Original subtitles

Narrator: They're watching you.

More than 4,000 satellites Circle the earth.

Every day, they uncover new,

Mysterious phenomena That defy explanation.

[ static, beeping ]

A prehistoric ghost And a chamber of sacrifice.

This is amazing.

Something has grown Out of the ground.

It's like entering The center of the earth.

Narrator: the machine that can See back in time.

It's one of the greatest marvels Of our time.

Narrator: And china steals a mega weapon.

That is serious bad news For the rest of the world.

**

Narrator: Baffling phenomena.

Mysteries from space.

What on earth are they?

**

-- captions by vitac -- Www.Vitac.Com

Captions paid for by Discovery communications

**

July 2018.

Ireland is experiencing A rare heat wave.

Sanford: it was A record-breaking drought.

Temperatures reached 90 degrees

In a country Where it's usually only 65.

Narrator: The emerald isle turns brown.

And in a field In the east of the country,

A strange pattern Materializes in the earth.

**

Hunt: This is amazing.

Something has emerged, almost as If it's grown out of the ground.

It's a gigantic circle, About 500 feet across.

Narrator: whatever this is, One thing is clear --

It's not natural.

What's really striking here

Is the utter perfection Of the geometry.

This circle is perfect.

Narrator: the location Of the spectral circle

Intrigues archaeologists.

It sits in the boyne valley,

The capital Of prehistoric ireland.

There are ancient structures From about 4,500 years ago

Littering the landscape.

These make mayan structures Look like modern history.

**

Narrator: according to legend, These lands were once inhabited

By a supernatural race Called the tuath dé danann.

Built more than 3,000 years

Before the rise Of the roman empire,

The exact origin and purpose Of many of the structures here

Are a mystery.

Investigators hope That the pattern in the image

Could help reveal The secrets of this land

Of legend and folklore.

There's not a lot known About the origins of ireland,

And this could really Lend new understanding

To the ancient cultures That occupied this area.

**

Narrator: Archaeologist mark horton

Is traveling To the weird pattern

In the aerial images To try to decode it.

Hopefully, by actually Seeing the landscape

In which it's sitting,

We can begin to understand What it is

And what its significance is.

Narrator: horton journeys Deep into county meath,

Once the seat Of the high kings of ireland,

Historic and legendary figures Who ruled in ancient times.

It's above of the most Famous site in ireland,

And yet, such an important New discovery

Could be made Just literally a few yards away.

**

Narrator: According to gps data,

The symbol should be In this field.

Yet horton can find No trace of it.

**

We saw the parch marks so Clearly on that air photograph,

But now it's just a plowed field

With just a bit of winter wheat Coming up.

So, nothing to see On the surface.

**

Narrator: horton hopes Composite aerial images

Will reveal the strange pattern.

But they only confirm his fears.

Horton: the crops obviously Aren't that well-developed.

We can see the grass On both sides,

But there's no sign there At all.

**

So frustrating.

**

Narrator: The drought is over,

And the land has reclaimed The ghostly circle as its own.

Yet horton believes This may in fact offer a clue

To the origin Of the circle in the image.

I'm surrounded by landscape full Of enormous stone monuments,

And I wonder whether The solution is that

This was made of wood.

Narrator: If horton is right,

A colossal, 300,000-square-foot Wooden structure

Once stood here.

When it rotted, It left nutrients in the soil,

Which create differences In plant growth

Visible from the skies During times of severe drought.

Because all we have Is the perimeter of the circle,

We have no idea What was above it.

Could it have also been roofed?

We don't know.

Narrator: Whatever once stood here,

Horton wants to know What it looked like,

Who built it, and why.

He thinks there may be An extraordinary clue nearby --

A mysterious structure Which dates back 5,000 years

But is known by Its medieval name -- newgrange.

Newgrange is perhaps the premier Neolithic site in the world.

Paul: Newgrange is an incredible site

Not just because of the size, But because of the age.

This site actually predates The famous stonehenge.

It's older than The great pyramids of egypt.

Narrator: According to historical texts,

This is the house Of a god known as the dagda,

And the lands around it Were once covered by a sea.

**

He uses his mace To banish the waters,

Which take the monster mata With them.

**

The dagda's house remains -- 250 feet wide,

Comprising 200,000 tons Of earth and rock.

It's made of stone Which is not local.

It was quarried and brought A great distance

To be constructed here.

Sanford: it's mind-blowing That neolithic people

Had construction techniques

That would allow them To do something like this.

Narrator: as horton Explores the perimeter,

He sees the telltale signs Of prehistoric magic.

Horton: I've seen these kind of Prehistoric spirals before,

And they may be associated With shamans

Who go into Altered states of consciousness.

They become drugged, And this is what they see

Through their eyes In that state.

What it suggests is that

This was A spiritually significant site.

Narrator: like the structure Captured from the skies,

This temple Is vast and circular.

**

Horton decides to venture inside For clues.

It's extraordinary.

**

Narrator: the tunnel stretches Deep into the heart

Of this prehistoric Man-made mountain.

Horton: I can feel this kind of Extraordinary sensation,

Heading down This narrow passage,

Squeezing between The ancient stones.

**

Narrator: the passageway leads To a large central chamber.

Horton: It's kind of like

Entering The center of the earth.

It's a miracle Of stone-age engineering.

Narrator: archaeologists Excavating the site

Find a mixture of animal And human remains.

**

Horton: The bodies were left exposed,

And then what was left of The bodies were brought in here.

So this is actually like the House of the ancestral spirits.

You're bringing the ancestors In here,

And their spirits Are living here

In this extraordinary chamber.

**

Narrator: archaeologists Speculate this chamber

In the house Of the chieftain god

Was used to conduct sacrifice.

Analysts consider If the ghostly circle

Was also once soaked With the blood of the ancients.

If sacrifices took place At newgrange,

Could the massive structure In this aerial image

Also have a dark history?

**

Narrator: coming up -- Time travel in the desert.

Major: we're able to see Farther back in time

Than ever before possible.

Narrator: and cracking the code Of the ancients.

Janulis: they would bring The skulls of their ancestors

In the hope that this would Protect them from demons

During this night.

[ static ]

[ static ]

**

Narrator: following a heat wave In ireland,

The outline of a massive Prehistoric structure

Emerges from the earth.

Archaeologist mark horton Wonders

Whether this ancient tomb holds Clues to its origin and purpose.

A passageway leads To a 5,000-year-old

Burial chamber at its center.

**

Horton reveals it has Astronomical significance.

Horton: So, what I think is that the sun

Just rises above That hill over there

And the rays come through, Shine down through the passage,

And illuminate The chamber beyond.

Narrator: horton calculates That this only happens

On one day of the year.

Horton: so, the alignment Is the winter solstice.

That's around december the 21st Every year.

That means That you could predict,

Every year On the winter solstice,

The rising sun would come Exactly at that point

In the horizon and strike The middle of that chamber.

That is astonishing.

Narrator: For prehistoric people,

There was no division Between science and magic,

Between worshiping the stars And using them to mark time.

Sanford: the winter solstice Wasn't just a celebration.

If you didn't notice The winter solstice correctly,

You might not prepare correctly

For the rest Of the winter to come.

It could mean famine and death For the people.

Narrator: the footprint of the Structure seen from the skies

Appears to have had A passageway,

Perhaps leading to an altar, As does newgrange.

Horton considers if this Is a long-lost sister site,

And if so, what might have been Its purpose.

So, what I'm thinking Is that this monument, a tomb,

Is associated with death And ancestral spirits and stone,

Whereas our monument Down the bottom there

Is associated With the living, with wood.

So we have the two Paired together,

The dying and the living.

**

Narrator: horton wonders if Its orientation is important.

Maybe it has its own significant Alignment that we can discover.

Unfortunately, It's actually very difficult,

From photographs, To work out exactly where it is

In this huge field.

Narrator: Using georeferencing software

And gps data From the aerial photos,

Horton maps the structure's Precise position.

You can see the circle, And a dot marks where we are.

So, in order to actually stand On where the monument is,

We just need to follow The blue dot to the circle.

**

Narrator: horton can now Plot the outline

Of the invisible Ancient monument.

**

Horton: It's kind of weird.

There I am, laying this out With plastic sports cones

Directly on the top

Of what the neolithic farmers Did 5,500 years ago.

**

That's pretty good.

**

Narrator: for horton,

The size and position Of the square structure

Suggest it was the focal point Of the giant circle.

Horton: there are two more posts Which form a narrow entranceway,

Almost a sighting slit,

Which then forms A perfect alignment

Looking all the way Down through the middle

And ending up on the top Of the hill just over there.

So, having established That this is the alignment,

The question remains -- What is it?

Narrator: using historical Astronomical data,

Horton calculates Which day sunrise lined up

With the giant entranceway In neolithic times.

What he finds is shocking.

120 degrees.

Amazing!

It's actually The 31st of october,

Which in modern times Is halloween

But was actually a really Important celtic festival.

**

Narrator: the colossal structure Appears to be connected

With the celtic samhain --

The feast of the dead, The origins of our halloween.

According to legend, On this night,

Children were sacrificed To a supernatural race

Known as the fomorians, Bringers of death and chaos.

One of the traditions For samhain night

Was to have a big bonfire,

And so the spiritual world Mingled with the real world.

They would appeal to the spirits For help

In surviving The dark winter to come.

Narrator: People invite their ancestors

To join the feast of the dead

And perform rituals To rid the lands of demons.

They would bring the skulls Of their ancestors

And put them in a circle Around the bonfire,

In the hope that this would Protect them from demons

During this night.

**

Narrator: horton's investigation Has revealed that 3,000 years

Before the birth of christ, A mighty structure stood here...

**

...Hewn from the primordial Forests of ireland,

Built by the pagan tribes That once inhabited them,

And constructed so precisely That on one day every year,

It is lit up by our nearest star To welcome the dead

And protect the living.

We think about ancient people As being

So much less sophisticated Than we are in the modern day.

But the reality is, If you think about it,

The effort to build Something massive like this

When everything to do With survival

Was so backbreakingly hard Is just gobsmacking.

Narrator: the ghost of This structure has been consumed

Once more By these mythical lands.

Horton wonders what Other secrets they may hide.

This landscape is one of The most studied

Of all prehistoric ireland,

And yet there's so much more To be learnt.

**

Narrator: coming up -- The time-traveling machine.

We found out that These black holes can be

20 times the size Of our own sun.

Narrator: and something Bewitching near salem.

Does this site have something To do with witchcraft?

**

[ static ]

Narrator: May 28, 2017 --

A u.S. Geological survey camera Passing over washington state

Spots a strange structure In the desert.

You can see from this image that We're in the middle of nowhere,

And then there's two straight Lines in the shape of an "L."

Narrator: scale analysis shows Each branch

Of this perplexing "L" shape Is 2 1/2 miles long.

**

They're going straight In one direction

And straight In another direction,

And then they suddenly stop.

Narrator: investigators consider Whether the exact

90-degree alignment Of the structure

And its remote location Offer a clue.

The middle of nowhere is perfect For testing new technologies

And ideas that you want To test in secret.

Narrator: one new technology Which is set

To run through this region Is called the hyperloop,

Developed by The controversial elon musk.

Elon musk is A really eccentric billionaire

Who uses his money to create All these very bizarre,

Ambitious science experiments.

He is coming up with all sorts Of new, crazy ideas,

But instead of keeping them To himself,

He's actually trying them.

Narrator: following the sale of Online payment system paypal,

Musk amasses A $23 billion fortune.

His ambitious projects include Developing a brain implant

To dramatically increase Human intelligence.

**

And while his spacex venture Plans to colonize mars...

**

...Hyperloop is an attempt To revolutionize

The way we move around on earth.

The hyperloop would be A transportation network

Connecting major cities On the u.S. West coast.

They would use high-speed trains

That are traveling through Tunnels, mostly underground.

**

Narrator: hyperloop is A kind of super train.

Its 28-person pods Run in a vacuum tube

Where air pressure Is 1/1000 of that outside,

Dramatically reducing drag.

The system replaces wheels And tracks with magnets

So that the 20-ton pods glide

Above a rail up to 760 miles per hour.

You know when you go to the bank

And you put your money In those tubes

And then they get sucked up To the bank teller super fast?

Well, think of that, Except it's a train system.

Narrator: In july 2017,

Engineers put A prototype hyperloop

Through its paces At a test center in nevada

Known as the devloop.

It's possible, If not even likely,

That what we're seeing In this image

Is some kind of other test track For a hyperloop technology.

Narrator: Yet for some investigators,

This seems the wrong shape

And not long enough For a hyperloop.

Nasa scientist pascal lee Has seen

An l-shaped structure Like this before.

This, to me, screams "Particle physics research"

Looking at the universe In two different dimensions,

Because of the two branches Of the "L."

So, maybe what we're looking at

Is one of The ligo observatories,

A laser interferometry Gravity-wave observatory.

**

Narrator: Ligo's mission is to unlock

Some of the greatest mysteries Of the universe...

**

...Why black holes form, Why stars explode,

And how the universe Was created.

It works by observing So-called gravity waves --

Ripples in space-time.

One of the holy grails In physics, of course,

Is trying to measure And understand gravity waves.

The best analogy is The surface of a pond.

Dump a rock into the pond,

And the disturbance Ripples outwards.

Narrator: the scientists here Face a massive challenge.

Since the universe was created,

Its gravitational echoes Have traveled

Hundreds of trillions of miles At the speed of light

And are incredibly hard To observe.

It's detecting a strand of hair At the distance

Of our nearest star, Alpha centauri,

Which is 4 1/2 light-years away.

It's like trying to hear Somebody whisper

All the way across A busy nightclub.

Narrator: Ligo sends a laser beam

Down the two massive arms Visible in the image.

If a gravitational wave Hits earth,

It disrupts these beams and The ligo detector picks this up.

What you are going to want To measure is a difference

In timing of the arrival Of the wave

In two different directions.

That is why you would set up A gravity-wave detector

In the shape of an "L."

And that will allow you To detect the gravity wave,

And better than that, even,

Give you a sense Of where it's coming from.

Narrator: The physics is mind-bending,

But what scientists are trying To do is extraordinary.

If creation is the act of god,

Then ligo is seeking To rewind time

To understand How his creation works.

With ligo, we're able to learn Things about the universe

Never before thought possible.

For example, we found out That these black holes can be

20 times the size Of our own sun.

**

Major: ligo can pick up Gravitational waves

Which are being created By objects

Before even the first stars Came around.

Narrator: The secret of creation

Is the most awesome mystery Of the universe.

This strange facility, Observable from space,

Is entering a realm Where religion and science meet.

Major: we're able to see Farther back in time

Than ever before possible.

There is a potential to actually Detect gravitational waves

From the big bang.

Lee: and so, It's a remarkable device.

It's one of the greatest marvels Of our time.

**

Narrator: coming up -- The terrifying sun gun.

It could start fires anywhere On the planet without detection.

Narrator: and murder and sorcery In the snow.

People were killed just for Rumors of practicing witchcraft.

[ static ]

[ static ]

Narrator: February 23, 2011 --

As the geoeye-1 satellite Passes over new brunswick,

Southeastern canada, It spots a star shape.

Looks to me like a flower Imprinted in the snow.

But clearly, It's much too big for that.

Merritt: It's obvious that this isn't

Just carved out into the snow.

It's something That's underneath the snow.

Narrator: For some investigators,

The location of the weird Outline is intriguing.

The pentagram is the classic Symbol of witchcraft.

**

Paul: this area Is over the u.S. Border

From salem, massachusetts,

Which is famously known For the salem witch trials.

Narrator: In colonial massachusetts

At the end of the 17th century,

Officials accuse over 200 people In salem

Of practicing sorcery -- Among them, eight children.

Just imagine the terror And the horror

That would've come with Being accused of witchcraft.

You're done for.

[ indistinct shouting ]

Narrator: 13 women Are found to be witches,

Six men of being sorcerers.

They are all hanged.

A suspect who refuses To cooperate

Is slowly killed over three days

By having heavy stones Placed on his chest,

A torture known as "Pressing."

At this time, people were killed

Just for rumors Of practicing witchcraft.

**

Narrator: A number of the accused flee,

Some suspect Across the canadian border

To the spot captured In the satellite image.

Bellinger: Looking at this satellite image

And knowing the history Of witchcraft in the area,

Could this be Some kind of ritual site

That was used by witches In the past?

**

Narrator: when investigators Closely analyze the perimeter

Of the mystery star, They find another clue --

One that suggests A defensive purpose.

One of the things that's obvious Is that

This isn't just a structure,

But there are actually Ditches dug around it.

Pavelec: Looking at it more closely,

It looks a lot like the shape Of a medieval fortress.

Narrator: Military historians confirm

That the structure's location Is key.

This area was of Strategic importance

To european colonists.

It sits on a strip of land

Separating new brunswick And nova scotia,

A key point on an important Trade route in the 18th century.

Pavelec: for both the french And the british,

This is the gateway to North america, to the new world.

It's along The saint lawrence seaway,

The major riverine passage Into the interior of canada

And upper united states From europe, from the atlantic.

Narrator: rich europeans want Fur caught by canadian trappers.

The valuable pelts Are transported

From the remote Canadian wilderness

Along the saint lawrence river.

The vast potential of The natural resources of canada

Was a magnet To both the french colonizers,

The british colonizers,

And made this place Vitally strategic.

Narrator: In the mid 18th century,

France controls new brunswick.

Britain governs nova scotia.

Historian keri leigh merritt Believes

The snow-covered structure is A fort which played a key role

In their bitter And bloody conflict.

Merritt: Records reveal that this fort

Was actually fort beauséjour,

Which was created By the french in 1751

In order to protect themselves Against the british.

Narrator: the british have Their own fort --

Fort lawrence, Just two miles away.

But the star shape Of fort beauséjour,

Known as a bastion fort, Gives the french the advantage.

The star shape is effective Because the pointed bastions

Mean that they can attack In multiple directions

And they don't have blind spots Around the fort.

Narrator: Nevertheless, on june 3, 1755,

2,000 british troops Mount a ferocious assault

On the french fort.

The british besiege and Relentlessly bombard the fort.

Starving, wounded, surrounded By corpses and human filth,

160 french colonists Are trapped in the fort.

Can you imagine Being in this fort

When you're actually Under siege?

The screams, the smells, The horror.

There's nowhere to go, Nowhere to hide.

What is your hope?

Either that more french Defenders will come to your aid

Or that the british besiegers Will be merciful.

Narrator: the british blockade Of a nearby port

Prevents french reinforcements From rescuing their comrades.

On june 16th, The french surrender,

And britain Subsequently gains control

Of the saint lawrence river,

Its trade, And its vast natural resources.

By seizing control of this French fort, as well as others,

The british have, in effect, Taken a monopoly

On this part of the world

And the resources that are Coming in and going out of it.

Narrator: beauséjour becomes A crucial staging post

For britain's eventual Military domination of canada.

Today, it endures As a haunting reminder

Of north america's Bloody colonial era.

**

Coming up -- burning pirates Alive in the high seas.

Pavelec: the sailors poured Flaming oil over the side,

On the pirates that are trying To get on the ship.

Narrator: and the smersh sci-fi Super weapon.

This is like A bond villain plan,

Like a giant magnifying glass In the sky.

[ static ]

[ static ]

Narrator: March 6, 2012 --

As the worldview-2 satellite Crosses the south china sea,

It captures something glowing In the water.

This image is really unsettling Because what you see on one side

Is what looks to be a ship That is on fire.

Narrator: it seems that some Form of intense heat or light

Has overwhelmed the satellite's Imaging instruments.

The saturated area is where The light is too bright

For the sensor.

Narrator: image analyst marc D'antonio takes a closer look.

If this is a ship on fire, It's no ordinary fire.

There's something On the side here

That seems to be coming out.

This could be the ship Firing some kind of rockets.

Or it could be the ship Being attacked by something,

And this is an explosion Coming out.

**

Narrator: an exploding ship Would be disturbing enough,

But for military analysts, Its location makes it doubly so.

It sits above The macclesfield bank,

A submerged coral atoll 400 miles

Due south of hong kong In the south china sea.

Noting that this ship Is in the south china sea

And appears to be under attack,

That has Some serious repercussions

In that part of the world.

Narrator: the south china sea Is a flash point

For potentially catastrophic Military conflict.

Several powers Are competing with china

To control these waters.

U.S. Military And the intelligence community

Really believe That the south china sea

Could be The number-one flash point

That triggers world war iii.

**

Narrator: Over the last few years,

China has claimed several reefs And atolls,

Built and expanded islands,

And established Several military bases.

Pavelec: they're there to say, "These are ours,

And we're going to defend them If we want to."

Narrator: The u.S. Has responded

By increasing its naval presence In the area.

Albertson: There could be as many

As seven new military bases, And in some analysts' minds,

This is putting us on A collision course with china.

Narrator: reports from the area Provide clues

To the apparent explosion In the image.

Moran: intelligence reports Suggest that several yj-12s

Have been installed, And this is essentially

A supersonic anti-ship Cruise missile.

Narrator: In june 2018,

Chinese hackers steal over 600 gigabytes of data

From u.S. Navy computers,

Including plans For a new submarine-based

Anti-ship missile Code-named "Sea dragon."

It's said to be A long-range anti-ship missile

That will give u.S. Submarines

A huge advantage Over enemy vessels,

And now it could be In the hands of the chinese.

**

Narrator: the sea dragon program Is classified,

But it's rumored the new missile Flies at 2,500 miles per hour

And can take out The world's largest warships.

**

If the chinese military Has created

Its own version Of the sea dragon,

Then that is serious bad news For the rest of the world.

Narrator: But to some,

The missile theory Doesn't add up.

D'antonio: I'm not sure That it's actually

A live weapons test That we're seeing.

If this is a weapons test, We would expect to see a trail.

Narrator: there may be An alternative explanation

For the image.

So, after further investigation, In february 2018,

There was an actual Pirate attack on a cargo ship

In that part of the world.

Narrator: a third of the world's Marine commerce

Passes through Southeast asia seas --

120,000 big ships each year, Laden with valuables.

Rich pickings for some.

Between 1995 and 2013,

Almost half Of the world's pirate attacks

Occurred in this region.

Moran: trillions of dollars' Worth of goods

Pass through the area annually.

These are some of the most Heavily pirated waters

In the world.

Bad guys in boats, And they're absolutely ruthless

In taking over ships, Killing people, stealing cargo.

They're experienced,

And they know What they're looking for.

Narrator: in february 2018, Local sailors report an incident

That might provide a clue To the image.

Moran: A cargo ship is under attack.

Heavily armed pirates Are approaching,

And a petrified captain fires Five flares into the air.

Narrator: When help doesn't come,

The crew takes action,

And their tactics Are old-school.

So, when the pirates Began to board the ship,

The sailors poured oil Over the side,

On the pirates that are Trying to get on the ship.

Narrator: Is this a ship under attack?

Are pirates being burned alive?

The chinese probably are not Very likely to tell us

If there's pirate attacks,

So if this is one, They're not talking.

**

Narrator: coming up, Another inexplicable inferno --

This time, in the arctic.

How could we have Such a massive fire

In such a frozen environment?

[ static ]

[ static ]

Narrator: July 31, 2017 --

A nasa satellite over greenland Captures a troubling image.

**

It's a beautiful green space, And then this plume

Of steam or smoke Right in the middle of it.

It's hard to tell The exact size,

But this looks like A blazing inferno.

**

Narrator: around 80% of Greenland is permanently covered

By what scientists call The inland ice --

A massive ice sheet Containing 8%

Of all the freshwater on earth.

Much of the rest, Such as the area in the image,

Is tundra.

Kourounis: it looks green, But it's permafrost.

There's no trees. There's no wood.

There's very little fuel Here to combust.

The question is, how could we Have such a massive fire

In such a frozen environment?

Narrator: around 90% of Wildfires are caused by people.

But analysis of The surrounding area

Shows no sign of habitation.

Whenever you see a fire In a wilderness area

That's pretty much uninhabited,

The first thing That comes to mind

Is that it was caused By a lightning strike.

Narrator: lightning strikes Somewhere on earth

100 times each second.

A single bolt can be Five times hotter

Than the surface of the sun.

So, if the permafrost Was thawing out

And lightning struck, It's possible

That some of this vegetation Caught on fire.

Narrator: But weather records suggest

This is not what's happening.

The fires were first spotted On july 31st.

We can't find any evidence Of thunderstorms

Happening in that area Using radar

Or using Lightning-detection software,

So it's not likely that A thunderstorm is to blame here.

Narrator: historical images Yield another clue.

In early images, You can actually see --

It looks as though The fire starts all by itself.

Narrator: technology expert Mike capps turns to news reports

And finds an incredible But possible explanation.

Back in the early '90s,

The russians Launched the znamya satellite,

Which had reflective mirrors

That would focus light Down on the earth.

**

Narrator: During winter,

Russians living Above the arctic circle

Can go as long as 40 days Without sunlight

And endure temperatures as low As minus 98 degrees fahrenheit.

In the late 1980s,

Soviet scientists Announce a bizarre plan

To help those suffering

Through these months Of freezing darkness.

It was this crazy experiment

To see if there was a way To kind of harvest the light

And shine it back in, Hoping to capture sunlight

And let you work all night long For mother russia.

Narrator: The plan comes

Straight out Of science fiction --

A 65-foot-wide space mirror

Angled to deflect the sun's rays Back down to earth.

This is like A bond villain plan.

"We're gonna build A giant mirror in space,

And we'll use it to direct,

Like a giant Magnifying glass in the sky."

Narrator: On february 4, 1993,

The russians Launch the znamya satellite,

Carrying The experimental payload.

As night falls, They deploy the mirror,

Firing a focused beam Of sunlight back to earth.

This gargantuan bat signal Passed across the atlantic,

Over europe, and into russia.

**

Narrator: reports later emerge That the russian space agency

Is developing a new version Of the infamous space mirror.

**

Some intelligence experts

Believe it has A more sinister purpose,

One that could explain The mysterious satellite image.

Every 5-year-old knows If you take a magnifying glass

And you focus the light Of the sun just right,

That you can start A fire with that.

Narrator: the russians Would not be the first

To attempt to weaponize the sun.

In 212 bc, legend has it That famous greek inventor

And mathematician archimedes Used a series of giant mirrors

To set fire To an invading roman fleet.

**

If the russians are actually Developing a weaponized

Space-mirror platform, Then they could start fires

Anywhere on the planet Without detection.

Cerveny: in the wrong hands, If you were to build

This kind of technology, You could do a lot of damage.

Narrator: however, detailed Study of the image suggests

This is not the origin Of the arctic inferno.

Kourounis: If this fire was caused

By some Orbiting russian space mirror

Focusing its energy On greenland,

Well, we'd expect to see A scorch mark across the land,

But there's nothing like that In the image.

Narrator: geological records Provide another clue.

When we do detailed analysis, We find out that actually,

The region is comprised of peat.

Narrator: peat is Partially decayed plants,

Compressed over Thousands of years.

Although 90% water,

It is carbon-rich And highly flammable --

And, in certain conditions, Can self-ignite.

Peat fires can actually burn Underground undetected for years

Before they actually Reach the surface.

Narrator: investigators believe That following

A spontaneous, unexplained fire,

A blaze eats through the peat, Consuming thousands of acres.

When you burn peat, You get a concentrated heat

That lasts for a long time.

Narrator: studies indicate That these fires

Are becoming more frequent.

No one has discovered Exactly why they start

Or how to stop them.

The problem with This kind of peat burning

Is that it's almost impossible To put it out,

So this fire could rage For years into the future.

**