20 Seasons | 176 Episodes
- Season 21 12 Episodes Available
- Season 20 2 Episodes Available
- Season 19 4 Episodes Available
- Season 18 8 Episodes Available
- Season 17 4 Episodes Available
- Season 16 4 Episodes Available
- Season 15 4 Episodes Available
- Season 14 5 Episodes Available
- Season 13 5 Episodes Available
- Season 12 13 Episodes Available
- Season 11 11 Episodes Available
- Season 10 9 Episodes Available
- Season 9 12 Episodes Available
- Season 8 13 Episodes Available
- Season 7 13 Episodes Available
- Season 6 14 Episodes Available
- Season 5 11 Episodes Available
- Season 4 4 Episodes Available
- Season 3 11 Episodes Available
- Season 2 17 Episodes Available
Home Tech
Aired on Jan 03, 2001Apollo 13
Aired on Jan 22, 2001The Apollo 13 mission was intended to be a “routine” trip to the moon. But when an oxygen tank exploded, the spacecraft was crippled and its 3-man crew placed in mortal danger. The Lunar Module, intended for deployment on the moon’s surface, instead became a lifeboat. Scientists and engineers on earth fought a race against time to save the crew. We’ll examine the mission, which nearly ended in tragedy, but instead was a resounding success, and in some ways became NASA’s finest hour.
Survival Technology
Aired on Jan 29, 2001In an historic survey of man’s adaptation to killer environmental conditions, we travel to the desert, the Arctic, the sea, jungle, and space, charting the body’s physiological responses to extreme circumstances such as frostbite, heatstroke, and hypothermia. We talk with military survival experts and learn about the latest cutting-edge survival gear, as well as the equipment aboard the space station, and look to the future, when nano-technology will create a new type of technology.
Chesapeake Bay Bridge & Tunnel
Aired on Feb 07, 2001Named one of the seven engineering wonders of the modern age, the Chesapeake Bay Bridge and Tunnel connects Virginia proper with its easternmost landmass. Stretching 17 miles across the historic Chesapeake Bay, the structure represents a man-made boundary between the Bay and the Atlantic. The structure includes two 2-lane highways supported mostly by trestles, four man-made and one natural island, two truss bridges, and two revolutionary sunken tube tunnels.
Modern Marvel:Garage Gadgets: Garage Gadgets
Aired on Feb 12, 2001Monster Trucks
Aired on Mar 12, 2001Ride shotgun in our rollicking history of the Monster Truck, and meet the father of the mythic beast, Bob Chandler, whose Bigfoot gave birth to the sport in a cornfield years ago! Weighing 10,000 pounds, the behemoths entertain using brute force. Thrill to breathtaking stunts in California, Indiana, and Florida, as mounted cameras demonstrate the shakes, rattles, and rolls drivers experience; and meet the men who race these mechanical mammoths in one of the world’s fastest-growing motorsports.
Modern Marvels: Then And Now: Airships
Aired on Mar 17, 2001Lighthouses
Aired on Mar 19, 2001From the earliest known lighthouses, such as the Pharos of Alexandria, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, to modern-day automated buoys and solar-powered lantern rooms, this history of lighthouses is rich with personal stories of lighthouse keepers, daring construction efforts, and ingenious optical discoveries. Today, as lighthouses are usurped by more efficient aids to navigation, these elegant structures are being converted to bed-and-breakfast inns and environmental retreats.
The Pentagon
Aired on Mar 27, 2001The Pentagon…The name alone conjures up an imposing image of American power and prestige. As the largest office building in the world, it serves as the headquarters of the nation’s armed forces.
How Did They Build That?: Concrete
Aired on Apr 11, 2001Computers
Aired on Apr 11, 2001From colossal devices designed to save the world to mind-expanding, world-shrinking machines, we trace the evolution of mice and menus. Learn about the world’s most powerful computer, IBM’s ASCI White, that operates at 12-trillion calculations a second. See how the first room-sized computers, such as ENIAC, changed the world. Bite into Apple’s history, the machine that made computers a household appliance. And peer through a microscope to see the molecular computers of the future.
Engineering Disasters 3
Aired on Apr 16, 2001When design flaws fell projects, the cost is often exacted in lives as we see in this look at engineering disasters. Why did the Tower of Pisa begin to lean by as much as 17 feet; what caused the first nuclear accident in 1961 in Idaho; what killed three Soyuz 11 cosmonauts aboard the world’s first orbiting space station; how did a winter storm destroy the Air Force’s Texas Tower Radar Station, killing 28; and what errors led to NASA’s loss of the Mars Climate Orbiter and the Mars Polar Lander?
International Airports Ii
Aired on May 14, 2001Tunnels of Vietnam
Aired on Nov 13, 2002A daring band of infantry soldiers uncovers secret enemy arms and intelligence caches.
Modern Marvel:The Colisseum: The Colosseum
Aired on Jun 11, 2001Modern Marvels: Then And Now: Hadrian's Wall
Aired on Jun 23, 2001Modern Marvels:Hardware Stores: Hardware Stores
Aired on Jun 25, 2001More Gadgets
Aired on Jun 27, 2001A salute to the tools and toys that have stood the test of time–from the Zippo lighter to the Palm Pilot, the 21st century’s first great gadget. As we focus on the technology behind familiar gadgets, we see the subtle ways they have changed our lives. Other items include the flashlight, transistor radio, safety razor, and the metronome. We also go behind the scenes at Herbst-Lazar-Bell, a cutting-edge industrial design firm, and Gadget Universe, a fledgling retailer trying to topple the Sharper Image.
Modern Marvels:Saloons: Saloons
Aired on Jul 25, 2001Modern Marvels:: The Spitfire
Aired on Aug 16, 2001Modern Marvels:: Construction Machines
Aired on Aug 17, 2001Cannons
Aired on Aug 21, 2001Cannons have fired balls of iron and atomic bombs, changed the way wars are fought, and now come equipped with smart weapons. Beginning with 13th-century cannons that were designed to penetrate forts of the day, we’ll see how cannons were first cast and later forged, and show how large cannons terrorized civilians and soldiers in WWI and WWII. Moving to the present, we feature the 40-ton self-propelled Crusader that launches 100-pound steel artillery shells more than 33 miles.
Nuclear Subs
Aired on Aug 28, 2001Since the 1950s, these lethal steel sharks have been a cornerstone of U.S. defense policy. The Cold War launched an underwater race for supremacy with the Soviet Union, and the result was an engineering miracle that roams the world’s oceans and provides deterrence to enemies.
West Point
Aired on Sep 11, 2001For nearly 200 years, the U.S. Military Academy® at West Point, New York, has trained students in the art of war. Located 50 miles north of New York City, its 25 buildings overlook the Hudson River on a 16,000-acre government reserve. During the Revolutionary War, West Point stood guard over the river, protecting it with artillery and a 136-ton chain! From humble beginnings, the Academy® grew with the nation, as each war forced changes to keep pace with America’s expanding world responsibilities.
Quarries
Aired on Sep 18, 2001Diamond Mines
Aired on Sep 19, 2001Half a mile below the earth’s surface, men mine for rough diamonds–a pure carbon substance. Brilliant when cut and polished, they are marketed as the most precious gem in the world. From the earliest mines of the 4th century BC to today’s technological wonders in South Africa, we explore the history and technology of the diamond mine.
Modern Marvels:: Secret Life Of The Crash Test Dummy
Aired on Sep 25, 2001Modern Marvels:: The Mig
Aired on Sep 27, 2001Bunkers
Aired on Oct 23, 2001In the constant struggle to hold off ever more potent forms of attack, bunkers function in a variety of forms.
Cemeteries
Aired on Oct 31, 2001More than 2 million people die in the United States each year.
Times Square
Aired on Nov 29, 2001It lies at the heart of one of the world’s greatest cities and ranks among the most popular tourist destinations on the planet. Modern Marvels takes you behind the scenes at Times Square, showing you how this marvel came to be and why it remains an icon to this day.
Glass
Aired on Dec 01, 2001Glass may be our most versatile material. It sheathes skyscrapers, contains liquids, aids vision, allows communication at unimaginable speeds, and yet remains a medium for artistic expression. We see how, when man learned that heating certain rocks and minerals together could produce glass, this remarkably transparent yet strong material began working its way into our culture and everyday life. As we look to its future, we learn that the only limit to what glass may do is our ability to imagine it!