

IF WE START MAKING MARS
MORE HOSPITABLE TO LIFE,

ARE WE GOING TO WAKE UP THINGS

THAT HAVE BEEN LYING DORMANT
THERE FOR MILLIONS OF YEARS?

[ ROARS ]

♪♪

Narrator: COMING UP, A PLANET
RED IN TOOTH AND CLAW.

[ CRACKLING ]

WE MIGHT BE SETTING OFF
A CHAIN REACTION

THAT COULD SPIRAL
OUT OF CONTROL.

[ ROARS ]

AND, THE ROSWELL
FLYING SAUCER CRASH --

IT'S A HORRIFIC NEW TWIST.

THEY SAID THAT
THEY WERE CHILDREN

GENETICALLY ENGINEERED TO LOOK
LIKE EXTRATERRESTRIALS.

♪♪

♪♪

Narrator: SCIENTISTS BELIEVE
THEY CAN MAKE MARS HABITABLE

BY SENDING GENETICALLY
MODIFIED ORGANISMS

TO COLONIZE THE PLANET.

♪♪

BUT WHAT HAPPENS
WHEN THE NEW LIFE FROM EARTH

MEETS THE OLD LIFE OF MARS?[ ROARS ]

[ GUNFIRE ]

♪♪

JULY 2018 --

THE MARS EXPRESS ORBITER SCANS
THE MARTIAN ICE CAPS.

♪♪

IT DISCOVERS, HIDDEN BENEATH,
A LAKE OF LIQUID WATER.

♪♪

AND WHERE THERE'S WATER
CAN BE LIFE.

I GET REALLY EXCITED
WHEN WE FIND WATER

AND OCEANS
ON OTHER PLANETS.

LIFE MOST LIKELY STARTED
IN OCEANS RIGHT HERE ON EARTH.

AND IF WE FIND OCEANS ON OTHER
PLANETS, THAT MEANS

THERE'S A REAL POTENTIAL
FOR EXTRATERRESTRIAL LIFE.

♪♪

Narrator: TERRAFORMING MARS

COULD AWAKEN DORMANT
MARTIAN CREATURES

WHOSE BIOLOGY WOULD BE
COMPLETELY DIFFERENT

TO ANYTHING
WE HAVE ENCOUNTERED BEFORE.

♪♪

Orzel:
THERE'S A SORT OF PANDORA'S BOX
POSSIBILITY HERE.

MARTIAN AND EARTH LIFE
INTERACTING WITH EACH OTHER --

COULD THAT HAVE
DISASTROUS CONSEQUENCES?

♪♪

Narrator: ANY ORGANISM ON MARS
COULD BECOME MASSIVE,

BECAUSE THE GRAVITY IS LESS
THAN HALF THAT ON EARTH.

Hovland: THIS CAN CAUSE THEIR
VERY BODIES TO GROW LARGER.

THESE GIANT ORGANISMS
CAN JUST LIVE AND GROW.

WE MIGHT BE SETTING OFF
A CHAIN REACTION

THAT COULD SPIRAL
OUT OF CONTROL.

[ GROWLING ]

[ GUNFIRE ]

Taylor: AND IT'S QUITE POSSIBLE
THAT WHATEVER WE SENT THERE

TO TERRAFORM MARS HAS MUTATED
INTO SOME KIND OF MAN-EATING,

ASTRONAUT-DEVOURING PLANT
WITH TEETH.

[ ROARS ]WE'RE GOING TO HAVE SOME STRANGE

MUTATED MARTIAN FIRE ANT.

I'M NOT LOOKING FORWARD TO
GETTING BIT BY ONE OF THOSE.

♪♪

Narrator: TERRAFORMING MARS
RISKS PITTING MANKIND

AGAINST A LETHAL NEW ENEMY.

BUT EXPERTS BELIEVE WE HAVE
NO CHOICE BUT TO PROCEED.

DO WE DARE PLAY GOD AND BRING
A PLANET BACK TO LIFE?

I SAY YES,

'CAUSE WE'RE GOING TO
NEED IT.

♪♪

Narrator: JULY 1934 --

THE KREMLIN, MOSCOW.

A REMARKABLE ENCOUNTER

BETWEEN TWO OF THE WORLD'S
MOST FAMOUS MEN

COULD REVEAL THE SECRET
OF THE ROSWELL CRASH.

♪♪

Man: A BIG RUSSIAN AIRLINER
DESCENDS AT MOSCOW,

HAVING AS A PASSENGER ONBOARD
MR. H.G. WELLS.

♪♪

Narrator: H.G. WELLS, THE FAMOUS
SCIENCE FICTION AUTHOR,

MEETS SOVIET DICTATOR
JOSEPH STALIN.

WELLS DREAMS OF FORGING
A SINGLE GLOBAL GOVERNMENT

TO RULE THE WHOLE EARTH.

WHEN I WAS HERE IN 1920,
I TALKED TO LENIN.

AND HE SAID TO ME,
"COME AGAIN IN TEN YEARS' TIME

AND SEE WHAT WE'VE DONE."

Gerovitch: WELLS CAME TO MOSCOW
TO PERSUADE STALIN

TO MOVE TOWARDS
THE UNITED STATES

SO THAT EVENTUALLY,

THE TWO COUNTRIES
WOULD FORM A JOINT GOVERNMENT

THAT WOULD BE
A WORLD GOVERNMENT.

Narrator:
WELLS' IDEA IS CRAZY.

COMMUNISM IS IRRECONCILABLE
WITH THE AMERICAN LOVE

OF INDIVIDUAL LIBERTY.

BUT A BEST-SELLING
SCIENCE FICTION STORY HE WROTE

DOES GIVE STALIN
A FIENDISHLY CLEVER IDEA.

HE WROTE THE GROUNDBREAKING
"WAR OF THE WORLDS,"

WHICH HAD AN AMAZING
INFLUENCE ON MANKIND.

Narrator: THE 1938 STORY
OF A MARTIAN INVASION

IS DRAMATIZED ON RADIO

BY THE LEGENDARY ACTOR
AND DIRECTOR, ORSON WELLES.

MANY LISTENERS BELIEVE
IT'S A GENUINE NEWS REPORT

OF A REAL MARTIAN INVASION,

AS MASS PANIC BREAKS OUT
ACROSS AMERICA.

Man: THE CRAFT IS ISSUING
A GREAT JET OF FLAME!

IT ENGULFS THE ADVANCING
SOLDIERS HEAD-ON!

Man: RADIO LISTENERS WERE THROWN
INTO A FRENZY OF TERROR

WHEN THEY MISTOOK
A WAR DRAMA FOR FACT.

MY OWN FATHER LISTENED TO THAT
BROADCAST, GRABBED HIS RIFLE,

AND RAN OUTSIDE BECAUSE HE
THOUGHT ALIENS WERE ATTACKING.

I'M DEEPLY SHOCKED
AND DEEPLY REGRETFUL

ABOUT THE RESULTS
OF LAST NIGHT'S BROADCAST.

STALIN WOULD'VE BEEN AWARE

OF THIS "WAR OF THE WORLDS"
BROADCAST

AND THE PANIC IT SPREAD
THROUGHOUT THE COUNTRY.

THAT MAY HAVE BEEN THE SEED
THAT PLANTED THE IDEA

IN STALIN'S BRAIN THAT,
"I'M GONNA TRY THIS,

BUT I'M GONNA USE IT FOR REAL."

Narrator:
A DECADE AFTER THE BROADCAST,

RUSSIA AND AMERICA
ARE LOCKED IN COLD WAR.

[ SPEAKING RUSSIAN ]

Gottlieb: STALIN DOES NOT HAVE
NUCLEAR WEAPONS YET,

BUT YOU DON'T NEED
PHYSICAL WEAPONS TO WIN A WAR.

MASS HYSTERIA AND PANIC
CAN DO THE JOB JUST FINE.

♪♪

Narrator: IN 2011, INVESTIGATIVE
JOURNALIST ANNIE JACOBSEN

IS TOLD OF STALIN'S ATTEMPT
TO RECREATE

THE "WAR OF THE WORLDS" PANIC.

ACCORDING TO THE SOURCE,
STALIN HIMSELF MASTERMINDED

THE FAMOUS ALIEN INVASION NOW
KNOWN AS THE ROSWELL INCIDENT.

ANNIE JACOBSEN HAD
A CONTACT WHO, IN 1978,

WORKED FOR THE ROSWELL PROJECT
AT AREA 51.

THIS WASN'T A NUT.

HE ACTUALLY DID HAVE
CREDENTIALS.

HE WAS BELIEVABLE.

Narrator:
JULY 8, 1947 --

ROSWELL, NEW MEXICO.

A U.S. MILITARY OFFICER
ANNOUNCES TO THE PRESS

THAT AIR FORCE PERSONNEL HAVE
RECOVERED A CRASHED FLYING DISC,

WHICH LEFT A TRAIL OF DEBRIS
ACROSS AN AREA 200 YARDS WIDE.

♪♪

WITHIN 24 HOURS, THE STORY
MYSTERIOUSLY CHANGES.

♪♪

THE NEXT DAY, THE MILITARY
RETRACTS ITS STATEMENT

AND SAYS, "OH, IT WAS ONLY
A WEATHER BALLOON."

Marden: THEY WERE
COVERING UP THE CRASH

OF WHAT APPEARS TO HAVE BEEN
AN EXTRATERRESTRIAL CRAFT.

Narrator:
JACOBSEN'S SOURCE CONFIRMS

WHAT MANY PEOPLE
HAVE LONG THOUGHT --

THIS WAS NO WEATHER BALLOON.

BUT NOR DID THE FLYING DISC
COME FROM SPACE.

HE CLAIMS IT WAS
A NAZI AIRCRAFT,

CAPTURED AND OPERATED
BY THE SOVIETS.

Gottlieb: ACCORDING TO
JACOBSEN'S SOURCE,

THE AIRCRAFT THAT CRASHED
WAS ACTUALLY

A MODIFIED HORTEN HO 229
EXPERIMENTAL AIRPLANE

DESIGNED BY THE NAZIS IN 1945.

Narrator:
THE HO 229 IS A REVOLUTIONARY
JET-POWERED FLYING WING

THAT WOULD LATER INSPIRE
THE DESIGN

OF THE B-2 STEALTH BOMBER.

♪♪

THE SOURCE CLAIMS STALIN'S
SECRET SERVICE CAPTURES

THE TECHNOLOGY
AT THE END OF WORLD WAR II.

♪♪

HERE IS THE TRUE STORY --
IT WASN'T A SAUCER.

IT WAS A FLYING DELTA --
A FLYING WEDGE.

Narrator:
THE UNNAMED AREA 51 ENGINEER

HAS ANOTHER STUNNING REVELATION.

♪♪

THE WRECKAGE CONTAINS
WEIRD-LOOKING BODIES,

BUT NOT OF ALIENS.

[ RUMBLING ]

Lukes: THEY SAID THAT
THEY WERE CHILDREN,

GENETICALLY ENGINEERED TO LOOK
LIKE EXTRATERRESTRIALS.

♪♪

Narrator: COMING UP,
ALIENS VERSUS COMMUNISTS --

ROSWELL
AND THE "WAR OF THE WORLDS."

HAD A CRAFT LIKE THIS DROPPED
IN THE MIDDLE OF A CITY,

IT WOULD'VE BEEN
A HORROR MOVIE.

Narrator: AND, ASTRONOMERS FEAR
A COSMIC COVER-UP

AS THE FEDS LOCK DOWN
A SOLAR OBSERVATORY.

ARE WE ABOUT TO BE HIT
BY A SOLAR TSUNAMI

OF RADIATION PARTICLES?

[ RUMBLING ]

♪♪

♪♪

Narrator: A FORMER
AREA 51 ENGINEER

DESCRIBES A SINISTER
COMMUNIST PLOT

INSPIRED BY H.G. WELLS'
"WAR OF THE WORLDS"

TO CAUSE PANIC AND CHAOS
ACROSS AMERICA.

[ SHOUTING ]

HE CLAIMS THAT INSIDE
THE ALIEN-LOOKING CRAFT

THAT LANDED IN ROSWELL WERE
CHILDREN WHO THE COMMUNISTS

HAD MUTILATED TO LOOK
LIKE ALIEN BEINGS.

HAD A CRAFT LIKE THIS DROPPED
IN THE MIDDLE OF A CITY,

YOU WOULD'VE SEEN MORE PANIC
THAN YOU COULD POSSIBLY IMAGINE.

IT WOULD'VE BEEN
A HORROR MOVIE.

Zimmerman: IF THIS WAS
STALIN'S GRAND SCHEME,

IT FAILED MISERABLY,

BECAUSE THE UNITED STATES
GOVERNMENT

CUT THIS STORY DOWN
WITHIN 24 HOURS.

THERE WAS NO PANIC.
THERE WAS NO MASS HYSTERIA.

♪♪

Narrator:
SOME INVESTIGATORS CLAIM

THAT THE STORY OF STALIN
MASTERMINDING ROSWELL

IS ITSELF A PIECE OF
PSYCHOLOGICAL MISDIRECTION,

PUT OUT BY AMERICAN
INTELLIGENCE BLACK OPS.

♪♪

AND THEY GOT THE IDEA,
ONCE AGAIN,

FROM A SCIENCE FICTION BOOK.

THERE WAS A SCIENCE FICTION
STORY WRITTEN

THAT COVERS THE SAME DETAILS
IN THIS ACCOUNT.

Narrator: "TOMB TAPPER"
IS A SHORT STORY

BY "STAR TREK" WRITER
JAMES BLISH,

PUBLISHED 10 YEARS AFTER
THE DEATH OF H.G. WELLS.

IT TELLS OF A RUSSIAN PLOT TO
CRASH A PRETEND FLYING SAUCER,

PILOTED BY A MUTILATED
SOVIET CHILD.

SOME ANALYSTS BELIEVE
THIS FICTIONAL STORY

WAS TOLD TO JACOBSEN AS FACT
TO THROW HER OFF THE SCENT

OF WHAT REALLY HAPPENED
AT ROSWELL.

♪♪

Lukes:
THE UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT

IS GREAT AT PUTTING OUT
MISINFORMATION.

AND VERY CLEARLY, THAT IS WHAT
TOOK PLACE WITH ALL OF THIS.

Narrator:
THE ROSWELL INCIDENT IS CLOUDED

WITH SO MANY LAYERS
OF SUBTERFUGE,

IT'S POSSIBLE
THE U.S. GOVERNMENT ITSELF

NO LONGER KNOWS THE TRUTH.

♪♪

IF ROSWELL, NEW MEXICO,
WAS NOT STALIN PROPAGANDA

AND IT WASN'T AN ACTUAL
ALIEN CRASH, WHAT WAS IT?

♪♪

Narrator:
SEPTEMBER 6, 2018 --

BLACK HAWK HELICOPTERS
PACKED WITH ARMED FBI AGENTS

SWOOP OVER THE LINCOLN FOREST
MOUNTAINS OF NEW MEXICO.

♪♪

THEIR TARGET --

NOT A TERRORIST TRAINING CAMP,

NOT A DRUG CARTEL.

[ RADIO BLIPS ]

THIS SPECIAL SWAT TEAM
IS ABOUT TO RAID

AN ASTRONOMICAL OBSERVATORY --

♪♪

THE SUNSPOT SOLAR OBSERVATORY,

USED BY NASA TO UNDERSTAND
AND KEEP WATCH ON THE SUN.

♪♪

THERE'S BLACK HAWK HELICOPTERS
AND FBI AGENTS

SWARMING ALL OVER THE PLACE.

Narrator: GOVERNMENT AGENTS
SHUT DOWN THE OBSERVATORY

AND EVACUATE THE 250-ACRE SITE.

LOCAL POLICE ARE LEFT
IN THE DARK.

[ RADIO CHATTER ]

AND THE EMPLOYEES...

ARE SILENCED.

EVERYONE HAD TO SIGN SOME KIND
OF SECRECY AGREEMENT

THAT WHATEVER THEY'D SEEN
COULD NOT BE DISCLOSED.

THEY TREATED IT AS IF A NATIONAL
SECURITY BREACH HAD OCCURRED.

IS THERE SOMETHING
WE SHOULD KNOW?

♪♪

Narrator:
THE FBI SAYS THEIR RAID
AND 11-DAY LOCKDOWN

IS IN RESPONSE TO
AN OBSERVATORY EMPLOYEE

ACCUSED OF MISUSING
THE INTERNET.

MANY FIND THIS EXPLANATION
DIFFICULT TO BELIEVE.

♪♪

Shostak: THIS IS AN OBSERVATORY.
THIS ONE LOOKS AT THE SUN.

MAYBE THEY FOUND SOMETHING THAT
WE SHOULD BE CONCERNED ABOUT.

Narrator: BUT WHAT COULD
THE ASTRONOMERS HAVE SEEN

THAT THEY SHOULDN'T HAVE?

THERE'S BEEN SOME WILD THEORIES.

Oluseyi: THE DAYTIME SKY
IS OUR BLIND SPOT.

IF YOU REALLY WANT TO SNEAK UP
ON A PLANET,

COME FROM THE DIRECTION
OF THE SUN.

[ ENGINES ROAR ]

Narrator: MILITARY STRATEGISTS
THROUGHOUT HISTORY

HAVE USED GLARING SUNLIGHT
FOR SURPRISE ATTACKS.

[ INSTRUMENTS CLICK ]

Oluseyi: WHEN A FIGHTER PILOT
OR A BOMBER IS DOING A RUN,

THEY COME FROM THE SUNWARD
DIRECTION SO THEY CAN'T BE SEEN.

Narrator: COULD ASTRONOMERS
HAVE DETECTED SOMETHING

HEADED TOWARDS EARTH
USING THE SUN AS COVER?

[ RUMBLING ]

IF PEOPLE FOUND OUT ABOUT THAT,
IT COULD CAUSE A PANIC.

SO MAYBE THE OBSERVATORY
NEEDED TO BE SHUT DOWN

TO KEEP IT SECRET.

♪♪

Narrator:
BUT NO OTHER OBSERVATORY

OR MONITORING STATION HAS
REPORTED ANYTHING SUSPICIOUS

HEADING FOR EARTH.

SOME RESEARCHERS ASK
IF THE SHUTDOWN IS LINKED

TO THE SOLAR OBSERVATORY'S
SPECIFIC

AND MOST IMPORTANT WORK --

♪♪

THE CHARTING OF SOLAR ACTIVITY.

IT IS WELL KNOWN THAT CERTAIN
FORMS OF SOLAR ACTIVITY

CAN AFFECT LIFE ON EARTH,

SUCH AS A BURST
OF SOLAR RADIATION

KNOWN AS A CORONAL
MASS EJECTION.

Filippenko:
IT'S VERY DIFFICULT TO PREDICT

THE CURRENTS OF
A CORONAL MASS EJECTION.

FOR NASA,
THIS IS A SERIOUS PROBLEM.

[ RUMBLING ]

Narrator:
CORONAL MASS EJECTIONS EXPLODE

WITH THE POWER OF 20 MILLION
NUCLEAR BOMBS.

[ CRACKLING ]

THEY CREATE A HUGE
ELECTROMAGNETIC IMPULSE

THAT CAN KNOCK OUT POWER GRIDS
ACROSS WHOLE CONTINENTS.

Billings: THE AMOUNT OF DAMAGE
WE WOULD FACE,

BOTH ON THE GROUND AND IN SPACE,

FROM A SOLAR EVENT
COULD BE CATASTROPHIC.

♪♪

SO ARE WE ABOUT TO BE HIT
BY A SOLAR TSUNAMI

OF RADIATION PARTICLES?

[ RUMBLING ]

Narrator: BUT CORONAL
MASS EJECTIONS

TAKE JUST THREE DAYS
TO REACH EARTH,

AND WOULD'VE HIT BY NOW.

FAR, FAR MORE WORRYING
THAN THIS,

SOME FEAR THE SOLAR ASTRONOMERS
MAY HAVE OBSERVED

A SUBTLE CHANGE
IN THE SIZE OF THE SUN --

THE BEGINNING OF THE END
OF OUR ENTIRE SOLAR SYSTEM.

THE SUN POWERS LIFE HERE ON
EARTH, SO IT'S THE LIFE-GIVER.

♪♪

BUT THE SUN, IT HAS
A DEADLY ACE UP ITS SLEEVE.

♪♪

Narrator: COMING UP,

THE U.S. GOVERNMENT
IS POWERLESS

AGAINST EARTH'S GREATEST
ENEMY -- THE SUN.

OBLITERATION WILL BE SWIFT
AND CERTAIN.

THERE WILL BE NO ESCAPE.

AND, HIBERNATING ASTRONAUTS
GO ON A JOURNEY THROUGH HELL.

THEY MAY BE TRAPPED IN THERE
WITH NIGHTMARES --

NIGHTMARES THAT NEVER END.

[ SCREAMING ]

♪♪

♪♪

[ HELICOPTER BLADES WHIRRING ]

Narrator: GOVERNMENT AGENTS
SHUT DOWN

THE SUNSPOT SOLAR OBSERVATORY,
STUNNING THE WORLD OF ASTRONOMY.

COULD THE OBSERVATORY HAVE SEEN
A CATACLYSMIC CHANGE IN THE SUN?

[ RUMBLING ]

Shostak: THE SUN, AT THE MOMENT,
IS TURNING HYDROGEN INTO HELIUM.

IT WORKS LIKE
A GIANT H-BOMB, OKAY?

BUT EVENTUALLY, IT'S GOING TO
RUN OUT OF THE HYDROGEN.

[ RUMBLING ]

Narrator: WHEN THE SUN EXHAUSTS
ALL THE HYDROGEN FUEL,

IT WON'T JUST TURN OFF
LIKE A LIGHT BULB.

WITHOUT NUCLEAR FUSION
PUSHING GASES OUT,

THE CORE BEGINS TO COLLAPSE
UNDER ITS OWN GRAVITY.

♪♪

Oluseyi: BECAUSE IT'S GETTING
SMALLER, IT'S GETTING HOTTER.

ONCE THE TEMPERATURE
IN THE CORE OF THE SUN

REACHES 100 MILLION DEGREES,
THE HELIUM WILL IGNITE.

AND WHEN THAT HAPPENS,

THE SUN WILL EXPAND DRASTICALLY
AND SUDDENLY.

Filippenko: IT WILL EXPAND OUT
TO WHAT'S CALLED A RED GIANT.

EARTH WILL BE LITERALLY FRIED.

[ RUMBLING, WHOOSHING ]

Narrator: MIGHT SOLAR
ASTRONOMERS HAVE DETECTED

THE FIRST SIGNS
OF CHANGE IN THE SUN --

THE BEGINNING OF THE END
OF THE SOLAR SYSTEM?

IT'S NO WONDER ANCIENT PEOPLE
WORSHIPED THE SUN AS A GOD,

BECAUSE NOT ONLY
DOES IT PROVIDE US LIFE,

BUT IN THE END, THE SUN
COULD ULTIMATELY SPELL DOOM

FOR ALL OF EARTH.

♪♪

Narrator: MOST ASTRONOMERS
BELIEVE OUR SUN

IS CURRENTLY STABLE,
AND THEY HOPE IT WILL STAY SO

FOR BILLIONS MORE YEARS.

BUT ASTRONOMERS KNOW
THAT SUN-LIKE STARS

ELSEWHERE IN THE UNIVERSE
ACT ERRATICALLY,

AND THERE'S NO GUARANTEE
THAT OURS

COULD NOT SUDDENLY
SURPRISE US.

♪♪

THE FBI COULD'VE SHUT DOWN
THE OBSERVATORY

TO CONTAIN
THE ALARMING INFORMATION

AND HALT THE SPREAD
OF MASS PANIC AROUND THE WORLD.

THE SUN IS ONE OF THE MOST
DANGEROUS THINGS

IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM,
AND WE STILL DON'T KNOW

EVERYTHING ABOUT IT.

Narrator: ELEVEN DAYS
AFTER IT WAS CLOSED,

THE SUNSPOT OBSERVATORY
IS REOPENED

AND WATCHING THE SUN AGAIN.

♪♪

DESPITE THE OFFICIAL
GOVERNMENT EXPLANATION

THAT A ROGUE EMPLOYEE'S ACTIONS
TRIGGERED THE SHUTDOWN,

SOME INVESTIGATORS
REMAIN UNCONVINCED.

THERE APPEARS TO BE A SET
OF OCCURRENCES GOING ON,

OF WHICH THIS SEIZURE
OF THIS OBSERVATORY

IS KIND OF THE TIP
OF THE ICEBERG.

♪♪

[ RUMBLING ]

♪♪

Narrator: MAY 2016 --

NASA SCIENTISTS REVEAL
A RADICAL SOLUTION

TO THE PROBLEM OF SENDING
ASTRONAUTS TO WORLDS

THAT LIE YEARS, DECADES, OR EVEN
CENTURIES AWAY FROM EARTH.

[ RUMBLING ]

THERE ARE SOME NEW IDEAS
ABOUT PUTTING PEOPLE

INTO KIND OF A STASIS,
LIKE A DEEP HIBERNATION STATE.

♪♪

THE IDEA OF CRYOSLEEP
IS THEN YOU DON'T NEED

TO TAKE AS MANY SUPPLIES --

YOU KNOW, NEED AS MUCH OXYGEN,
FOOD, WATER.

♪♪

Scott: YOU PRESERVE
THE CREW'S HEALTH

DURING A LONG, LONG TRANSIT

SO THAT WHEN THEY ARRIVE
AT THEIR DESTINATION,

THEY ARE HEALTHY
AND ABLE TO FUNCTION.

Narrator: CRYOSLEEP
IS FROZEN SLEEP --

ASTRONAUTS PLACED
IN THE DEEP FREEZE

FOR THE DURATION
OF THEIR EPIC JOURNEY.

♪♪

Seager: YOU'RE JUST FROZEN
LIKE A SNAPSHOT IN TIME.

NOTHING WILL CHANGE UNTIL
THE DAY COMES TO REVIVE YOU.

[ CRACKLING ]

Narrator: BUT PUTTING
HUMANS ON ICE

IS FRAUGHT WITH DANGER.

YOU CAN'T JUST FREEZE
A LIVING PERSON

LIKE YOU'D FREEZE A STEAK.

♪♪

Kowal: IF YOU JUST STICK SOMEONE
IN THE FREEZER,

ICE CRYSTALS DEVELOP,
AND THEIR CELLS BASICALLY

DO A LITTLE, TINY ICE EXPLOSION.

[ CRACKLING ]

YOU THAW THEM OUT,
AND THEY'RE JUST MUSH.

IT'S NOT PRETTY.

Narrator: INSTEAD,
NASA SCIENTISTS

UNLOCKING THE SECRET
OF CRYOSLEEP

HAVE TURNED
TO THE ANIMAL KINGDOM.

♪♪

Clark: A LARGE PERCENTAGE OF
THE WORK THAT'S BEING DONE NOW

IS IN ANIMALS THAT
CURRENTLY EXPLOIT TORPOR

AS A MEANS OF SURVIVAL

DURING PERIODS OF EXTREME COLD
AND LOW RESOURCES.

♪♪

Narrator: HIBERNATING ANIMALS
ENTER A STATE OF TORPOR --

A KIND OF SUSPENDED ANIMATION.

[ GROWLING ]

CREATURES LIKE BEARS

LOWER THEIR BODY TEMPERATURE
BY TEN DEGREES.

SLOWING THEIR METABOLISMS,

THEY SURVIVE ON LESS FOOD
AND WATER.

AND TORPOR SEEMS TO HAVE
A MASSIVE ADVANTAGE

FOR ASTRONAUTS' BODIES
WHEN FACING TWO OF SPACE'S

DEADLIEST PERILS.

♪♪

Vakoch: PUTTING THEM IN THIS
INDUCED TORPOR,

THEY'RE ABLE TO WITHSTAND
RADIATION,

HAVE LESS BONE WASTAGE --

AND THESE ARE CRITICAL ISSUES
FOR LONG-TERM SURVIVAL IN SPACE.

[ RESPIRATOR WHIRRING ]

Narrator: RESEARCHERS
ARE WORKING ON DRUGS

AND SPECIAL CHAMBERS
THAT CAN SEND HUMANS

INTO A BEAR-LIKE STATE
OF HIBERNATION.

Szulgit: AND THERE'S ALREADY
DESIGNS FOR PODS

IN THE INTERNATIONAL
SPACE STATION

WHICH PEOPLE WILL BE ABLE
TO GO INTO

AND HAVE COOLANT SPRAYED
IN THROUGH THE NOSE,

WHICH WILL LOWER
THE BODY TEMPERATURES

AND PUT ASTRONAUTS
INTO TORPOR.

Kowal: YOU'RE ACTUALLY STILL
FUNCTIONALLY ALIVE.

YOUR BODY'S STILL METABOLIZING.

IT'S JUST DOING IT
AT AN INCREDIBLY SLOW RATE.

[ WHIRS ]

Narrator: NASA COULD PUT
ENTIRE CREWS INTO STASIS,

THEIR BODIES DRIP-FED
WITH VITAL NUTRIENTS,

THEIR PHYSICAL HEALTH MONITORED
AND CARED FOR BY ROBOTS.

[ BEEPING ]

ASTRONAUTS' BODIES COULD
SURVIVE PROLONGED CRYOSLEEP,

BUT WHAT WOULD HAPPEN
TO THEIR MINDS?

[ BEEPING ]

[ GIGGLING ]

♪♪

Scott:
THEY DREAMT A NIGHTMARE...

[ PANTING ]

[ CHATTERING ]

...BUT THEY'RE IN CRYOSLEEP,

SO YOU CAN'T WAKE UP.

DOES THE NIGHTMARE
CONTINUE FOREVER?

♪♪

[ EERIE LAUGH ]

♪♪

Narrator: COMING UP,

DEEP FREEZE ASTRONAUTS
TURN PSYCHO IN SPACE.

-[ SCREAMS ]
-WE CAN REVIVE SOMEONE

AT THE END OF THIS,
BUT WILL THEY BE SANE?

♪♪

Narrator: AND, THE SPOOKY
GUARDIAN ANGEL

LOOKING AFTER NASA ASTRONAUTS.

WHAT IF THERE'S A SECRET
MILITARY MISSION

THAT WE DON'T KNOW ABOUT?

[ RUMBLING ]

♪♪

♪♪

Narrator:
NASA IS CREATING CUTTING-EDGE
CRYOSLEEP TECHNOLOGY

FOR DECADES-LONG SPACE MISSIONS
TO OTHER STARS.

BUT WHAT HAPPENS TO ASTRONAUTS
AFTER YEARS OF STASIS?

IT WILL KEEP THEIR BODIES
HEALTHY,

BUT SCIENTISTS FEAR WHAT THE
PROCESS COULD DO TO THEIR MINDS.

THE DANGERS OF PUTTING SOMEBODY

INTO A SUSPENDED
HIBERNATION STATE IS

SLEEP IS AN ACTIVE PROCESS.

[ PANTING ]

IN OTHER WORDS, IT'S NOT A STATE
WHERE THE BRAIN IS DORMANT.

IT'S A STATE WHERE THE BRAIN
IS ACTUALLY ACTIVE.

♪♪

Szulgit: WHAT HAPPENS WITH
YOUR CONSCIOUSNESS?

WHAT HAPPENS WITH YOUR DREAMS?

Scott: IN CRYOSLEEP,
YOU CAN'T WAKE UP.

IF YOU CAN'T WAKE UP,
WOULD THE DREAMS CONTINUE?

Narrator:
THE LONGER WE SLEEP,

THE FURTHER THE BRAIN SLIPS INTO
A PHASE OF INTENSE DREAMING.

THE EXPERIENCE
IS INDISTINGUISHABLE

FROM REAL LIFE, AND NOT ALL
DREAMS ARE HAPPY ONES.

Szulgit:
IMAGINE YOUR WORST NIGHTMARE,

AND THEN IMAGINE HAVING
IT LAST FOR DECADES.

Narrator: NIGHTMARES
BRING TO LIFE OUR DARKEST,

MOST TERRIBLE FEARS --

FALLING, DROWNING,
BEING PURSUED.

BUT EVEN OUR WORST NIGHTMARES,

WHEN THEY BECOME TOO MUCH,
WILL WAKE US UP.

[ GIGGLING ]

WE ARE LEFT DRAINED,
SHAKEN, TRAUMATIZED.

BUT THE NIGHTMARE IS OVER.

♪♪

[ SCREAMS ]

Vakoch: WE'VE ALL HAD RESTLESS
NIGHTS, BUT WE GET OVER IT.

WE WAKE UP AND MOVE ON
TO THE NEXT DAY.

BUT WHAT HAPPENS IF THOSE
RESTLESS DREAMS

JUST KEEP ON FOR A YEAR,
OR FOR TEN YEARS?

HOW WOULD WE SURVIVE THEN?

♪♪

Narrator: PERHAPS
MOST TERRIFYING OF ALL

IS THE PROSPECT OF
SLEEP PARALYSIS IN SPACE.

ASTRONAUTS' BRAINS ARE AWAKE,

BUT THEIR BODIES ARE STILL
ASLEEP AND CANNOT MOVE.

IN THIS CONDITION, SUFFERERS
SOMETIMES FEEL THE PRESENCE

OF A MALEVOLENT BEING
CRUSHING DOWN ON THEIR CHEST.

PEOPLE WHO'VE BEEN IN COMAS
DO REPORT DREAMING,

BEING AWARE OF IT,
BUT THEY CAN'T DO ANYTHING.

THEY CAN'T GET OUT OF IT.

WHAT WE'RE DOING IS POTENTIALLY
NOT JUST PUTTING SOMEONE

IN SOLITARY CONFINEMENT,

BUT ALSO MAKING IT SO THAT
THEY CAN'T MOVE.

♪♪

WE CAN REVIVE SOMEONE
AT THE END OF THIS,

BUT WILL THEY BE SANE?

Narrator: OF ALL THE DANGERS
WE MAY FACE IN DEEP SPACE,

PERHAPS MOST TERRIFYING
ARE THE DEMONS WITHIN.

♪♪

APRIL 12, 1981 --

ASTRONAUTS ROBERT CRIPPEN
AND JOHN YOUNG

ARE ABOUT TO GET ON BOARD

THE WORLD'S MOST DANGEROUS
MACHINE...

♪♪

[ RUMBLING ]

STS-1, THE MAIDEN FLIGHT
OF NASA'S SPACE SHUTTLE.

Man: LIFT OFF.

♪♪

JOHN WILL TELL YOU,
IT WAS UNTESTED.

HE SAID, "JERRY, I THOUGHT
IF OUR ODDS WERE 50/50

THAT WE'D GET BACK,

THAT WAS BEING OPTIMISTIC."

[ SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY ]

ROGER, ROLL.

Narrator: YOUNG AND CRIPPEN
SUCCESSFULLY REACH ORBIT.

THIS GLORIOUS MOMENT
OF "WOW," YOU KNOW,

"I JUST SAT ON A ROCKET
AND I AM IN ORBIT.

THIS IS INCREDIBLE."

Narrator: BUT THE EUPHORIA
IS SHORT-LIVED.

Pickens: THEY LOOKED THROUGH
THE WINDOW THERE IN THE BACK,

AND THEY COULD SEE
SOME TILES MISSING

ON SOME OF THE OUTER SURFACES.

IT WAS VERY, VERY CONCERNING.

Crippen:
OFF OF THE STARBOARD POD,

WE DO HAVE
A FEW TILES MISSING

OFF OF THREE TILE
AND SOME SMALLER PIECES.

ROGER, CRIP,
WE CAN SEE THAT GOOD.

Narrator:
THE HEAT-RESISTANT TILES

PROTECT THE ASTRONAUTS
FROM BEING INCINERATED

BY THE INCREDIBLE 3,000-DEGREE
TEMPERATURES OF REENTRY.

Orwoll:
THEY'RE ABLE TO SEE THE DAMAGE
TO THE BACK OF THE SHUTTLE.

WHAT THEY'RE NOT ABLE TO SEE
IS ANYTHING

AROUND THE SIDES
AND UNDERNEATH.

♪♪

Narrator: THE TILES ON
THE UNDERSIDE OF THE SHUTTLE

ARE THE MOST VITAL, AS THEY
BEAR THE BRUNT OF THE HEAT.

WITHOUT THOSE PROTECTIVE TILES
ON THE UNDERSIDE OF THE SHUTTLE,

IT BASICALLY BECOMES
A DEATH TRAP.

[ RADIO CHATTER ]

Narrator: NEITHER THE ASTRONAUTS
NOR GROUND CONTROL

CAN MAKE OUT IF THE SHUTTLE
IS DOOMED ON REENTRY OR NOT.

HOUSTON HAS AN IMPOSSIBLE
DILEMMA.

YOU BASICALLY HAVE
TWO CHOICES.

YOU COULD STAY IN ORBIT

AND YOU'RE GOING TO RUN OUT
OF OXYGEN.

THE OTHER WOULD BE, REENTER
AND BURN UP ON REENTRY.

♪♪

Narrator:
OXYGEN IS RUNNING OUT

WHEN GROUND CONTROL SUDDENLY
MAKES WHAT LOOKS LIKE A RASH

AND RECKLESS DECISION.

THE CREW IS GIVEN THE
AUTHORIZATION TO GO AHEAD

FOR THE DE-ORBIT BURN.

WE ARE GO FOR MAIN ENGINE
START.

IT LOOKS LIKE NASA IS JUST
TAKING A HUGE GAMBLE

WITH THEIR LIVES.

Narrator: BUT WHAT
MOST OBSERVERS DON'T KNOW

IS THAT THESE PIONEERING
NASA ASTRONAUTS ARE NOT ALONE.

♪♪

♪♪

Narrator:
ASTRONAUTS ON THE FIRST-EVER
SPACE SHUTTLE MISSION...

ROGER, ROLL.

...ARE ORDERED TO ATTEMPT
TO RETURN TO EARTH,

EVEN THOUGH HEATPROOF TILES
VITAL TO REENTRY

COULD BE MISSING.

♪♪

DURING REENTRY, THE CREW ENTERS
THE IONIZATION BLACKOUT --

THE POINT DURING REENTRY WHERE
THEY CAN'T TALK TO THE GROUND.

Linenger:
THAT'S THE SCARY PART FOR
THE PEOPLE IN MISSION CONTROL.

THEY'RE BITING
THEIR FINGERNAILS

AND THEY'RE ON THE EDGE
OF THEIR SEATS.

Narrator: FOR 15 MINUTES, THERE
IS SILENCE AT MISSION CONTROL.

THE MORE SILENCE YOU HAVE,
THE MORE YOU KNOW SOMETHING

IS GOING GRAVELY WRONG.

Narrator: THEN...

Young: HELLO THERE, HOUSTON.
COLUMBIA'S HERE.

...YOUNG'S VOICE CRACKLES
ACROSS THE RADIO.

HELLO, COLUMBIA.
HOUSTON'S HERE.

HOW DO YOU READ?

♪♪

THE MISSION IS A SUCCESS.

BUT OBSERVERS WANT TO KNOW
WHY HOUSTON

SEEMED TO GAMBLE SO RECKLESSLY
WITH THE ASTRONAUTS' LIVES.

HOW DID NASA KNOW THAT
THE SHUTTLE WAS SAFE

TO RETURN TO EARTH
ON THAT REENTRY?

Teitel:
THE OFFICIAL LINE FROM NASA IS
THAT LONG-RANGE PHOTOGRAPHY

FROM SITES IN FLORIDA AND HAWAII
WAS ABLE TO VERIFY

THAT THERE WAS NO DAMAGE
TO THE UNDERSIDE.

Narrator:
BUT RESEARCHERS SOON UNCOVER

THAT THIS IS NOT THE TRUTH.

Orwoll:
THE CAMERAS ON THE GROUND
DIDN'T HAVE ENOUGH RESOLUTION

TO BE ABLE TO TELL
WHETHER THERE WAS DAMAGE.

WHAT INFORMATION DID THEY HAVE
TO MAKE A DECISION TO GO FOR IT?

THERE'S A REALLY BIG
UNKNOWN HERE.

[ RADIO CHATTER ]

Narrator: INVESTIGATORS ANALYZE
THE SHUTTLE'S FLIGHT PLAN

AND FIND CRIPPEN AND YOUNG
WERE ASKED TO MAKE A BIZARRE

AND INEXPLICABLE MANEUVER
WHILE OUT IN SPACE.

[ SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY ]

PERHAPS THERE IS A CLUE.

DURING THE MISSION,

THE ASTRONAUTS WERE ASKED
TO INVERT THE SHUTTLE.

Narrator: ROLLING THE SHUTTLE
POINTS THE UNDERSIDE

TO A TOP-SECRET U.S. ASSET
ORBITING THE EARTH.

Teitel:
NASA PURPOSEFULLY MANEUVERED

THE SPACE SHUTTLE SUCH THAT ITS
UNDERSIDE COULD BE PHOTOGRAPHED

BY THE LATEST SPY SATELLITE,
KEYHOLE 11.

Narrator: OFFICIALLY,
THIS SATELLITE DOES NOT EXIST.

♪♪

IN 1981, THE KEYHOLE SATELLITES

WERE THE ULTIMATE
IN GROUND OBSERVATION.

YOU HAD A VERY LARGE MIRROR,
EIGHT FEET IN DIAMETER.

SO YOU WERE ABLE TO GET
INCREDIBLE, INCREDIBLE DETAIL

OF GROUND OBJECTS.

♪♪

Narrator:
TOP-SECRET KEYHOLE 11

IS DESIGNED TO SPY
IN ULTRA-CLOSE DETAIL

ON THE TYRANNICAL SOVIET UNION'S
MILITARY MANEUVERS.

THIS IS THE FIRST AMERICAN SPY
SATELLITE TO BE ABLE TO TAKE

A PHOTOGRAPH
AND TRANSMIT IT DOWN TO EARTH

SO YOU HAVE REAL-TIME
IMAGING CAPABILITY.

[ WHIRRING ]

Narrator:
RE-TARGETING KEYHOLE 11

TO LOOK AT THE SHUTTLE
IS A GAMBLE FOR AMERICA,

AS IT LEAVES THE PENTAGON
TEMPORARILY BLIND

TO SOVIET TROOP MOVEMENTS.

IT'S A HUGE RISK.

Pickens: THE NRO SATELLITE
WAS IN A POLAR ORBIT,

AND THEN THE SHUTTLE IN ITS
ORBIT WAS JUST MORE EQUATORIAL.

SO THEY ENDED UP FIGURING OUT
A WAY TO DO

THIS BALLET ACT,
IF YOU WILL.

Narrator:
THE SATELLITE AND SHUTTLE

ARE SPEEDING THROUGH SPACE
AT 17,500 MILES PER HOUR

IN DIFFERENT DIRECTIONS.

IT'S THE MOTHER OF ALL
MOVING TARGETS.

IT'D BE LIKE STANDING
ON THE SIDELINES

AND TRYING TO HIT A BASEBALL

AT 100 MILES PER HOUR
WITH A MARBLE.

WHEW!

Narrator:
YOUNG AND CRIPPEN

EXPERTLY MANEUVER THE SHUTTLE
INTO POSITION.

THE SPY CAMERA TAKES ITS SHOTS.

[ CAMERA CLICKS ]

MISSION CONTROL
DOWNLOADS THE PICTURES.

[ RADIO CHATTER ]

THE CRAZY THING IS, IT WORKS.

THE NASA TEAM CAN SEE
THE UNDERSIDE OF THE SHUTTLE

AND DETERMINE THAT THERE IS
NO DAMAGE TO THE HEAT SHIELD.

♪♪

THEY ENDED UP GIVING THEM
THE OKAY TO COME ON HOME.

♪♪

TOUCHDOWN.
[ CONTINUES INDISTINCTLY ]

WELCOME HOME, COLUMBIA.
BEAUTIFUL, BEAUTIFUL.

THEIR FIRST FLIGHT,
THERE WAS A LOT OF LUCK INVOLVED

BECAUSE THERE WERE THINGS THAT
COULD'VE HAPPENED

THAT, THANK GOD, DID NOT.

JOHN IS VERY KIND OF
UNEMOTIONAL.

BUT GETTING OFF
THAT SPACE SHUTTLE,

YOU KNOW, HE'S LITERALLY
KISSING THE EARTH.

BECAUSE NUMBER ONE, HE'S ALIVE,

AND NUMBER TWO,
WE JUST ACCOMPLISHED

ONE INCREDIBLE THING,
FLYING THAT SPACE SHUTTLE.

IT'S AN INCREDIBLE STORY,

AND THE FACT THAT WE DIDN'T
LOSE COLUMBIA IS AMAZING.