Episode list

For as long as we've had eyes to see and minds to wonder we've marveled at the stars. But it was only on the eve of the 21st Century that a handful of scientists dared to gaze into the gloom between, believing planets like our own Earth could be found there. Since the discovery of the first so-called exoplanet in 1994, the Planet Hunters have transformed the way we see the universe. We now know that every star in the sky has at least one planet. How many of them might host life?

The new space race has begun. After more than 50 years exploring nearby planets, it's time to venture beyond the limits of our Solar System to explore alien worlds orbiting distant suns. But the scale of this adventure is unlike anything humankind has ever attempted before. To meet the challenge, the world's greatest engineers will have to revolutionize propulsion technology, navigation, and artificial intelligence to build an autonomous spacecraft of the future.

Life on Earth is a miracle and an enigma. The great mystery of its origin has beguiled the human mind since we developed the capacity for wonder. But on the eve of the 21st Century that mystery took on a new dimension. The discovery that there are Earth-like worlds outside our solar system confronts scientists with a new question: How many more miracles might be out there hidden among the stars.

Scientists now believe that the conditions for simple life are common in the universe. But what about animals, even including creatures something like ourselves? Will we ever come face to face with another form of intelligence? And if we did, what would it mean for our belief systems? Can we survive long enough to find out?