All language subtitles for What.on.Earth.S04E20.1080p.DSCP.WEB-DL.AAC2.0.H.264-BTN_track3_[eng]

Narrator:
THEY'RE WATCHING YOU.

MORE THAN 4,000 SATELLITES
CIRCLE THE EARTH.

EVERY DAY, THEY UNCOVER NEW,
MYSTERIOUS PHENOMENA

THAT DEFY EXPLANATION.

[ BEEPING, DISTORTED MUSIC ]

SEEN FROM SPACE,

WEIRD, RADIOACTIVE HOLES
AND STRANGE MONOLITHS.

YOU HAVE THESE
BIZARRE CONCRETE STRUCTURES

THAT HAVE
JUST BEEN ABANDONED.

Narrator: THE ALIEN SYMBOL

AND THE $100 MILLION
SEX CULT.

THERE WERE ALL KINDS OF
DEBAUCHERY GOING ON

OUT IN THE OREGON DESERT.

Narrator:
AND SPIES IN THE SKY

UNLOCK MYSTERIES
OF THE MIGHTY MAYANS.

THIS IMAGE IS SO EXCITING.

AND THIS REWRITES
HUMAN HISTORY.

Narrator:
BAFFLING PHENOMENA.

MYSTERIES FROM SPACE.

WHAT ON EARTH ARE THEY?

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

[ BEEPING ]
[ CAMERA SHUTTER CLICKING ]

[ WHIRRING ]

CAPTIONS PAID FOR BY
DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS

**

[ FREQUENCY WARBLES ]
[ WHIRRING ]

JULY, 2016 --

AS THE WORLDVIEW SATELLITE
PASSES HIGH ABOVE CENTRAL ASIA,

IT CAPTURES AN IMAGE

OF THE REMOTE DESERTS
OF NORTHEAST KAZAKHSTAN.

Chamberlain: THERE'S OBVIOUSLY
A NATURAL LAKE HERE,

AND THEN A STRANGE, DARK,
CIRCULAR LAKE AT THE TOP.

IT LOOKS DEEPER
AND JUST OUT OF PLACE.

A PERFECTLY-CIRCULAR LAKE
RARELY HAPPENS IN NATURE.

Narrator: ANALYSIS
OF THE SURROUNDING COUNTRYSIDE

REVEALS A LANDSCAPE
OF DESOLATION.

Kays:
WHAT'S STRANGE IS, USUALLY WHERE
THERE'S WATER, THERE'S LIFE,

BUT THIS LANDSCAPE IS TOTALLY
DEVOID OF ANYTHING GREEN.

Narrator: WHEN SATELLITE
IMAGE ANALYST BRONWYN AGRIOS

STUDIES HISTORICAL
IMAGES OF THE LAKE,

THE MYSTERY DEEPENS.

THE CIRCULAR LAKE ISN'T
BEHAVING LIKE ITS NEIGHBOR.

THIS IMAGE WAS TAKEN
IN THE YEAR 2000.

THIS IMAGE
IS FROM JULY, 2017.

AND YOU CAN SEE,
IT'S JUST DRASTICALLY DIFFERENT.

THE ADJACENT LAKE HAS
GROWN ENORMOUSLY,

WHILE THE ROUND LAKE
HAS STAYED EXACTLY THE SAME.

Narrator:
AGRIOS' ANALYSIS CONFIRMS
THE LAKE CAN'T BE NATURAL.

STRANGER STILL, THIS BIZARRE,
UNCHANGING LAKE

ISN'T THE ONLY ONE IN THE AREA.

Schuttler: IT LOOKS LIKE
WHATEVER HAPPENED HERE

WAS REPEATED AGAIN AND AGAIN

ACROSS THIS REALLY
LARGE LANDSCAPE.

Narrator:
WHEN INVESTIGATORS VISIT
THE CIRCULAR LAKE TO RUN TESTS,

THEY DISCOVER
SOMETHING HORRIFYING.

THE AREA SURROUNDING THE STRANGE
LAKE IS HIGHLY RADIOACTIVE.

THE CHEMICAL SIGNATURE
OF THIS PLACE SUGGESTS

THERE IS SOME SORT OF
NUCLEAR ACTIVITY GOING ON.

Narrator: ANALYSTS RETURN TO THE
SATELLITE IMAGE FOR CLUES.

THEY DISCOVER A SERIES
OF STRANGE SHAPES

IN THE COUNTRYSIDE

TO THE NORTH
OF THE RADIOACTIVE LAKE.

ON THE GROUND,
THEY FIND A LARGE NUMBER

OF STRANGE RUINED MONOLITHS.

YOU HAVE THESE BIZARRE
CONCRETE STRUCTURES

THAT HAVE JUST
BEEN ABANDONED.

Narrator:
DECLASSIFIED DOCUMENTS REVEAL

THAT THESE ARE THE SPOOKY
REMAINS OF A SECRET BASE

OPERATING DURING THE DARKEST
DAYS OF THE COLD WAR.

THE RUSSIANS HAVE A CODE WORD
FOR THIS PLACE.

THEY CALL IT THE POLYGON.

KAZAKHSTAN WAS THE SOVIET
UNION'S PLAYGROUND

FOR ATOMIC DETONATIONS.

Narrator:
TOWARDS THE END OF WORLD WAR II,
COMMUNIST LEADER JOSEPH STALIN

IS DESPERATE TO DEVELOP
HIS OWN ATOM BOMB.

SO, HE ORDERS HIS DEPUTY,

LAVRENTIY BERIA TO STEP UP
THE SOVIET'S NUCLEAR PROGRAM...

AT ANY COST.

Baker: THE SOVIETS WEREN'T
INCLINED TO DO THOSE TESTS

ON THEIR OWN TURF.

KAZAKHSTAN WAS A PRIME
EXAMPLE OF THAT.

Narrator:
BERIA SELECTS HIS TEST SITE,

RECORDING THE AREA
AS UNINHABITED,

YET 700,000 PEOPLE LIVE HERE
AND IN THE SURROUNDING CITIES.

OFFICIAL DOCUMENTS REVEAL
TESTS BEGIN IN AUGUST, 1949.

TERRIFIED LOCALS WITNESS
VAST MUSHROOM CLOUDS

RISING INTO THE SKY.

CHILDREN CONVULSE
IN THEIR CLASSROOMS.

NUCLEAR SCIENTISTS AT THE
POLYGON ARE SWORN TO SECRECY

UNDER THREAT OF IMPRISONMENT
OR EVEN DEATH.

THE SOVIETS CONTROLLED
EVERYTHING.

THEY CONTROLLED THE ENVIRONMENT.
THEY CONTROLLED THE MEDIA.

THE CONTROLLED THE POPULATIONS.

SO, THAT ALLOWED THEM TO CONDUCT
AN AMAZING NUMBER OF TESTS

WITHOUT BEING OVERLY CONCERNED.

Narrator:
IN 1963, THE SOVIET UNION,
THE U.S. AND GREAT BRITAIN

SIGNED THE PARTIAL TEST BAN
TREATY

THAT PROHIBITS THE DETONATION

OF NUCLEAR WEAPONS
IN EARTH'S ATMOSPHERE.

BUT THE RUSSIANS WILL IGNORE IT
AND EVEN BEGIN TO EXPLORE

OTHER STRANGE USES
FOR ATOMIC ENERGY.

Pepper: THE IDEA WAS TO USE
NUCLEAR BOMBS TO CREATE LAKES,

CANALS AND WATERWAYS.

DO YOU WANT TO SIT THERE
AND DIG FOR MONTHS,

OR BOOM,
WE GOT AN INSTANT LAKE?

Narrator:
THE SOVIETS DEBUT THEIR CRAZY
CIVIL-ENGINEERING PROJECT

ON JANUARY 15, 1965.

[ MAN COUNTING DOWN
IN RUSSIAN ]

[ EXPLOSION ]

A 140-KILOTON BLAST CREATES
A CHASM 300 FEET DEEP.

ENGINEERS CARVE A CHANNEL
INTO ITS SIDE SO WATER

FLOWS IN FROM
THE NEIGHBORING LAKE.

THOUGH THE CIRCULAR LAKE
EXCEEDS RADIATION SAFETY LEVELS

BY A FACTOR OF 100,

THE SOVIETS ENCOURAGE
SWIMMING IN IT.

Baker:
THE SOVIETS, THEY WERE NOT
WORRIED ABOUT THE HEALTH

AND WELL-BEING OF THE
POPULATIONS OF THE COUNTRIES

THAT WERE UNDER THEIR CONTROL.

Narrator: OVER FOUR DECADES,

THE EQUIVALENT OF 20,000
HIROSHIMA BOMBS

ARE DETONATED HERE,

CREATING THE SMALLER
CIRCULAR LAKES SPOTTED

IN THE SATELLITE IMAGES.

AMONG THE LOCALS, CANCER RATES
SOAR TO TERRIFYING LEVELS,

AS DO THE NUMBER
OF STILLBIRTHS.

AFTER THE COLLAPSE
OF THE SOVIET UNION,

THE KREMLIN VOWS TO
DESTROY ALL EVIDENCE

RELATING TO THE POLYGON
NUCLEAR RESEARCH FACILITY.

BUT RECENTLY-DISCOVERED
DOCUMENTS

REVEAL THE SHOCKING TRUTH.

IT WAS ALL A SICK EXPERIMENT.

O'Dell: THESE PEOPLE WERE
UNKNOWINGLY BEING USED

AS LAB RATS BY THE SOVIETS,

EXPOSING THEM TO HUGE
AMOUNTS OF RADIATION,

AND THEN JUST COMING IN
TO SEE WHAT HAPPENED.

IT'S HORRIFYING.

Narrator: TODAY, THE LEGACY
OF ONE OF THE CRUELEST

GENETIC EXPERIMENTS
OF ALL TIME LIVES ON.

EVEN THOUGH THE TESTING
STOPPED OVER 20 YEARS AGO,

THEY'RE STILL HAVING
HEALTH PROBLEMS TODAY.

DOCTORS CONFIRM 1 IN 20 CHILDREN

BORN HERE SUFFERS SERIOUS
GENETIC ABNORMALITIES.

LESS THAN HALF THE POPULATION
REACHES THE AGE OF 60.

THE REST OF THE WORLD,
FOR THE MOST PART,

HAS NEVER PAID ATTENTION TO THIS

AND REALLY NEVER HELD ANYBODY
ACCOUNTABLE FOR WHAT THEY DID.

Narrator: WHEN THE SOVIET UNION
DETONATED THE NUKES

THAT CREATED THE STRANGE LAKES
IN THE SATELLITE IMAGE,

IT DIDN'T JUST SCAR
THE LANDSCAPE.

IT WOUNDED A NATION.

AND HALF A CENTURY LATER,

THE PEOPLE HERE ARE STILL
LIVING WITH THE HORROR.

IT'S TERRIBLE THAT YOU CAN SEE
THE SCARS OF THESE TESTS

ON THE SATELLITE IMAGES,

BUT THE REAL HORRIFYING STORY

IS THAT THESE PEOPLE
STILL HAVE TO SUFFER

WITH THE CONSEQUENCES TODAY.

Narrator:
COMING UP, HIDDEN FOR 70 YEARS,
THE SECRET NAZI LABYRINTH.

Moran: THE EXTENT OF THESE
TUNNELS IS THOUGHT TO BE HUGE.

WHO KNOWS WHAT THEY'LL FIND
WHEN THEY START

TO REALLY POKE AROUND.

Narrator: AND THE STRANGE STORY
OF THE SEX CULT

AND THE OREGON DESERT SYMBOL.

ONE DAY, EMPTY, FLAT DESERT.

THE NEXT DAY, BAM,
THERE IT IS.

**

Narrator:
AUGUST 10, 1990 -- AN IDAHO
AIR NATIONAL GUARD PILOT

CARRIES OUT ROUTINE
AERIAL RECONNAISSANCE.

FLYING ALONG HIS
REGULAR TRAINING RUN

OVER OREGON'S ALVORD DESERT,

HE PHOTOGRAPHS A STRANGE SYMBOL

ETCHED INTO THE PRISTINE
DESERT FLOOR.

ONE DAY, EMPTY, FLAT DESERT.

THE NEXT DAY, BAM,
THERE IT IS.

IT ALMOST LOOKS LIKE IT'S JUST
KIND OF LIKE A WATERMARK

IMPRINTED ON THE IMAGE ITSELF,

BUT IT'S ACTUALLY CARVED
INTO THE SURFACE

OF THE DESERT REGION.

Narrator:
SCALE ANALYSIS REVEALS THERE ARE
13 MILES OF ETCHED LINES --

THE OUTER LINES PARALLEL,

THE INTERIOR,
HYPNOTICALLY SYMMETRICAL.

THE SHAPE IS ORIENTED
TO TRUE NORTH

AND IS VISIBLE, IN ITS ENTIRETY,
ONLY FROM THE AIR.

Krueger: IF YOU WERE JUST
WALKING THROUGH THE DESERT,

YOU'LL JUST SEE A BUNCH
OF SCRATCHES IN THE DIRT.

Narrator:
ARCHEOLOGISTS HAVE FOUND
GIGANTIC GEOMETRIC DESIGNS

IN THE DESERTS
SOUTH OF HERE,

THOUGHT TO HAVE BEEN MADE BY
THE MOHAVE AND QUECHAN INDIANS.

SOME SHAPES ARE ESTIMATED
TO BE 10,000 YEARS OLD.

BUT INVESTIGATORS BELIEVE
THE SYMBOL CAPTURED

IN THE OREGON DESERT

IS TOO DIFFERENT IN STYLE

TO HAVE BEEN MADE
BY THE SAME PEOPLE.

WHEN THE IMAGE COMES
TO THE ATTENTION

OF ARCHAEOLOGIST
SHEILA HUFFMAN,

SHE RECOGNIZES
ITS INTRICATE SHAPE.

THIS WAS A SRI YANTRA,

WHICH IS A HINDU SYMBOL
OF POWER AND MEDITATION.

Narrator:
THE SRI YANTRA IS AN EXAMPLE

OF WHAT MATHEMATICIANS
CALL SACRED GEOMETRY --

SHAPES AND FORMS REPEATED
THROUGHOUT NATURE

THAT HAVE BEEN USED IN ART
AND ARCHITECTURE

FOR THOUSANDS OF YEARS.

HINDU SCHOLARS BELIEVE
THE ANCIENT SYMBOL

IS DESIGNED TO BRING GOOD LUCK.

THE BIGGER IT IS,
THE MORE POWERFUL IT IS,

SO THAT MEANS MORE GOOD LUCK.

WHY WOULD SOMEONE
TAKE A HINDU SYMBOL

AND PLACE IT IN OREGON,
OF ALL PLACES?

Narrator: INVESTIGATORS SCAN
THE SURROUNDING AREA FOR CLUES

AS TO WHO PUT IT HERE.

TO THE NORTH, THEY FIND
EVIDENCE OF A GHOST TOWN.

HISTORICAL RECORDS REVEAL IT'S
THE FRONTIER TOWN OF ANTELOPE.

YET DURING THE EARLY 1980s,

IT GOES BY A VERY DIFFERENT
NAME -- RAJNEESH --

AND HAS A VERY
DIFFERENT PURPOSE.

THIS WAS A FULL-ON CULT, LED BY
THIS SEX GURU, SHREE RAJNEESH,

AND THERE WERE ALL KINDS
OF STORIES OF DEBAUCHERY

AND RITUAL SEX

GOING ON OUT
IN THE OREGON DESERT.

Narrator:
RECORDS SHOW 7,000 DEVOTED
FOLLOWERS LIVE IN THE COMMUNE.

REPORTS FROM INSIDE THE CAMP

REVEAL ALMOST 90% HAVE
A SEXUALLY-TRANSMITTED DISEASE.

INTERVIEWS WITH FORMER FOLLOWERS

REVEAL DISTURBING TRUTHS
ABOUT RAJNEESH.

REPORTEDLY ADDICTED TO VALIUM
AND NITROUS OXIDE,

RAJNEESH EXPLOITS HIS FOLLOWERS
FOR VAST SUMS OF MONEY.

HE SAID THE APOCALYPSE
IS COMING.

THE ONLY WAY TO SURVIVE
IT IS TO COME TO THIS SPOT

AND GIVE HIM YOUR BODY
AND SOUL AND WEALTH.

AS RIDICULOUS AS THIS SOUNDS,
PEOPLE BOUGHT IT.

THEY GAVE UP THEIR JOBS,
THEY MOVED HERE

AND DEDICATED
TO THEMSELVES TO HIM.

Narrator: HIS FOLLOWERS ARE
COLLEGE-EDUCATED AND RICH.

AS A RESULT, THIS SELF-STYLED
GURU OF THE RICH AMASSES

A FLEET OF 93 ROLLS-ROYCES

AND A $130 MILLION FORTUNE.

FOR INVESTIGATORS,
RAJNEESH'S OBSESSION WITH MONEY

COULD BE A LEAD TO THE ORIGIN

AND PURPOSE OF
THE DESERT PATTERN.

HINDU TEXTS REVEAL THE SRI
YANTRA IS THE SYMBOL OF LAKSHMI,

THE GODDESS OF WEALTH.

AND THERE ARE THOSE THAT SAY
IF YOU STARE AT THIS SYMBOL

FOR 10 MINUTES A DAY,

TREMENDOUS WEALTH
WILL COME YOUR WAY.

PERHAPS THERE COULD BE
SOME LINK BETWEEN THE CULT

AND THIS SYMBOL
IN THE DESERT.

Narrator:
INVESTIGATORS LOOK MORE CLOSELY
AT THE ACTIVITIES OF RAJNEESH

AND HIS CULT.

WHAT STARTS AS PLAIN WEIRD SOON
BECOMES POTENTIALLY TERRIFYING.

IN 1984, WHEN THE RAJNEESHEES
ARE REFUSED BUILDING PERMITS

BY THE LOCAL COUNTY COMMISSION,

THEY TURN AGAINST
THE AUTHORITIES

AND SET IN MOTION
A SINISTER PLAN

THAT WILL ULTIMATELY
LEAD TO THEIR DOWNFALL.

THEY WERE ABLE TO COLLECT
SAMPLES OF SALMONELLA

AND SPRAYED THEM
OVER SALAD BARS

IN RESTAURANTS
THROUGHOUT THE REGION,

AND 751 PEOPLE GOT
VERY SERIOUSLY ILL.

IT'S ACTUALLY KNOWN AS
THE LARGEST BIO TERROR ATTACK

IN AMERICAN HISTORY.

Narrator: MEDICAL INVESTIGATORS
TRACED THE SALMONELLA

BACK TO A RAJNEESH LAB,

WHERE THEY DISCOVER PLANS
TO MANUFACTURE TYPHOID

AND EXPLOSIVES.

CHARGES WERE BROUGHT
AGAINST THE CULT

AND IT WAS
EFFECTIVELY DISBANDED.

IS THIS SOME TYPE OF CLUE

THAT THEY'VE MADE
A RESURGENCE PERHAPS?

ARE THEY BACK?

Narrator: BUT WHEN INVESTIGATORS
DELVE DEEPER

INTO THE BIZARRE BELIEFS
OF RAJNEESH AND HIS DEVOTEES,

THEY DISCOVER
THE CULT'S TEACHINGS

DON'T FIT WITH THE SYMBOL
IN THE DESERT.

Hoffman:
THIS IS A HINDU SYMBOL.

THE CULT WAS DIRECTLY OPPOSED
TO MANY OF HINDU'S CORE BELIEFS.

Narrator: IT SEEMS THEY MYSTERY
WILL REMAIN UNSOLVED,

BUT THEN A LOCAL RESIDENT
IS INTERVIEWED IN A NEWS REPORT.

A LOCAL MAN, BILL WITHERSPOON,
CLAIMED RESPONSIBILITY,

SAYING THAT HE WENT OUT THERE
WITH SURVEY MARKERS AND A PLOW

AND CARVED IT HIMSELF
OUT IN THE DESERT.

Narrator: WITHERSPOON CLAIMS
HE AND FIVE FRIENDS

CARVE THE ENTIRE DESIGN
OVER A PERIOD OF NINE DAYS.

BUT WITHERSPOON'S TIME TABLE
DOESN'T CORRESPOND

WITH THE TESTIMONY OF THE PILOT

WHO FIRST SPOTS THE SHAPE.

Kourounis:
THE NATIONAL GUARD FREQUENTLY
FLIES OVER THIS SPOT,

AND THEY NEVER SAW THIS THING
WHILE IT WAS UNDER CONSTRUCTION.

Narrator: WIND AND RAIN ERODE
THE DESERT FLOOR

AND THE STRANGE SYMBOL
VANISHES.

Hoffman: IN THIS DAY AND AGE,
WE THINK WE KNOW EVERYTHING,

AND NOW WE'VE GOT ANOTHER
MYSTERY ON OUR HANDS.

**

Narrator:
COMING UP, WHAT TERRIFYING THING
IS HIDDEN IN THE NAZI LABYRINTH?

Moran: THERE'S BEEN ONGOING
SPECULATION THAT THE NAZIS

WERE DEVELOPING A NUCLEAR BOMB

IN THE FINAL DAYS
OF WORLD WAR II.

Narrator: AND A PROPHECY OF DOOM
REVEALED FROM THE SKY.

THE COLLAPSE OF THE MAYANS IS

ONE OF ARCHAEOLOGY'S
HOLY GRAILS.

**

Narrator: RESEARCHERS ARE TAKING
TO THE SKIES OVER BELIZE

IN CENTRAL AMERICA

TO SOLVE ONE OF ARCHAEOLOGY'S
GREATEST MYSTERIES,

THEIR PLANES, EQUIPPED
WITH LIGHT-DETECTING

AND RANGING
TECHNOLOGY, OR LIDAR.

LIDAR TECHNOLOGY ALLOWS US
TO PEEL BACK THE FOREST CANOPY,

LIKE LIFTING UP A CARPET,
TO SEE WHAT'S HIDDEN UNDERNEATH.

Narrator: THE PLANES FLY OVER
THE MAYAN RUINS OF CARACOL.

SINCE ITS DISCOVERY IN 1937,

ARCHAEOLOGISTS HAVE BEEN
STUDYING THIS SITE,

HOPING IT HOLDS CLUES

TO THE MYSTERIOUS DOWNFALL

OF THE MAYAN EMPIRE.

THE COLLAPSE OF THE MAYANS

IS ONE OF ARCHAEOLOGY'S
HOLY GRAILS.

WE HAVE LOTS OF THEORIES,
BUT NOTHING TOTALLY DEFINITIVE.

Narrator:
AT ITS PEAK IN 800 A.D.,

THE MAYAN EMPIRE HAS OVER
15 MILLION PEOPLE

AND COVERS
120,000 SQUARE MILES.

YET, JUST A CENTURY LATER,

THE ONCE MIGHTY
CIVILIZATION COLLAPSES.

THE EVIDENCE SUGGESTS
THAT THE CITY OF CARACOL

WAS ABANDONED RIGHT
AROUND THE SAME TIME

AS THE FALL OF
THE ENTIRE MAYAN EMPIRE.

Narrator:
THE AERIAL X-RAY IMAGES TAKEN
OVER CARACOL STUN OBSERVERS.

THIS IS MEANT TO BE
A MODEST SETTLEMENT,

BUT AS PROJECT LEADER
ARLEN CHASE REVEALS,

IT IS A MASSIVE CITY,

HIDDEN FOR CENTURIES
BENEATH THE JUNGLE CANOPY.

WHAT LIDAR ACTUALLY SHOWED US
IS THAT THE OVERALL SCALE

OF THIS SITE IS ENORMOUS,

OVER 55 SQUARE MILES
OF SETTLEMENT

THAT FORMS THE URBAN
CENTER OF CARACOL.

THIS IMAGE IS SO EXCITING
BECAUSE WE NEVER REALLY KNEW

THAT THE ANCIENT MAYAN
CITIES WERE THIS DENSE,

OR THAT THEY WERE THIS BIG.

I MEAN, THIS REWRITES
HUMAN HISTORY.

Narrator: THE LIDAR DATA
REVEALS THAT CARACOL

WAS ONCE THE LARGEST CITY
IN THE MAYAN EMPIRE,

HOME TO AN ESTIMATED
180,000 PEOPLE.

PALACES AND TERRACES
LINED THE LAND,

ALL FOCUSED AROUND
A HUGE, CENTRAL TEMPLE.

STUDYING THE IMAGES IN DETAIL,

HISTORIAN PATRICK HUNT
DISCOVERS A POSSIBLE CLUE

TO THE MAYANS' DEMISE.

Hunt: JUST LOOKING AT
THE LIDAR IMAGE, YOU CAN SEE,

WITH THESE EXTENDED TERRACES,

THAT THEY'RE PUSHING OUT INTO
THE TERRITORIES OF OTHER STATES.

Narrator: THE LIDAR ALSO
SUGGESTS THAT THE MAYAN EMPIRE

WAS DENSELY POPULATED.

HUNT SPECULATES THAT THIS LEADS
TO COMPETITION FOR RESOURCES

WITHIN NEIGHBORING
KINGDOMS AND CITIES.

IF YOU HAVE MULTIPLE
STAKEHOLDERS CLAIMING

THE SAME TERRITORY,

THAT'S GOING TO LEAD TO WAR.

Narrator: DURING EXCAVATIONS,
CHASE FINDS AN INSCRIPTION

CONFIRMING THAT WAR
WAS WAGED HERE IN THE PERIOD

LEADING UP
TO THE CITY'S COLLAPSE.

Hunt:
WARS ARE DEFINITELY IMPLICATED
IN TERMS OF THE COLLAPSE.

WE HAVE VIOLENCE AT THE END.

Narrator: HISTORIANS BELIEVE
THAT THE MAYANS

WERE BY FAR THE MOST DOMINANT
MILITARY POWER IN THE REGION.

CHASE DOUBTS THAT WAR ALONE
CAN ACCOUNT FOR THE DESTRUCTION

OF SUCH A POWERFUL
CIVILIZATION.

Hunt: WAR WAS DEFINITELY
A FACTOR IN THE MAYAN COLLAPSE,

BUT WHATEVER HAPPENED
IN THE COLLAPSE

IS TIED TO BROADER EVENTS.

Narrator: CHASE'S EXCAVATIONS
OF THE LIDAR SITE

REVEAL THAT MANY OF
THE BUILDINGS IN CARACOL

ARE COVERED IN STUCCO,
A PLASTER MADE FROM LIMESTONE.

BUT TO MAKE STUCCO,
YOU NEED FURNACES,

AND TO FUEL THE FURNACES,

ARCHAEOLOGISTS
BELIEVE THE MAYANS

DENUDED THE REGION OF TREES.

Hunt:
THE MORE VEGETATION YOU REMOVE,
THE DRIER IT'S GOING TO GET

AND THE GROUND WILL GET
HARDER AND DRIER.

Narrator:
EVIDENCE THAT THE MAYANS
ARE AWARE THEIR CIVILIZATION

IS IN PERIL COMES FROM
THE LARGEST STRUCTURE

FEATURED IN THE LIDAR DATA...

...THE 140-FOOT-TALL
SKY PALACE.

AT THE TEMPLE, CHASE DISCOVERS
THE REMAINS OF TWO CHILDREN

ACCOMPANIED BY
RITUALISTIC ARTIFACTS,

EVIDENCE HE BELIEVES OF AN
URGENT PLEA TO THE MAYAN GODS.

Hunt: ONE OF THE THINGS
THAT THEY BELIEVED IS

THAT IF YOU WERE HAVING
POSSIBLY PROBLEMS,

YOU MIGHT SACRIFICE A CHILD.

Narrator: STONE INSCRIPTIONS
SUGGEST THAT THE MAYANS

CARRY OUT BLOOD OFFERINGS

AND SACRIFICES TO MANY GODS.

IN TIMES OF PERIL,
THEY CALL ON ITZAMNA,

THE RULER OF THE HEAVENS.

BLOOD WAS NECESSARY TO MAKE
SURE THAT THE SUN

CONTINUED THROUGH THE SKY,

TO BRING IT UP FROM
THE UNDERWORLD EACH DAY.

Narrator:
CHASE CONSIDERS IF THE TIMING OF
THESE SACRIFICES IS SIGNIFICANT.

EVERY 260 YEARS
IN CLASSIC MAYAN SOCIETY,

THERE'S THIS BELIEF
THAT EVERYTHING COULD END.

Narrator: THE MAYANS BELIEVE
THAT THIS 260-YEAR CYCLE

IS DIVIDED INTO 13 PERIODS,
EACH MARKED BY A PROPHECY.

AND ACCORDING TO ONE
OF THESE PROPHECIES,

THE EMPIRE WILL END
IN AN APOCALYPSE.

CHASE CALCULATES THAT THIS
CATACLYSM IS PROPHESIED

TO TAKE PLACE
BETWEEN 932 AND 952 A.D.,

AROUND THE TIME WHEN CARACOL

AND THE MAYAN
CIVILIZATION COLLAPSE.

WHEN IT CYCLED THROUGH
TO THAT TIME,

THEY THOUGHT THAT
IT MIGHT HAPPEN TO THEM,

AND THEY'D DO EVERYTHING
IN THEIR POWER

TO MAKE SURE IT DIDN'T.

Hunt: THE MAYA LORDS ARE IN FACT
EXACERBATING THE SITUATION.

THE MORE BLOODLETTING THEY DO,

THE MORE THEY DESTABILIZE
THEIR OWN CULTURE.

Narrator: INVESTIGATORS
SPECULATE THAT RAVAGED BY WAR,

STARVED BY DROUGHT,
AND FACED WITH REVOLT,

TRADE COLLAPSES AND MAYAN
CIVILIZATION CRUMBLES,

AS FORETOLD BY THEIR
PROPHECY OF DOOM

AND CONFIRMED,
IT SEEMS, BY LIDAR.

ARCHAEOLOGISTS OFTEN LOOK
FOR SINGLE CAUSE

WHY CIVILIZATIONS COLLAPSE.

BUT IN THE MAYA CASE,

IT'S PROBABLY A MORE
COMPLICATED EXPLANATION,

LIKE A PERFECT STORM.

[ THUNDER BOOMS ]

Narrator:
COMING UP, EXPLORING A BIZARRE,
BOILING JUNGLE RIVER...

Nelson: IT'S OVER 200 DEGREES
FAHRENHEIT.

IT REALLY IS ASTONISHING.

Narrator:
...AND THE NAZI LABYRINTH.

RESEARCHERS STILL DON'T KNOW
WHAT'S DOWN THERE.

IT MAKES ME WONDER, IF THEY
WERE DIGGING FOR SOMETHING,

WHAT DID THEY FIND?

**

Narrator: MAY 16, 1945 --
AN ALLIED SPY PLANE FLIES

OVER THE SMALL TOWN
OF SANKT GEORGIAN AN DER GUSEN,

DEEP IN
NAZI-CONTROLLED AUSTRIA.

THE PILOT PHOTOGRAPHS
SOMETHING ODD,

A HUGE, ANGULAR TRENCH
AND SURROUNDING EARTHWORKS.

THERE'S THESE LONG LINES,
VERY, VERY LARGE CUTOUTS.

IT LOOKS LIKE SOMEBODY'S
BEEN DIGGING HERE.

THERE'S THIS VERY STRANGE
V-SHAPED TRENCH

IN AMONGST WHAT LOOKS
LIKE A LOAD

OF SORT OF FACTORY WORKINGS.

Narrator: THE PHOTO
IS CLASSIFIED TOP SECRET

AND REMAINS HIDDEN IN MILITARY
ARCHIVES FOR 70 YEARS.

ONCE RELEASED, IT COMES TO
THE ATTENTION OF IMAGE ANALYST

MARC D'ANTONIO

WHO COMPARES IT TO A MODERN
SATELLITE PHOTO OF THE AREA.

HE'S SHOCKED BY WHAT HE SEES.

THERE SEEMS TO BE NO EVIDENCE
OF THIS MASSIVE UNDERTAKING.

SO, THE QUESTION IS,
WHAT HAPPENED HERE?

Pepper: THIS TRENCH LOOKS LIKE
IT WAS PROFESSIONALLY DUG.

IT MAKES ME WONDER, IF THEY
WERE DIGGING FOR SOMETHING,

WHAT DID THEY FIND?

Narrator: D'ANTONIO SEARCHES THE
SURROUNDING LANDSCAPE FOR CLUES

TO EXPLAIN THE TRENCH.

JUST THREE MILES AWAY IS ONE
OF THE LARGEST PRISON CAMPS

THAT WAS EVER OPERATED
BY THE GERMANS IN WORLD WAR II.

Narrator:
AFTER ANNEXING AUSTRIA IN 1938,

THE NAZIS OPENED THE MONSTROUS
MAUTHAUSEN GUSEN LABOR CAMP,

ONE OF THE MOST PHYSICALLY
BRUTAL CAMPS IN THE NAZI REGIME.

INSIDE THE REICH,
THIS CAMP WAS REFERRED TO AS

"THE BONE GRINDER."

Narrator: RECORDS SHOW PRISONERS
TOILED FOR 12 HOURS A DAY,

QUARRYING GRANITE FOR
THE THIRD REICH'S GRANDIOSE

BUILDING PROJECTS.

IT'S RELENTLESS
BACK-BREAKING LABOR.

MOST ARE DEAD
WITHIN FOUR MONTHS.

ONE OF THE MOST DISTURBING
FEATURES OF MAUTHAUSEN

IS THE NOTORIOUS
STAIRCASE OF DEATH.

THIS WAS 186 STEPS THAT LED UP
TO A GRANITE QUARRY...

...ALONG WHICH THE PRISONERS
WERE FORCED

TO CARRY INCREDIBLY HEAVY LOADS

WEIGHING UP TO 50 KILOGRAMS,
MORE THAN THEIR OWN BODY WEIGHT.

Narrator: WHEN PRISONERS
ARE TOO WEAK TO WORK,

THEY ARE EXECUTED
WHERE THEY STAND.

Walters: WHEN THEY STOOD
AT THE TOP, FACING THE QUARRY,

THEY WOULD SOMETIMES JUST BE
PUSHED IN TO THEIR DEATHS

OR SHOT IN THE BACK
OF THEIR HEAD.

IT'S TRULY REVOLTING.

Narrator: THE NAZIS KEEP RECORDS
OF THE NUMBER OF SLAVES

USED AT MAUTHAUSEN.

BUT AS INVESTIGATOR
MIKE PAVELEC DESCRIBES,

WHEN THE CAMP IS LIBERATED
AT THE END OF THE WAR,

THE NUMBERS DON'T ADD UP.

COULD THIS BE A HORRIFIC CLUE
TO WHAT'S IN THE TRENCH?

Pavelec: IN 1945,

WHEN THE ALLIES LIBERATE
THIS CONCENTRATION CAMP,

THIS WORK CAMP,

THE ROSTER
HAD 90,000 NAMES ON IT,

BUT THE ALLIES
ONLY LIBERATE 40,000.

WHAT HAPPENED TO THE OTHER
50,000 PEOPLE

THAT WERE SUPPOSED TO BE THERE?

COULD THIS MASSIVE TRENCH
BE A MASS GRAVE?

WE CERTAINLY KNOW IN OTHER
CONCENTRATION CAMPS,

IN NAZI EXTERMINATION CAMPS,

THAT HUGE PITS WERE DUG
TO THROW BODIES INTO.

Narrator:
GEOLOGIST MARTIN PEPPER SPOTS

SOMETHING THAT THROWS THE
MASS-GRAVE THEORY INTO DOUBT.

Pepper: WHEN YOU LOOK REALLY
CLOSELY TO THIS IMAGE,

YOU CAN ACTUALLY MAKE OUT

THIS DECREPIT VENTILATION
TOWER IN THE TREES.

SO, IT MAKES YOU WONDER WHAT
THEY WERE BUILDING UNDERGROUND

THAT REQUIRED SOME
SORT OF AIR SOURCE.

Narrator: AT THE END OF THE WAR,
ALLIED TROOPS ARE STUNNED

TO DISCOVER HUNDREDS OF VAST
UNDERGROUND FACILITIES

THROUGHOUT GERMANY, AUSTRIA,
CZECHOSLOVAKIA, AND POLAND,

SOME COVERING MORE
THAN 500 ACRES.

RECENTLY-DECLASSIFIED
DOCUMENTS

HIDDEN DEEP WITHIN
FEDERAL ARCHIVES,

REVEAL THIS SITE
IS BEING USED BY THE NAZIS

TO DEVELOP ONE OF
THEIR MOST DEADLY

AND SOPHISTICATED WEAPONS.

Pavelec: THE MAIN PURPOSE
OF THIS UNDERGROUND COMPLEX

WAS TO MANUFACTURE THE Me 262,
THE MESSERSCHMITT 262,

THE GERMANS' FIRST
COMBAT JET AIRCRAFT.

Narrator: THE MESSERSCHMITT
262'S TWIN BMW ENGINES

PROVIDE 5,520 POUNDS OF THRUST.

NICKNAMED "THE SWALLOW,"

IT IS CAPABLE OF REACHING SPEEDS
OF OVER 500 MILES PER HOUR.

THE Me 262 WAS OVER 100 MILES AN
HOUR FASTER THAN EVEN THE P-51,

THE AMERICANS' BEST FIGHTER.

Narrator: ACCORDING TO ALLIED
INTELLIGENCE REPORTS,

THIS SUBTERRANEAN FACTORY

IS ONE OF THE LARGEST WEAPONS
FACILITIES IN THE THIRD REICH,

WITH THE CAPACITY TO ASSEMBLE
1,200 JET FIGHTERS A MONTH.

INMATES AT THE NEARBY MAUTHAUSEN
GUSEN CONCENTRATION CAMP

ARE FORCED TO PROVIDE LABOR.

THE Me 262 JET AIRCRAFT WAS
THE HIGHEST-TECHNOLOGY AIRCRAFT

OF THE SECOND WORLD WAR.

IT WAS ABSOLUTE MADNESS
FOR THE GERMANS

TO TRY TO BUILD HIGH TECHNOLOGY

IN THESE ABSOLUTELY
HORRIBLE CONDITIONS.

BUT BY 1945, THEY'RE LOSING
AND THEY KNOW IT,

AND THEY'RE DESPERATE
TO TRY TO FIND A WAY TO WIN.

Narrator:
DECLASSIFIED DOCUMENTS SUGGEST
THAT TOWARDS THE END OF THE WAR,

NAZI ENGINEERS WERE WORKING ON
INCREASINGLY AMBITIOUS PROJECTS,

INCLUDING A SONIC CANNON
AND A SOLAR DEATH RAY,

AND MAYBE EVEN
THE ULTIMATE WEAPON.

THERE'S BEEN ONGOING SPECULATION
THAT THE NAZIS WERE CLOSE

TO DEVELOPING A NUCLEAR BOMB

IN THE FINAL DAYS
OF WORLD WAR II.

Narrator: BUT AFTER THE WAR,

BEFORE RESEARCHERS
CAN FULLY INVESTIGATE

THIS WEIRD NAZI LABYRINTH,

THE AUSTRIAN GOVERNMENT
FILLS THE TUNNELS

AND CHAMBERS WITH CONCRETE.

Moran: THE EXTENT OF THESE
TUNNELS IS THOUGHT TO BE HUGE,

AND ONLY PARTS OF THEM
HAVE BEEN DISCOVERED.

SO, WHO KNOWS WHAT ELSE
THEY'LL FIND

WHEN THEY START
TO REALLY POKE AROUND.

**

Narrator:
COMING UP, THE LAKE THAT
FORETELLS MANKIND'S DOOM...

WHAT'S ALARMING ABOUT THIS IMAGE
IS THAT IT APPEARS

TO BE BOILING.

Narrator:
...AND THE ANCIENT SECRET
TO SEEING INTO THE FUTURE.

Hunt:
THIS IS A TIME IN THE WORLD
WHEN THE SUPERNATURAL

IS THE DOMINANT WORLD VIEW.

Narrator:
OCTOBER 19, 2007 --

A SATELLITE FLYING
OVER A MOUNTAINOUS AREA

OF CENTRAL ARMENIA
CAPTURES AN IMAGE

OF A SERIES OF GHOSTLY
GEOMETRIC SHAPES,

SEEMINGLY ETCHED
INTO THE GROUND.

THERE LOOK TO BE BURIED,
OR PARTIALLY BURIED,

BUILDINGS THAT ARE NOW
COVERED IN SOME OF A GRASS.

THIS, TO ME, IS A FINGERPRINT
OF AN ANCIENT SETTLEMENT.

Narrator:
SCALE ANALYSIS SUGGESTS
THE REMOTE HILLTOP SITE

COVERS 350,000 SQUARE FEET,

ENOUGH TO HOUSE
HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE.

THE FATE OF THESE
PEOPLE IS A MYSTERY.

IT'S KIND OF HAUNTING.

WHY WOULD YOU ABANDON
A PLACE LIKE THIS?

WHAT SECRETS LURK
BENEATH THE SURFACE?

Narrator:
FOR ARCHAEOLOGIST JEFF ROSE,

THE LOCATION OF THIS ANCIENT
SETTLEMENT IS TANTALIZING.

ARMENIA HAS AN INCREDIBLY
RICH ARCHAEOLOGICAL HISTORY,

AND IS ONE OF THE OLDEST
OCCUPIED REGIONS OF THE WORLD.

Narrator:
AS ROSE SCANS THE SATELLITE
IMAGES OF THE WIDER AREA,

HE DISCOVERS CLUES THAT
COULD EXPLAIN THE ROLE

THE SETTLEMENT'S INHABITANTS

PLAY IN THIS COUNTRY'S
LONG HISTORY.

ONE POTENTIAL CLUE
FOR UNLOCKING THIS MYSTERY

IS THE FACT THAT THERE ARE
MONASTERIES ON HILLTOPS NEARBY

FROM THE FIRST CENTURIES
OF CHRISTIANITY.

Narrator:
THE APOSTLE JUDE IS REPUTED
TO HAVE BROUGHT CHRISTIANITY

TO ARMENIA
IN THE FIRST CENTURY A.D.

SOME HISTORIANS
SPECULATE THAT JUDE

IS ONE OF THE FOUR
BROTHERS OF JESUS,

AS DESCRIBED IN THE NEW
TESTAMENT GOSPELS OF MARK

AND MATTHEW.

Krueger:
IT POSES THE QUESTION OF,

WHAT EXACTLY COULD BE
FOUND AT THIS SITE?

COULD THERE BE IMPORTANT
RELICS, ARTIFACTS,

THAT WOULD BE
OF GREAT SIGNIFICANCE

IN THE HISTORY
OF CHRISTIANITY?

Narrator: YET WHEN
ARCHAEOLOGISTS DATE THE SITE,

THEY DISCOVER A PROBLEM
WITH THE IDEA

THE REMOTE HILLTOP SETTLEMENT
IS EARLY CHRISTIAN.

Horton: IT ACTUALLY BELONGS
TO THE LATE BRONZE AGE,

WHICH IS AROUND 1500 B.C.
TO AROUND 1200 B.C.

Narrator: ARCHAEOLOGISTS
EXCAVATE THE SITE.

THEY UNCOVER THREE CHAMBERS,

WHICH THEY BELIEVE
ARE BRONZE-AGE SHRINES.

INSIDE THE SHRINES, THEY
DISCOVER ASTONISHING ARTIFACTS.

THEY FIND VESSELS WITH TRACES
OF HALLUCINATORY SUBSTANCES,

NOT JUST ALCOHOL,

BUT OTHER WAYS IN WHICH
YOU GO TO HALLUCINATIONS.

Narrator:
THE VESSELS CONTAIN THE RESIDUE
OF A PLANT CALLED EPHEDRA,

WHICH CONTAINS CHEMICALS THAT
CAN WARP VISUAL PERCEPTION.

AND THERE'S MORE.

IN ONE OF THE SHRINES,
THEY FOUND A BASIN

WHERE THEY THINK THEY
WERE PROCESSING FLOUR,

AND THAT FLOUR
POSSIBLY WAS USED

FOR A PRACTICE
CALLED ALEUROMANCY,

WHICH IS PREDICTING
THE FUTURE USING FLOUR.

Narrator:
ARCHAEOLOGISTS ALSO FIND DICE
CARVED FROM ANIMAL BONES.

THESE ARTIFACTS CONFIRM
THEIR SUSPICION

THAT BRONZE-AGE PRIESTS

GATHER AT THE HILLTOP SHRINE
TO USE DRUGS

IN RITUALS TO FORETELL
FUTURE EVENTS.

WHAT WE'VE GOT IS CULT UP
THERE ASSOCIATED

WITH SPECIALIST DIVINERS

WHO ARE GOING INTO TRANCES,

LEAVING THIS WORLD
AND THEN COMING BACK.

THESE PRIESTS WERE OFTEN
REFERRED TO AS SHAMANS.

Narrator:
SHAMANS ADORN THEIR CLOTHES
WITH TUSKS AND TEETH

AS A FORM OF PROTECTION

AND SEEK TO GAIN GUIDANCE
FROM THE SPIRIT WORLD.

IN THE MODERN WORLD, WE SORT
OF DISCOUNT THE SUPERNATURAL,

BUT HERE, THESE ARE PEOPLE

WHO ARE HIGHLY RESPECTED
IN THEIR SOCIETY,

AND THIS IS A TIME IN THE WORLD

WHEN THE SUPERNATURAL

IS THE DOMINANT WORLD VIEW.

Narrator:
EXCAVATIONS SUGGEST THAT
THE SHAMANS ABANDONED THE SITE

IN 1150 B.C.

EVIDENCE OF THEIR REPUTED

POWERS REMAINS BURIED
FOR THOUSANDS OF YEARS.

THEY RITUALLY FILLED BACK
IN THOSE SHRINES,

COVERING EVERYTHING UP, SO THAT
ANYBODY COMING BACK LATER

COULDN'T STEAL THE MAGIC
FROM THE SITE.

Narrator:
FOR ARCHAEOLOGISTS, THE DATE OF
THE SITE'S ABANDONMENT

IS INTRIGUING.

IT COINCIDES WITH
THE MYSTERIOUS DECLINE

OF SEVERAL OTHER CITIES
AND CIVILIZATIONS

ACROSS EUROPE AND BEYOND.

ALL OVER THE ANCIENT WORLD,

CIVILIZATION IS COLLAPSING.

THE GREAT CITIES --
TROY, MYCENAE

TIRYNS, ATHENS --

ALL THESE PLACES ARE
COLLAPSING ONE BY ONE.

Narrator:
THE DISASTER THAT SEEMS
TO STRIKE CIVILIZATIONS

AT THIS TIME STILL
PUZZLES HISTORIANS.

FOR ALL THEIR PROFESSED ABILITY
TO FORETELL THE FUTURE,

IT WOULD APPEAR THESE
ANCIENT MAGIC MEN

FAILED TO PREDICT
THEIR OWN DEMISE.

**

COMING UP, THE MYSTERY
OF SIBERIA'S BUBBLING LAKES.

THIS LAKE LOOKS LIKE A GIANT
JACUZZI IN THE ARCTIC.

Narrator: JUNE 24, 2011 --

THE SENTINEL-2 SATELLITE
PASSES

OVER THE FROZEN WASTES
OF NORTHERN SIBERIA

AND CAPTURES AN UNUSUAL IMAGE...

...A LAKE DOTTED WITH DARK,
CIRCULAR PATCHES.

WHAT SURPRISES SCIENTISTS IS
THE SIMILARITY BETWEEN THIS LAKE

AND OTHERS THEY'VE SEEN ON
THE OTHER SIDE OF THE WORLD.

Cerveny: THIS IMAGE REMINDS ME
OF THE LAKES

THAT I WOULD SEE
AT YELLOWSTONE

WHERE I SEE THE HOT POOLS
OF BOILING WATER

WITH LITTLE BUBBLES
COMING OUT OF THEM.

Narrator: INVESTIGATORS CONSIDER
IF THE BUBBLING PATCHES

ARE POOLS
OF SUPER-HEATED WATER.

Pepper: WHAT'S ALARMING ABOUT
THIS IMAGE IS THAT

IT APPEARS TO BE BOILING.

THIS LAKE LOOKS LIKE A GIANT
JACUZZI IN THE ARCTIC.

Narrator:
THE BOILING LAKES IN YELLOWSTONE

ARE SITTING ON TOP
OF A SUPER VOLCANO,

A 45-MILE-WIDE MAGMA CHAMBER
CONTAINING ENOUGH MOLTEN ROCK

TO FILL THE GRAND CANYON
11 TIMES OVER.

THE BUBBLING IN
THE SIBERIAN LAKE

COULD BE A SIGN
OF PRESSURE BUILDUP

WITHIN AN ARCTIC
SUBTERRANEAN MAGMA CHAMBER.

THAT MIGHT INDICATE THAT
THERE'S A POSSIBILITY THAT

THERE IS A SIMILAR SITUATION
AND WE HAVE A POOL OF MAGMA

THAT IS BUILDING UP
UNDERNEATH OF SIBERIA.

Narrator:
STUDIES AT YELLOWSTONE SUGGEST
THAT THIS PRESSURE BUILDUP

COULD TRIGGER
A CATASTROPHIC ERUPTION,

ONE CAPABLE OF DESTROYING
ALL LIFE IN THE AREA

AND OF UNLEASHING AN ASH CLOUD
THAT WILL BLOCK OUT THE SUN.

BUT ACCORDING TO VOLCANOLOGIST
BRITTANY BRAND,

THIS CAN'T EXPLAIN
THE BUBBLING LAKE IN SIBERIA.

Brand: THERE'S NO VOLCANISM
IN SIBERIA.

THERE'S ANCIENT VOLCANISM,

BUT THAT HAPPENED
250 MILLION YEARS AGO.

Narrator: THE BUBBLING LAKE
REMINDS SOME HISTORIANS

OF A 16th CENTURY
INCAN LEGEND.

A BOILING RIVER, WHICH,
ACCORDING TO THE ANCIENT TEXTS,

SITS IN A REMOTE AREA
OF THE AMAZON.

Hunt: IT'S THE MOST
IMPENETRABLE, HOSTILE PLACE,

COMPLETELY COVERED
WITH JUNGLE.

Narrator:
THE TEXTS REVEAL THAT THE INCAS
LURE THEIR ENEMIES TO THE RIVER

AND BOIL THEM LIKE LOBSTERS.

IN 2011, A PERUVIAN EXPEDITION
INTO THE AMAZON

DISCOVERS THE LEGENDARY
BOILING RIVER.

Nelson: IT'S OVER 200 DEGREES
FAHRENHEIT.

IT REALLY IS ASTONISHING
THE AMOUNT OF HEAT INVOLVED

IN HEATING UP AN ENTIRE RIVER.

Narrator:
SCIENTISTS BELIEVE THAT THEY
KNOW WHAT COULD BE GENERATING

SUCH VAST AMOUNTS OF HEAT...

THE EARTH'S CORE.

Pepper:
AS YOU GO DEEP WITHIN THE EARTH,
IT ACTUALLY HEATS UP.

IT'S SOMETHING THAT'S CALLED
THE GEOTHERMAL GRADIENT.

Narrator:
GEOLOGICAL STUDIES SUGGEST THAT
WATER HEATED INSIDE THE PLANET

RISES TO THE SURFACE THROUGH
A SERIES OF ARTERY-LIKE CRACKS

AND FISSURES TO FEED THE RIVER,
CAUSING IT TO BOIL.

SCIENTISTS CONSIDER IF THE
SAME HEAT SOURCE

IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE BUBBLING
LAKE IN THE SATELLITE IMAGE.

I THINK WHAT WE'RE SEEING HERE
IN THE ARCTIC

COULD VERY EASILY
BE GEOTHERMAL ACTIVITY.

Narrator:
YET WHEN INVESTIGATORS RETURN
TO THE SATELLITE IMAGES

OF THE SIBERIAN LAKE,

THEY DISCOVER
EVIDENCE TO SUGGEST

THE BUBBLES MAY BE DUE
TO SOMETHING ELSE ENTIRELY.

Pepper:
I SEE THAT IT'S NOT JUST THIS
ONE LAKE, BUT OVER 200 LAKES.

SO, IT'S ALMOST THIS ENTIRE
REGION OF SIBERIA.

Narrator:
WEIRDER STILL, THE STRANGE,
BUBBLING LAKE PHENOMENON

APPEARS TO BE SPREADING
TO OTHER COUNTRIES

AROUND THE ARCTIC CIRCLE.

A SURVEY OF ONE OF THE AFFECTED
LAKES YIELDS A POSSIBLE CLUE.

BUBBLES OF GAS TRAPPED
IN THE WINTER ICE.

Brand: WHAT WE'RE SEEING IN
THESE SATELLITE IMAGES

COULD BE GAS COMING UP
THROUGH THE LAKE.

Narrator: WHEN SCIENTISTS
RELEASE THE TRAPPED GAS...

-WHOA!
-WHOA!

...THEY DISCOVER THAT
IT'S HIGHLY FLAMMABLE

AND CARRIES A VERY
DISTINCTIVE ODOR.

THERE'S METHANE BEING RELEASED,
BUBBLING UP TO THE SURFACE.

Narrator:
THIS HELPS THEM TO IDENTIFY THE
ORIGIN OF THE STRANGE BUBBLES.

STUDIES OF ORGANIC MATTER
IN THE ARCTIC PERMAFROST REVEAL

IT CONTAINS HIGH
LEVELS OF METHANE.

PERMAFROST IS
ESSENTIALLY FROZEN SOIL,

AND IN A PLACE
AS COLD AS SIBERIA,

THAT FROZEN SOIL CAN EXTEND
FOR HUNDREDS OF FEET

INTO THE SUBSURFACE.

THE AMOUNT OF METHANE THAT IS
STORED IN THE PERMAFROST

IS INCREDIBLE --

50 BILLION TONS.

THAT WOULD BE MORE THAN 10 TIMES
THE CURRENT AMOUNT

THAT WE HAVE IN
OUR ATMOSPHERE RIGHT NOW.

Narrator: ANALYSIS OF NEARBY
SOIL TEMPERATURES SHOWS

THAT THEY'RE UNUSUALLY HIGH.

TYPICALLY, AN ICY TUNDRA
IS FROZEN ALL YEAR.

BUT IF YOU RAISE
THAT TEMPERATURE UP

JUST A LITTLE BIT,

IT'LL START TO MELT
THE ENTIRE AREA.

Narrator: THE MELTING PERMAFROST
MAY BE RELEASING METHANE

WHICH HAS LONG BEEN
TRAPPED UNDERGROUND,

CREATING THE BUBBLING LAKES

DISCOVERED IN
THE SATELLITE IMAGE.

THE SCARY PART
IS THAT METHANE

IS EVEN MORE DETRIMENTAL
TO OUR ATMOSPHERE

HEATING THAN CARBON DIOXIDE.

IF ALL OF THE METHANE
FROM THE PERMAFROST

WERE RELEASED
INTO OUR ATMOSPHERE,

THE EFFECTS WOULD
BE CATASTROPHIC.

Narrator:
THE SATELLITE IMAGE HAS CAPTURED
A HARBINGER OF DOOM,

A TICKING TIME BOMB THAT COULD
HAVE DEVASTATING CONSEQUENCES

FOR LIFE ON EARTH.

**