1 00:00:01,335 --> 00:00:03,602 NARRATOR: They're watching you. 2 00:00:03,737 --> 00:00:07,706 More than 6,000 satellites circle the Earth. 3 00:00:07,808 --> 00:00:09,908 Every day, they uncover new, 4 00:00:09,910 --> 00:00:13,245 mysterious phenomena that defy explanation. 5 00:00:15,016 --> 00:00:16,382 From the skies, 6 00:00:16,417 --> 00:00:19,551 the lost kingdoms of bloodshed and treasure. 7 00:00:19,620 --> 00:00:23,622 It was a place of almost continuous violence 8 00:00:23,724 --> 00:00:25,224 and conflict. 9 00:00:25,359 --> 00:00:29,161 NARRATOR: The strange tale of space ape island. 10 00:00:29,230 --> 00:00:31,730 This is a fitting tribute given they helped us 11 00:00:31,799 --> 00:00:33,298 get to the moon and back. 12 00:00:33,300 --> 00:00:36,001 NARRATOR: And the curse of the conquistadors. 13 00:00:36,937 --> 00:00:39,805 Every person in Mexico City is in danger. 14 00:00:39,807 --> 00:00:43,809 NARRATOR: Baffling phenomena, mysteries from space. 15 00:00:43,811 --> 00:00:45,711 What on Earth are they? 16 00:00:45,713 --> 00:00:48,614 [theme music playing] 17 00:01:04,065 --> 00:01:05,864 North Wales, 18 00:01:05,933 --> 00:01:09,735 a land of barren mountains and sweeping valleys. 19 00:01:11,005 --> 00:01:14,540 Mark Horton is trekking through this ancient landscape, 20 00:01:14,608 --> 00:01:17,943 hooked by a mystery captured from space. 21 00:01:18,078 --> 00:01:20,746 This is a really intriguing 22 00:01:20,848 --> 00:01:24,983 image with all these bizarre formations. 23 00:01:24,985 --> 00:01:27,319 It's impossible to work out. 24 00:01:32,626 --> 00:01:35,961 NARRATOR: The image, captured on July 3rd, 2019, 25 00:01:36,063 --> 00:01:38,530 has revealed a series of strange shapes 26 00:01:38,532 --> 00:01:40,699 on a mountaintop. 27 00:01:40,701 --> 00:01:44,336 These are like giant 3-dimensional leaves 28 00:01:44,405 --> 00:01:47,606 or feathers -- they're really bizarre. 29 00:01:47,608 --> 00:01:49,508 NARDI: It looks like there's sort of giant plumes 30 00:01:49,510 --> 00:01:52,344 of smoke on top of the earth here. 31 00:01:53,747 --> 00:01:55,714 NARRATOR: Yet the strange patterns aren't 32 00:01:55,716 --> 00:01:58,050 the only thing that's drawn Horton here. 33 00:02:00,621 --> 00:02:04,056 What really intrigues me is these 34 00:02:04,125 --> 00:02:07,426 ruins that are located in the middle. 35 00:02:07,528 --> 00:02:09,128 I wonder whether they're 36 00:02:09,230 --> 00:02:12,865 some kind of fortification, 37 00:02:12,933 --> 00:02:15,033 and the blobby bits are 38 00:02:15,069 --> 00:02:17,736 defensive structures surrounding it. 39 00:02:19,406 --> 00:02:21,406 NARRATOR: If these are defensive structures, 40 00:02:21,408 --> 00:02:24,510 Horton speculates they could be relics of some of the most 41 00:02:24,612 --> 00:02:26,645 fearsome warriors in British history. 42 00:02:28,015 --> 00:02:31,617 The reason why this fascinates me is that this is part of 43 00:02:31,752 --> 00:02:33,252 a sort of a landscape 44 00:02:33,353 --> 00:02:38,023 of the lost medieval kingdoms of Wales that 45 00:02:38,025 --> 00:02:40,325 we actually know very little about. 46 00:02:40,327 --> 00:02:42,995 NARRATOR: For long periods of history, 47 00:02:42,997 --> 00:02:45,030 the country we now call Wales 48 00:02:45,032 --> 00:02:47,799 was ruled by several different warring kingdoms. 49 00:02:49,837 --> 00:02:52,938 During this era, they gain a fierce reputation 50 00:02:53,040 --> 00:02:56,308 for resisting all attempts to conquer their lands. 51 00:02:57,745 --> 00:02:59,545 Wales has a rich history of 52 00:02:59,646 --> 00:03:03,615 rebel factions and warriors fighting for independence. 53 00:03:05,319 --> 00:03:08,954 The Welsh repelled invaders for centuries, 54 00:03:09,056 --> 00:03:12,257 forcing everyone who attempted it back over 55 00:03:12,326 --> 00:03:15,127 the mountains, whether it was Romans, 56 00:03:15,129 --> 00:03:17,930 Anglo-Saxons, or the Normans. 57 00:03:17,932 --> 00:03:19,598 And what they did was to use 58 00:03:19,600 --> 00:03:22,401 their knowledge of the mountainous terrain against 59 00:03:22,503 --> 00:03:25,204 far more heavily armed opponents. 60 00:03:25,306 --> 00:03:27,105 This is Guerilla warfare. 61 00:03:28,709 --> 00:03:30,609 NARRATOR: The structure in the image sits in 62 00:03:30,611 --> 00:03:35,614 perhaps the most formidable of these realms, Gwynedd. 63 00:03:35,616 --> 00:03:38,750 In the ninth century, its ruler repeatedly defeats 64 00:03:38,852 --> 00:03:40,752 hordes of invading Vikings 65 00:03:40,821 --> 00:03:44,423 before uniting the three main kingdoms of Wales. 66 00:03:44,491 --> 00:03:46,325 HORTON: In the Middle Ages, 67 00:03:46,327 --> 00:03:51,230 this was a place of almost continuous violence 68 00:03:51,232 --> 00:03:52,731 and conflict, 69 00:03:52,833 --> 00:03:56,201 and I just wonder whether our structure 70 00:03:56,303 --> 00:03:58,303 is part of this story. 71 00:04:00,808 --> 00:04:02,941 NARRATOR: As Horton heads to the image coordinates, 72 00:04:03,043 --> 00:04:05,944 he encounters another possible relic of this kingdom's 73 00:04:06,013 --> 00:04:06,945 bloody history. 74 00:04:08,315 --> 00:04:10,849 Wow, that's amazing! 75 00:04:11,952 --> 00:04:15,721 NARRATOR: This is one of over 600 castles in Wales, 76 00:04:15,856 --> 00:04:19,358 meaning this tiny country has more per square mile than 77 00:04:19,459 --> 00:04:22,728 anywhere else on Earth -- to Horton, 78 00:04:22,830 --> 00:04:24,730 its design suggests it dates from 79 00:04:24,732 --> 00:04:27,833 the final days of Welsh independence. 80 00:04:27,935 --> 00:04:32,537 HORTON: This is a square keep, and these type of castles were 81 00:04:32,639 --> 00:04:36,642 only being built in the late 12th and early 13th centuries. 82 00:04:38,312 --> 00:04:41,747 NARRATOR: In 1282, King Edward I of England, 83 00:04:41,848 --> 00:04:46,051 enraged by the continual Welsh resistance, vows to finally 84 00:04:46,153 --> 00:04:47,352 conquer its kingdoms. 85 00:04:49,523 --> 00:04:51,123 After storming this castle, 86 00:04:51,125 --> 00:04:54,059 his troops capture the last king of Gwynedd, 87 00:04:54,127 --> 00:04:55,727 an event which marks the beginning of 88 00:04:55,729 --> 00:04:59,631 more than 700 years of English rule here. 89 00:04:59,633 --> 00:05:02,501 He was taken from here, and he was hanged, 90 00:05:02,503 --> 00:05:05,137 drawn, and quartered, 91 00:05:05,238 --> 00:05:08,607 a grisly fate to teach the rebellious 92 00:05:08,709 --> 00:05:11,310 Welshmen a horrible lesson. 93 00:05:12,813 --> 00:05:17,349 Maybe this castle and the structures I can see 94 00:05:17,418 --> 00:05:22,054 on the satellite image are the last strongholds 95 00:05:22,155 --> 00:05:23,355 of the Kingdom of Gwynedd. 96 00:05:27,094 --> 00:05:29,127 NARDI: So at the time this castle was built, 97 00:05:29,262 --> 00:05:32,864 it was common to have smaller outposts. 98 00:05:32,966 --> 00:05:34,333 And it's possible that this is 99 00:05:34,434 --> 00:05:36,335 what we see in our satellite image. 100 00:05:38,205 --> 00:05:39,838 NARRATOR: Horton continues north. 101 00:05:42,309 --> 00:05:45,944 But as he approaches the ruins, the mystery deepens. 102 00:05:47,214 --> 00:05:51,216 This must be the buildings on the image. 103 00:05:52,519 --> 00:05:54,052 They're really odd. 104 00:05:55,689 --> 00:05:58,957 Look, it's not been mortared, and that's 105 00:05:59,026 --> 00:06:02,527 not what you expect in the medieval period. 106 00:06:02,629 --> 00:06:04,730 This is not medieval. 107 00:06:04,732 --> 00:06:07,399 Actually, it's probably a lot more recent. 108 00:06:08,402 --> 00:06:10,335 NARRATOR: The ruins have thick walls 109 00:06:10,404 --> 00:06:13,205 and occupy an elevated strategic position. 110 00:06:14,308 --> 00:06:19,344 Yet Horton doubts they once served a military function. 111 00:06:19,446 --> 00:06:22,214 HORTON: What really puzzles me 112 00:06:22,316 --> 00:06:26,118 is why anybody would construct something so large 113 00:06:26,253 --> 00:06:30,055 and so substantial up here in this remote mountainside. 114 00:06:32,059 --> 00:06:34,860 NARRATOR: Horton explores the wider area for clues. 115 00:06:36,697 --> 00:06:39,464 The formations that I can see on the image 116 00:06:39,566 --> 00:06:43,335 that's the buildings must be these mountainous heaps 117 00:06:43,437 --> 00:06:45,337 of rock. 118 00:06:45,405 --> 00:06:48,240 It's just extraordinary. 119 00:06:50,110 --> 00:06:53,345 NARRATOR: The strange gray shapes in the image are millions 120 00:06:53,447 --> 00:06:57,783 of tons of carved rock in piles up to 60 feet deep, 121 00:06:58,919 --> 00:07:03,422 evidence Horton believes of many years of human toil. 122 00:07:03,424 --> 00:07:08,760 This type of rock is a typical byproduct of mining operation. 123 00:07:10,264 --> 00:07:12,764 But what were they mining so far 124 00:07:12,833 --> 00:07:14,833 up here in the Welsh mountains? 125 00:07:16,503 --> 00:07:19,504 NARRATOR: The Welsh mountains are known to contain silver, 126 00:07:19,639 --> 00:07:22,607 tin, and gold, riches that lured 127 00:07:22,709 --> 00:07:24,409 invaders here in ancient times. 128 00:07:25,946 --> 00:07:28,413 But Horton believes this mine is different. 129 00:07:30,117 --> 00:07:35,420 Look, I can see a tramway going across this top flat plane, 130 00:07:36,523 --> 00:07:39,758 and that tells me that this is an industrial landscape. 131 00:07:44,531 --> 00:07:47,332 NARRATOR: Several faint tracks line the site, 132 00:07:47,401 --> 00:07:52,838 and they all converge at one place. 133 00:07:53,907 --> 00:07:57,042 This huge chasm. 134 00:08:03,250 --> 00:08:07,719 It just goes on endlessly into the center of the Earth. 135 00:08:12,559 --> 00:08:16,061 NARRATOR: Coming up, death in the darkness. 136 00:08:16,129 --> 00:08:17,762 It must have been terrifying for 137 00:08:17,831 --> 00:08:20,432 children to be down here, as well. 138 00:08:20,501 --> 00:08:23,201 NARRATOR: And the man who took on the mega storm. 139 00:08:23,303 --> 00:08:25,036 Seems like a crazy idea, 140 00:08:25,138 --> 00:08:27,005 but he managed to pull it off. 141 00:08:35,916 --> 00:08:38,149 NARRATOR: Lured by strange patterns on a mountaintop 142 00:08:38,218 --> 00:08:40,218 in Wales, Mark Horton 143 00:08:40,220 --> 00:08:42,554 has discovered monumental ruins surrounded 144 00:08:42,656 --> 00:08:45,223 by millions of tons of hand-cut rock. 145 00:08:46,460 --> 00:08:49,461 The question is, what were they actually 146 00:08:49,563 --> 00:08:52,631 mining high up in the Welsh mountains? 147 00:08:54,034 --> 00:08:56,301 NARRATOR: A hidden tunnel could offer clues. 148 00:08:56,303 --> 00:08:58,136 Wow. 149 00:08:59,606 --> 00:09:02,607 It just seems to go on for -- forever 150 00:09:02,609 --> 00:09:07,312 and ever into the very bowels of the earth. 151 00:09:07,414 --> 00:09:11,616 NARRATOR: Horton follows the tunnel for nearly a mile, 152 00:09:11,751 --> 00:09:13,518 descending hundreds of feet. 153 00:09:16,957 --> 00:09:20,425 This place is an incredible time capsule. 154 00:09:24,331 --> 00:09:27,699 The miners must just have 155 00:09:27,701 --> 00:09:32,804 downed tools and abandoned all their machinery on the ground. 156 00:09:35,342 --> 00:09:37,242 NARRATOR: At the end of one tunnel is 157 00:09:37,344 --> 00:09:40,745 a chamber with sheer walls over 100 feet high. 158 00:09:41,915 --> 00:09:46,318 I think I can now understand what's coming out of here. 159 00:09:46,320 --> 00:09:50,555 What they're looking for is this material here. 160 00:09:50,624 --> 00:09:53,425 Well, I can see that it's 161 00:09:53,427 --> 00:09:56,962 a fine deposit. 162 00:09:57,064 --> 00:09:58,630 This is slate. 163 00:10:00,300 --> 00:10:03,401 NARRATOR: Geological records reveal that this corner of Wales 164 00:10:03,403 --> 00:10:07,005 contains the highest quality slate reserves in the world. 165 00:10:08,208 --> 00:10:10,542 And it's been plundered by warriors 166 00:10:10,611 --> 00:10:12,611 and wealthy landowners for millennia. 167 00:10:12,613 --> 00:10:15,647 Slate was a vital construction material 168 00:10:15,682 --> 00:10:17,449 throughout most of building history. 169 00:10:18,518 --> 00:10:21,820 It's used for Roman barracks as they conquered Europe 2,000 170 00:10:21,955 --> 00:10:25,423 years ago, medieval castles for kings and noblemen, 171 00:10:25,425 --> 00:10:29,227 vast churches, cathedrals, were kept dry 172 00:10:29,329 --> 00:10:30,962 by roofs made from slate. 173 00:10:32,332 --> 00:10:35,033 NARRATOR: Welsh slate mining remains small-scale 174 00:10:35,135 --> 00:10:36,501 until the 18th century, 175 00:10:36,503 --> 00:10:40,038 when a seismic event begins to reshape the mountain into 176 00:10:40,107 --> 00:10:42,507 the strange patterns seen from space. 177 00:10:44,344 --> 00:10:46,311 The onset of the Industrial Revolution 178 00:10:46,313 --> 00:10:48,947 catapults Britain into the modern age. 179 00:10:49,015 --> 00:10:52,017 This was the dawn of mechanized manufacturing, 180 00:10:52,019 --> 00:10:56,054 which, of course, transformed societies all over the world on 181 00:10:56,123 --> 00:10:58,623 a huge scale. 182 00:10:58,625 --> 00:11:00,759 NARRATOR: The Industrial Revolution doesn't just 183 00:11:00,827 --> 00:11:02,961 transform world economies, 184 00:11:03,063 --> 00:11:06,865 but also where we build our homes and where we work. 185 00:11:06,933 --> 00:11:11,202 When it begins, only 15 percent of people live in towns. 186 00:11:11,204 --> 00:11:15,807 Yet by 1900, this figure has left to 85 percent. 187 00:11:15,809 --> 00:11:19,144 This means the slate industry in Wales explodes. 188 00:11:19,212 --> 00:11:21,613 [explosion blasts] 189 00:11:21,715 --> 00:11:24,349 WALTERS: What we start to see with the Industrial Revolution 190 00:11:24,418 --> 00:11:26,251 are all these quiet, rural areas 191 00:11:26,319 --> 00:11:30,555 undergoing really rapid transformations as quarries are 192 00:11:30,657 --> 00:11:35,360 quickly developed to feed the revolution's need for slate. 193 00:11:35,462 --> 00:11:39,164 AUERBACH: So this mine, which once supplied the local region, 194 00:11:39,232 --> 00:11:44,202 now was supplying this really important material to the whole 195 00:11:44,304 --> 00:11:45,937 length of the British empire. 196 00:11:49,309 --> 00:11:51,342 NARRATOR: By the late 19th century, 197 00:11:51,411 --> 00:11:53,812 there are 23 slate mines around the site 198 00:11:53,814 --> 00:11:55,046 in the image alone, 199 00:11:55,148 --> 00:11:59,017 connected by 25 miles of underground tunnels. 200 00:12:00,320 --> 00:12:03,254 The industry employs 17,000 people, 201 00:12:03,356 --> 00:12:06,758 transforming a land of farmers into one of machines 202 00:12:06,826 --> 00:12:08,927 and manufacturing. 203 00:12:08,929 --> 00:12:11,629 AUERBACH: The growth of the slate industry clearly 204 00:12:11,631 --> 00:12:13,832 is of huge economic benefit to the region, 205 00:12:13,933 --> 00:12:17,135 but it comes at a cost, as well. 206 00:12:17,237 --> 00:12:20,438 NARRATOR: As the industry grows, mine owners 207 00:12:20,507 --> 00:12:22,507 ruthlessly exploit their workers, 208 00:12:22,609 --> 00:12:27,846 paying them as little as $120 a week in today's money. 209 00:12:27,948 --> 00:12:30,715 Mine owners also forced the workers to pay 210 00:12:30,717 --> 00:12:33,551 for their own housing, candles, and tools... 211 00:12:35,088 --> 00:12:37,255 tools which often kill them. 212 00:12:38,525 --> 00:12:41,359 So this is how they clearly extracted the rock. 213 00:12:41,428 --> 00:12:44,429 They must have drilled down 214 00:12:44,531 --> 00:12:48,700 deep into the rock and packed it with gunpowder 215 00:12:48,702 --> 00:12:51,302 that then would have been exploded. 216 00:12:51,304 --> 00:12:52,804 [explosion blasts] 217 00:12:52,806 --> 00:12:55,039 NARRATOR: Explosives and lack of safety procedures 218 00:12:55,175 --> 00:12:57,108 mean that in this mine alone, 219 00:12:57,110 --> 00:13:00,211 some 20 people lose their lives each year. 220 00:13:00,213 --> 00:13:06,117 Another hazard is slate dust, which you're constantly 221 00:13:06,252 --> 00:13:08,820 surrounded by and breathing in, 222 00:13:08,822 --> 00:13:12,056 and this can cause silicosis, which, 223 00:13:12,125 --> 00:13:16,528 after a fashion has your lungs turning to stone on the inside. 224 00:13:17,664 --> 00:13:21,499 WALTERS: The life expectancy of these miners is shocking. 225 00:13:21,601 --> 00:13:26,905 An average worker would have done well to reach just 45. 226 00:13:28,408 --> 00:13:31,442 NARRATOR: It's not just grown men who die here. 227 00:13:31,511 --> 00:13:33,745 As the Industrial Revolution accelerates, 228 00:13:33,847 --> 00:13:35,013 more and more children 229 00:13:35,015 --> 00:13:37,849 are forced underground to work at the rock face. 230 00:13:39,319 --> 00:13:41,352 WALTERS: It's really hard to imagine the conditions of 231 00:13:41,454 --> 00:13:42,486 these children. 232 00:13:42,588 --> 00:13:45,156 They would hardly see daylight, and actually, 233 00:13:45,225 --> 00:13:48,760 often, their eyesight was permanently damaged. 234 00:13:48,828 --> 00:13:50,762 NARRATOR: By the early 19th century. 235 00:13:50,831 --> 00:13:54,432 child labor accounts for up to 50 percent of the workforce 236 00:13:54,534 --> 00:13:55,633 in some mines. 237 00:13:56,636 --> 00:13:59,204 Children were a vital part of this operation. 238 00:13:59,306 --> 00:14:01,039 They would accompany their fathers and uncles 239 00:14:01,107 --> 00:14:04,008 to work, extracting rubble from the mine. 240 00:14:04,010 --> 00:14:06,611 WALTERS: There are reports of children as young as seven 241 00:14:06,613 --> 00:14:09,814 operating carts, with over two tons of 242 00:14:09,916 --> 00:14:11,716 loose slate on them. 243 00:14:13,687 --> 00:14:15,053 NARRATOR: At their peak, 244 00:14:15,055 --> 00:14:18,423 the Welsh mines are churning out up to half a million tons 245 00:14:18,425 --> 00:14:20,625 of slate a year. 246 00:14:20,627 --> 00:14:22,627 But in the mid 19th century, 247 00:14:22,729 --> 00:14:25,430 slate mining in North America starts to boom. 248 00:14:26,433 --> 00:14:29,934 A lot of Welsh slate workers emigrated to the U.S., 249 00:14:30,036 --> 00:14:31,936 where they could take the same jobs, but at much 250 00:14:32,071 --> 00:14:35,807 higher positions, because now they were viewed as experts. 251 00:14:35,809 --> 00:14:39,244 WALTERS: Some of them become really very wealthy as a result, 252 00:14:39,312 --> 00:14:40,645 and you could kind of say they're 253 00:14:40,747 --> 00:14:43,748 real-life examples of the American dream. 254 00:14:46,086 --> 00:14:48,152 NARRATOR: During the early 20th century, 255 00:14:48,221 --> 00:14:50,021 cheaper products like concrete 256 00:14:50,023 --> 00:14:53,458 finally sound the death knell for the slate industry in Wales. 257 00:14:54,694 --> 00:14:58,129 Mines close, quarries fall silent. 258 00:15:00,033 --> 00:15:03,301 Yet even today, evidence of their incredible impact on 259 00:15:03,303 --> 00:15:05,703 the lives and deaths of people here 260 00:15:05,838 --> 00:15:07,805 is still visible from space. 261 00:15:09,142 --> 00:15:13,511 HORTON: This place tells the story of the heroism 262 00:15:13,613 --> 00:15:15,513 of the men that worked here, 263 00:15:15,615 --> 00:15:19,417 creating this extraordinary landscape. 264 00:15:25,058 --> 00:15:27,792 NARRATOR: Coming up -- pests in space. 265 00:15:27,928 --> 00:15:29,427 This would have been a genuinely 266 00:15:29,529 --> 00:15:31,296 terrifying experience. 267 00:15:31,298 --> 00:15:33,331 NARRATOR: And nature's revenge. 268 00:15:33,466 --> 00:15:35,500 Things did not go as planned. 269 00:15:45,312 --> 00:15:47,045 NARRATOR: December 2019. 270 00:15:48,014 --> 00:15:51,015 An aerial survey of a featureless landscape in 271 00:15:51,017 --> 00:15:54,118 Florida spots something out of place. 272 00:15:55,322 --> 00:15:57,422 There's this zigzagging line that cuts 273 00:15:57,424 --> 00:16:00,258 across the green landscape and divides it. 274 00:16:00,327 --> 00:16:04,429 WALTERS: What this appears to be is an entire series of mounds, 275 00:16:04,431 --> 00:16:06,798 and all around these mounds are these kind of 276 00:16:06,800 --> 00:16:08,132 dark channels. 277 00:16:09,703 --> 00:16:12,303 It looks like the dark stuff's probably water. 278 00:16:12,438 --> 00:16:14,605 So we've got 12 islands that are each 279 00:16:14,707 --> 00:16:17,308 isolated from each other by these channels. 280 00:16:17,410 --> 00:16:21,713 NARRATOR: Analysts speculate the water channels could serve 281 00:16:21,815 --> 00:16:23,114 a defensive purpose. 282 00:16:23,116 --> 00:16:26,517 WALTERS: If you look at the way the canals are positioned, 283 00:16:26,619 --> 00:16:29,821 they surround the mounds almost like they're barriers. 284 00:16:29,823 --> 00:16:33,257 KAYS: One possibility is that each of these islands 285 00:16:33,359 --> 00:16:35,626 is a separate little enclosure for animals. 286 00:16:35,695 --> 00:16:38,129 There are some species that are not very 287 00:16:38,231 --> 00:16:41,799 good swimmers, and one of those is chimpanzees. 288 00:16:41,801 --> 00:16:44,102 NARRATOR: Further research confirms the site 289 00:16:44,104 --> 00:16:46,037 is a primate sanctuary, 290 00:16:46,106 --> 00:16:49,207 but it's not home to your average apes. 291 00:16:49,209 --> 00:16:51,809 This place was set up to protect chimpanzees 292 00:16:51,811 --> 00:16:55,646 who played a pivotal role in the history of humankind. 293 00:16:55,715 --> 00:16:59,550 They helped us get to space. 294 00:17:02,422 --> 00:17:04,956 NARRATOR: The epic story of these apes starts 295 00:17:05,025 --> 00:17:06,958 in the aftermath of World War II. 296 00:17:07,994 --> 00:17:12,130 Less than five decades after humankind's first flight, 297 00:17:12,231 --> 00:17:15,933 the U.S. sets its sights on exploring outer space. 298 00:17:16,002 --> 00:17:19,804 What we've got to remember is that space was a big unknown, 299 00:17:19,806 --> 00:17:22,940 a very big unknown, and a few decades earlier, 300 00:17:23,043 --> 00:17:26,110 even the idea would have been deemed insane. 301 00:17:29,215 --> 00:17:31,349 NARRATOR: Exploring space isn't just 302 00:17:31,451 --> 00:17:34,819 an extraordinary technical and engineering challenge. 303 00:17:34,821 --> 00:17:36,821 It's also a biological one. 304 00:17:38,024 --> 00:17:40,425 No one knows if living organisms can 305 00:17:40,527 --> 00:17:44,128 survive radiation exposure at such high altitudes. 306 00:17:45,532 --> 00:17:48,032 To ensure the safety of their crews, 307 00:17:48,134 --> 00:17:51,502 scientists turned to a pest -- fruit flies. 308 00:17:51,504 --> 00:17:53,738 They were ideal, because it doesn't take 309 00:17:53,840 --> 00:17:55,206 much fuel to get them up there. 310 00:17:55,208 --> 00:17:57,308 But also, fruit flies are 311 00:17:57,310 --> 00:17:59,243 actually a model organism for genetics. 312 00:17:59,345 --> 00:18:00,611 So they're able to see if 313 00:18:00,613 --> 00:18:02,947 the radiation was having harmful effects on their genes. 314 00:18:04,050 --> 00:18:07,151 NARRATOR: On February 20th, 1947, 315 00:18:07,220 --> 00:18:09,420 engineers pack fruit flies 316 00:18:09,422 --> 00:18:11,656 into a captured Nazi V-2 rocket 317 00:18:13,226 --> 00:18:17,128 and blast them to an altitude of 360,000 feet. 318 00:18:17,130 --> 00:18:22,233 The flies survived, and the genes weren't scrambled. 319 00:18:22,302 --> 00:18:26,404 So the mission continued to get humans into space. 320 00:18:26,506 --> 00:18:29,040 NARRATOR: Yet there are other questions about the effects 321 00:18:29,109 --> 00:18:31,909 of space flight that the flies cannot answer. 322 00:18:31,911 --> 00:18:34,545 KAYS: There was real concern that the change in 323 00:18:34,614 --> 00:18:37,115 the acceleration was gonna just screw up the human 324 00:18:37,250 --> 00:18:38,516 body somehow. 325 00:18:38,618 --> 00:18:40,518 WALTERS: Scientists were concerned that astronauts 326 00:18:40,620 --> 00:18:44,055 might actually suffocate on the contents of their own stomachs 327 00:18:44,157 --> 00:18:46,724 if it all went kind of floating up. 328 00:18:46,826 --> 00:18:51,629 NARRATOR: The following year, a rhesus monkey called Albert 329 00:18:51,731 --> 00:18:53,898 becomes the first mammal to be launched 330 00:18:53,900 --> 00:18:55,633 into the upper atmosphere. 331 00:18:59,105 --> 00:19:01,305 KAYS: Poor Albert dies of suffocation 332 00:19:01,407 --> 00:19:05,209 before reaching space, and so they had to try again. 333 00:19:05,211 --> 00:19:07,945 They actually had a series of Alberts, 334 00:19:08,080 --> 00:19:09,514 and none of them made it. 335 00:19:13,319 --> 00:19:16,120 NARRATOR: The first simians to survive space flight 336 00:19:16,122 --> 00:19:18,523 are Miss Baker and Miss Able, 337 00:19:18,625 --> 00:19:20,358 who, in 1959, 338 00:19:20,459 --> 00:19:22,760 reach an altitude of 300 miles. 339 00:19:25,565 --> 00:19:29,700 Their success pushes NASA's animal test program up a gear. 340 00:19:29,835 --> 00:19:32,937 And so the next step was to go for a chimpanzee. 341 00:19:33,039 --> 00:19:36,941 Chimpanzees could be trained, so you could see if there was 342 00:19:37,043 --> 00:19:38,809 something crazy happening in space 343 00:19:38,912 --> 00:19:42,813 that was gonna affect our cognition or not. 344 00:19:42,815 --> 00:19:45,616 NARRATOR: As part of its Mercury program, 345 00:19:45,618 --> 00:19:48,452 NASA acquires 40 chimpanzees, 346 00:19:48,521 --> 00:19:51,622 including a three-year-old male named Ham. 347 00:19:51,724 --> 00:19:55,826 WALTERS: The researchers trained Ham through a mixture of 348 00:19:55,929 --> 00:19:58,763 giving him mild electric shocks when he got things wrong, 349 00:19:58,831 --> 00:20:00,464 and when he got things right, 350 00:20:00,533 --> 00:20:02,800 lucky Ham got banana pellets. 351 00:20:02,802 --> 00:20:04,535 So, by using this process, 352 00:20:04,637 --> 00:20:07,905 what they taught Ham to do was to pull a series of levers when 353 00:20:07,907 --> 00:20:10,741 prompted by a series of blinking lights. 354 00:20:12,712 --> 00:20:15,413 NARRATOR: As training progresses, the 40 chimps 355 00:20:15,515 --> 00:20:18,349 are whittled down to six possible candidates. 356 00:20:18,418 --> 00:20:24,222 In January 1961, Ham is selected to become the first 357 00:20:24,324 --> 00:20:26,224 great ape astronaut. 358 00:20:26,226 --> 00:20:30,127 Poor little Ham is strapped into his capsule on a Redstone 359 00:20:30,230 --> 00:20:33,664 rocket, and the entire country holds its breath. 360 00:20:33,733 --> 00:20:38,202 You know, is Ham gonna make it to space and back alive? 361 00:20:38,304 --> 00:20:40,404 [indistinct talking] 362 00:20:42,208 --> 00:20:44,208 NARRATOR: On January 31st, Ham launches, 363 00:20:44,310 --> 00:20:47,945 reaching speeds of 5,800 miles per hour. 364 00:20:48,047 --> 00:20:50,948 During the mission, 365 00:20:51,050 --> 00:20:54,452 he experiences over 14 Gs of acceleration 366 00:20:54,553 --> 00:20:56,621 and six minutes of weightlessness 367 00:20:56,623 --> 00:20:58,723 While he was up in space, 368 00:20:58,858 --> 00:21:01,225 he performed his lever pulling job 369 00:21:01,327 --> 00:21:03,527 only a fraction of a second slower 370 00:21:03,529 --> 00:21:05,730 than he had done so on Earth. 371 00:21:05,732 --> 00:21:08,299 KAYS: Ham returned almost completely unharmed. 372 00:21:08,401 --> 00:21:09,700 He had a bit of a bruised nose, 373 00:21:09,702 --> 00:21:13,237 but he showed that hominids could travel into space 374 00:21:13,306 --> 00:21:16,007 and come back safely. 375 00:21:16,009 --> 00:21:18,676 NARRATOR: Just four months after Ham's mission, 376 00:21:18,678 --> 00:21:21,946 Alan Shepard becomes the first American human 377 00:21:22,048 --> 00:21:23,547 to travel into space. 378 00:21:23,649 --> 00:21:27,551 Shepard's flight would not have been possible 379 00:21:27,653 --> 00:21:30,254 without this special astro chimp. 380 00:21:33,559 --> 00:21:37,128 NARRATOR: Two years later, Ham is retired 381 00:21:37,230 --> 00:21:39,463 to the National Zoo in Washington. 382 00:21:39,565 --> 00:21:43,034 But NASA's other space chimps are leased 383 00:21:43,135 --> 00:21:44,935 to a biological research company. 384 00:21:45,038 --> 00:21:47,538 A. MORGAN: Even though the goal 385 00:21:47,640 --> 00:21:48,906 was to prevent the loss of human life, 386 00:21:48,908 --> 00:21:51,809 chimps are highly intelligent creatures. 387 00:21:51,911 --> 00:21:52,976 This would have been 388 00:21:53,078 --> 00:21:55,513 a genuinely terrifying experience for anybody. 389 00:21:56,949 --> 00:22:00,718 NARRATOR: In 1997, a charity successfully files a lawsuit 390 00:22:00,720 --> 00:22:04,055 demanding the release of the chimps, and the forgotten 391 00:22:04,123 --> 00:22:08,025 pioneers of space flight are finally paid a small part of 392 00:22:08,027 --> 00:22:09,560 the huge debt they are owed. 393 00:22:09,629 --> 00:22:13,064 All the chimps were moved to an island sanctuary where 394 00:22:13,165 --> 00:22:15,399 they could spend the remainder of their lives in 395 00:22:15,401 --> 00:22:17,101 peaceful retirement. 396 00:22:17,203 --> 00:22:20,604 And that's what the mounds in this image are. 397 00:22:20,606 --> 00:22:24,608 This little island refuge is a fitting tribute, given 398 00:22:24,711 --> 00:22:27,611 they helped us get to the moon and back. 399 00:22:31,451 --> 00:22:34,218 NARRATOR: Coming up, code of the Aztecs. 400 00:22:34,320 --> 00:22:37,355 Looks like this humongous, 401 00:22:37,456 --> 00:22:40,524 spiraling swirl across the landscape. 402 00:22:40,626 --> 00:22:43,728 NARRATOR: And inside the mystery mega storm. 403 00:22:43,730 --> 00:22:45,730 They are some of the most heroic people 404 00:22:45,832 --> 00:22:47,531 that I have ever met in my life. 405 00:22:56,409 --> 00:22:59,710 NARRATOR: February 2019. 406 00:22:59,812 --> 00:23:02,747 Satellites scanning Mexico City 407 00:23:02,815 --> 00:23:06,417 spot something strange among the densely packed buildings. 408 00:23:07,954 --> 00:23:11,655 This aerial photograph is so bizarre. 409 00:23:11,757 --> 00:23:14,024 It looks like this humongous, 410 00:23:14,026 --> 00:23:17,161 spiraling swirl across the landscape. 411 00:23:18,498 --> 00:23:20,731 It's a very geometric shape, 412 00:23:20,733 --> 00:23:23,634 almost reminds you of the cephalopod nautilus 413 00:23:23,703 --> 00:23:25,536 with that unique spiral. 414 00:23:25,638 --> 00:23:29,240 NARRATOR: The mystery crumbling structure measures 415 00:23:29,308 --> 00:23:31,709 almost two miles in diameter. 416 00:23:31,811 --> 00:23:36,247 BELLINGER: Buildings seem to kind of accommodate 417 00:23:36,348 --> 00:23:38,416 the curve of this structure. 418 00:23:38,518 --> 00:23:43,020 Whatever this is seems to predate this densely populated 419 00:23:43,022 --> 00:23:44,522 city all around it. 420 00:23:47,293 --> 00:23:50,060 NARRATOR: Local records confirm that the strange spiral 421 00:23:50,129 --> 00:23:52,530 does have its roots in the distant past, 422 00:23:54,700 --> 00:23:58,135 and it's a legacy of a series of catastrophic attempts 423 00:23:58,237 --> 00:24:01,238 to play God with the lives of people who live here. 424 00:24:02,408 --> 00:24:05,309 KOUROUNIS: The history of Mexico City has been shaped by 425 00:24:05,311 --> 00:24:07,144 different cultures trying to control 426 00:24:07,213 --> 00:24:08,712 the landscape around it. 427 00:24:08,815 --> 00:24:12,616 And even in modern times, we're still trying to get it right. 428 00:24:15,421 --> 00:24:19,523 NARRATOR: The structure has its origins in February 1519, 429 00:24:19,625 --> 00:24:22,626 when conquistador Hernan Cortes arrives 430 00:24:22,728 --> 00:24:24,361 on the eastern coast of Mexico. 431 00:24:26,833 --> 00:24:29,934 Over the following months, his army moves inland, 432 00:24:30,002 --> 00:24:33,337 slaughtering its way through the 80,000-square-mile 433 00:24:33,439 --> 00:24:35,606 Aztec Empire. 434 00:24:35,741 --> 00:24:40,344 HUNT: The Aztecs outnumbered the Spanish conquistadors 435 00:24:40,413 --> 00:24:42,646 by thousands to one, 436 00:24:42,715 --> 00:24:45,716 and yet, the Spanish had gunpowder. 437 00:24:45,818 --> 00:24:47,718 [gunshot explodes] 438 00:24:47,720 --> 00:24:51,522 The Aztecs fought with blades that were stone. 439 00:24:53,626 --> 00:24:55,960 NARRATOR: In November 1519, 440 00:24:56,062 --> 00:24:59,430 Cortes reaches what is now Mexico City 441 00:24:59,432 --> 00:25:01,198 and discovers the extraordinary 442 00:25:01,200 --> 00:25:04,301 aquatic Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan. 443 00:25:06,105 --> 00:25:08,506 Prior to the Spanish invasion, 444 00:25:08,508 --> 00:25:10,608 this area would have been completely underwater 445 00:25:10,610 --> 00:25:14,044 and absolutely unrecognizable to what we see today. 446 00:25:14,113 --> 00:25:18,816 Tenochtitlan was built directly over Lake Texcoco in 447 00:25:18,818 --> 00:25:22,419 an ingenious set of natural and artificial islands 448 00:25:22,522 --> 00:25:24,054 joined by causeways. 449 00:25:26,425 --> 00:25:29,460 NARRATOR: Within a year, the conquistadors have razed 450 00:25:29,529 --> 00:25:32,663 Tenochtitlan to the ground, and in its place, 451 00:25:32,732 --> 00:25:35,299 begin constructing their own capital, 452 00:25:35,401 --> 00:25:37,801 a city that will one day cover 453 00:25:37,803 --> 00:25:41,405 the entire 2,000-square-mile lake basin. 454 00:25:43,209 --> 00:25:44,808 OKEREKE: The Spanish wanted to make 455 00:25:44,810 --> 00:25:46,443 Mexico City their crown jewel. 456 00:25:46,479 --> 00:25:50,147 So they set out a plan to drain the entire Lake Texcoco, 457 00:25:50,215 --> 00:25:52,616 which was an incredibly ambitious idea. 458 00:25:55,187 --> 00:25:57,621 NARRATOR: The Spanish call this mega project 459 00:25:57,723 --> 00:26:02,059 El Gran Desague, or the Great Drain. 460 00:26:02,094 --> 00:26:04,628 OKEREKE: An incredible engineering plan is put forth, 461 00:26:04,630 --> 00:26:07,698 including changing the course of the rivers that feed Texcoco, 462 00:26:07,700 --> 00:26:09,099 and even constructing tunnels 463 00:26:09,101 --> 00:26:10,701 through the balance to drain the water. 464 00:26:10,803 --> 00:26:14,805 NARRATOR: Over several centuries, the lake recedes, 465 00:26:14,907 --> 00:26:18,242 and Mexico City begins to rise from the lake bed. 466 00:26:18,344 --> 00:26:21,645 By 1900, half a million people 467 00:26:21,714 --> 00:26:25,049 live on land that was once 500 feet underwater. 468 00:26:25,150 --> 00:26:28,919 OKEREKE: Draining a lake of this size is no easy task, 469 00:26:28,921 --> 00:26:30,754 and things did not go as planned. 470 00:26:33,826 --> 00:26:36,827 NARRATOR: As the metropolis grows, torrential rains 471 00:26:36,829 --> 00:26:39,630 repeatedly refill parts of the ancient lake, 472 00:26:39,732 --> 00:26:43,534 flooding entire neighborhoods for five years at a time. 473 00:26:45,538 --> 00:26:47,304 Engineers attempt all kinds of different 474 00:26:47,406 --> 00:26:50,007 methods to drain the water away. 475 00:26:50,009 --> 00:26:52,042 OKEREKE: All the while, the city was getting flooded 476 00:26:52,111 --> 00:26:53,510 over and over again. 477 00:26:54,847 --> 00:26:57,348 NARRATOR: By 2020, Mexico City has 478 00:26:57,449 --> 00:27:00,217 a population of more than 21 million people. 479 00:27:01,954 --> 00:27:06,056 And the ghost of Lake Texcoco returns to haunt them. 480 00:27:06,158 --> 00:27:08,626 The Spanish were successful in draining the water. 481 00:27:08,728 --> 00:27:11,729 However, given that Mexico City sits at the bottom of 482 00:27:11,831 --> 00:27:15,232 a basin, water is going to be an ongoing problem. 483 00:27:15,334 --> 00:27:17,301 KOUROUNIS: When the rains come, particularly during 484 00:27:17,403 --> 00:27:19,503 monsoon season at the end of summer, 485 00:27:19,505 --> 00:27:22,239 all that water goes to the lowest point, 486 00:27:22,308 --> 00:27:25,009 which happens to be the streets of Mexico City at 487 00:27:25,011 --> 00:27:26,543 the bottom of the old lake bed. 488 00:27:27,713 --> 00:27:30,648 NARRATOR: A massive 30 inches of rain 489 00:27:30,716 --> 00:27:32,249 falls on the city every year. 490 00:27:34,053 --> 00:27:37,154 These catastrophic deluges caused billions of dollars 491 00:27:37,256 --> 00:27:40,057 worth of damage and kill thousands of people. 492 00:27:42,128 --> 00:27:46,063 The Valley of Mexico has no natural water outlet. 493 00:27:46,165 --> 00:27:49,333 All the water running off those mountains drains down 494 00:27:49,402 --> 00:27:50,834 to this valley. 495 00:27:50,936 --> 00:27:53,237 Floods are incredibly costly, 496 00:27:53,305 --> 00:27:55,939 resulting in landslides, and they can even bring toxic 497 00:27:56,041 --> 00:27:57,908 sewage into the streets. 498 00:27:57,910 --> 00:28:01,578 Every person in Mexico City is in danger. 499 00:28:01,580 --> 00:28:04,314 NARRATOR: To save lives, authorities have converted 500 00:28:04,417 --> 00:28:06,050 a salt evaporation pond 501 00:28:06,085 --> 00:28:11,055 on the lake bed into a giant flood defense system. 502 00:28:11,156 --> 00:28:13,357 KOUROUNIS: Its size, over two miles wide, 503 00:28:13,426 --> 00:28:15,626 will allow it to act like a giant reservoir, 504 00:28:15,628 --> 00:28:18,862 holding water that would otherwise end up in the streets. 505 00:28:18,964 --> 00:28:21,465 OKEREKE: The spiral is fitted with these huge pumps 506 00:28:21,533 --> 00:28:23,100 that push the water away from the city 507 00:28:23,202 --> 00:28:25,035 when in crisis. 508 00:28:25,137 --> 00:28:26,837 NARRATOR: The site in the image is 509 00:28:26,939 --> 00:28:30,507 the last line of defense against an unstoppable force 510 00:28:31,610 --> 00:28:34,311 and a stark reminder of seven centuries 511 00:28:34,380 --> 00:28:38,449 of misguided attempts to manipulate Mother Nature. 512 00:28:38,517 --> 00:28:42,386 It's kind of remarkable that, 700 years after the Aztecs 513 00:28:42,388 --> 00:28:44,221 successfully managed 514 00:28:44,223 --> 00:28:48,325 water in this region, that modern engineers are trying to 515 00:28:48,327 --> 00:28:50,127 match their success. 516 00:28:55,634 --> 00:28:59,503 NARRATOR: Coming up, the secret government planes 517 00:28:59,505 --> 00:29:01,105 spying on you. 518 00:29:01,207 --> 00:29:03,707 They'd hoover up text messages and photos on 519 00:29:03,809 --> 00:29:05,309 a massive scale. 520 00:29:05,311 --> 00:29:07,611 NARRATOR: And the strange sea cipher. 521 00:29:07,746 --> 00:29:10,214 It's really difficult to tell 522 00:29:10,316 --> 00:29:13,050 what's going on underneath the surface. 523 00:29:20,526 --> 00:29:22,960 NARRATOR: September 7th, 2021. 524 00:29:23,095 --> 00:29:27,331 GPS satellites track over 45,000 aircraft 525 00:29:27,333 --> 00:29:30,701 across 30 million square miles of U.S. airspace. 526 00:29:31,737 --> 00:29:35,806 But at 3:30 p.m., investigators spot one plane 527 00:29:35,808 --> 00:29:37,541 doing something weird. 528 00:29:37,643 --> 00:29:39,610 What we're seeing here is a flight path, 529 00:29:39,612 --> 00:29:41,712 but it's unlike any flight path that 530 00:29:41,714 --> 00:29:43,213 I've ever seen before. 531 00:29:43,315 --> 00:29:45,149 RODRIGUEZ McROBBIE: The pilot appears to be flying 532 00:29:45,250 --> 00:29:47,951 in some sort of flower pattern almost. 533 00:29:48,053 --> 00:29:49,653 It's like a star. 534 00:29:49,755 --> 00:29:53,423 NARRATOR: Aircraft investigators watch the plane as it covers 535 00:29:53,425 --> 00:29:57,060 2,500 miles in a seven-hour flight. 536 00:29:57,129 --> 00:29:58,962 RODRIGUEZ McROBBIE: It's almost as if they're sort of 537 00:29:59,031 --> 00:30:01,365 sweeping the skies, trying to get as much 538 00:30:01,400 --> 00:30:03,534 information about this particular area 539 00:30:03,635 --> 00:30:05,435 as possible. 540 00:30:05,537 --> 00:30:08,138 NARRATOR: Leaked reports from international intelligence 541 00:30:08,207 --> 00:30:09,807 agencies could explain 542 00:30:09,809 --> 00:30:12,709 the strange flight pattern captured from space. 543 00:30:12,711 --> 00:30:14,211 All over the world, 544 00:30:14,346 --> 00:30:16,947 authorities have started using planes to collect digital 545 00:30:17,016 --> 00:30:18,549 data from the ground, 546 00:30:18,617 --> 00:30:20,717 and that includes here in the United States. 547 00:30:21,720 --> 00:30:24,054 NARRATOR: Light aircraft are fitted with equipment, 548 00:30:24,123 --> 00:30:26,657 which gathers vast amounts of cellphone data 549 00:30:26,758 --> 00:30:28,458 from oblivious people below. 550 00:30:29,595 --> 00:30:31,628 These devices are called dirtboxes, 551 00:30:31,730 --> 00:30:33,764 and they mimic cellphone towers, and they actually 552 00:30:33,832 --> 00:30:35,532 trick cellphones into connecting with them. 553 00:30:36,602 --> 00:30:38,302 KOUROUNIS: They don't just hoover up 554 00:30:38,304 --> 00:30:41,505 criminals' information, they gather location data, 555 00:30:41,574 --> 00:30:45,209 text messages, and photos on a massive scale. 556 00:30:45,211 --> 00:30:47,611 So when you have a dirtbox flying over a densely 557 00:30:47,713 --> 00:30:48,778 populated area, 558 00:30:48,814 --> 00:30:50,547 the scope of what they can actually pick up is 559 00:30:50,649 --> 00:30:51,648 incredibly vast. 560 00:30:51,717 --> 00:30:54,418 NARRATOR: According to the leaked documents, 561 00:30:54,520 --> 00:30:58,322 a single dirtbox can track up to 10,000 cellphones, 562 00:30:58,390 --> 00:31:02,359 putting hundreds of millions of ordinary Americans at risk 563 00:31:02,394 --> 00:31:03,627 of being spied on. 564 00:31:04,730 --> 00:31:06,530 This is a civil liberties issue, 565 00:31:06,632 --> 00:31:08,732 the kind of thing that we see in other countries, 566 00:31:08,801 --> 00:31:10,434 and we disapprove of. 567 00:31:10,535 --> 00:31:12,202 It's the kind of thing that could easily 568 00:31:12,204 --> 00:31:13,737 and is happening in the United States. 569 00:31:16,942 --> 00:31:19,076 NARRATOR: Meteorologist Randy Cerveny has 570 00:31:19,078 --> 00:31:21,511 a different take on the satellite data. 571 00:31:21,513 --> 00:31:24,147 He believes the aircraft is tracking 572 00:31:24,249 --> 00:31:27,117 something much deadlier than cellphone data. 573 00:31:27,219 --> 00:31:29,119 CERVENY: This is hurricane research. 574 00:31:29,221 --> 00:31:32,322 What we're seeing here is the plane 575 00:31:32,324 --> 00:31:36,660 making different passes over top of the hurricane. 576 00:31:36,729 --> 00:31:40,264 This is what we commonly consider hurricane hunting. 577 00:31:42,735 --> 00:31:45,903 NARRATOR: In 2021, seven hurricanes 578 00:31:45,905 --> 00:31:48,939 kill over 100 people in the U.S. alone, 579 00:31:49,041 --> 00:31:52,609 causing $70 billion dollars in damage. 580 00:31:52,611 --> 00:31:55,345 For scientists, forecasting their path 581 00:31:55,414 --> 00:31:58,649 and intensity is a massive challenge. 582 00:31:58,717 --> 00:32:02,619 What we need to know is what's going on inside the storm, 583 00:32:02,621 --> 00:32:06,223 what are the dynamics of the air and the moisture, 584 00:32:06,225 --> 00:32:08,525 and the only way to really get that data 585 00:32:08,527 --> 00:32:10,761 is to go there and measure it. 586 00:32:10,862 --> 00:32:15,065 NARRATOR: In the U.S., this highly dangerous task falls to 587 00:32:15,133 --> 00:32:18,035 aviators at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 588 00:32:18,103 --> 00:32:21,338 Administration, or NOAA. 589 00:32:21,407 --> 00:32:23,307 Their mission is to get up close to 590 00:32:23,309 --> 00:32:26,209 the storm to gather vital data to feed into 591 00:32:26,345 --> 00:32:28,345 their supercomputers. 592 00:32:28,447 --> 00:32:31,748 Every little piece of data that we're able to gather helps 593 00:32:31,817 --> 00:32:34,751 us to predict where these big storms are gonna go, 594 00:32:34,853 --> 00:32:38,055 and that, in turn, helps to save lives. 595 00:32:38,123 --> 00:32:41,625 NARRATOR: Each year, NOAA flies over 50 operations. 596 00:32:42,962 --> 00:32:45,162 And each of these missions traces its roots 597 00:32:45,263 --> 00:32:48,932 to a strange wager made back in the 1940s. 598 00:32:49,034 --> 00:32:52,936 RODRIGUEZ McROBBIE: An American officer bet a British officer 599 00:32:53,038 --> 00:32:55,539 that he could fly his single engine plane 600 00:32:55,607 --> 00:32:57,708 right into the eye of the storm. 601 00:32:57,710 --> 00:33:00,410 KOUROUNIS: It seems like a crazy idea, 602 00:33:00,512 --> 00:33:02,412 but he managed to pull it off, 603 00:33:02,514 --> 00:33:06,316 flying through torrential rains and incredible winds 604 00:33:06,318 --> 00:33:09,953 and managed to somehow make it back all in one piece. 605 00:33:10,055 --> 00:33:12,889 Not only had he won the bet, 606 00:33:12,891 --> 00:33:16,727 but he'd also inadvertently kicked off hurricane hunting. 607 00:33:18,964 --> 00:33:22,833 NARRATOR: 80 years later, in September of 2021, 608 00:33:22,935 --> 00:33:25,702 satellites spot Hurricane Larry forming over 609 00:33:25,804 --> 00:33:27,003 the Atlantic. 610 00:33:27,105 --> 00:33:30,607 This is the type of storm that could threaten the U.S. 611 00:33:30,609 --> 00:33:33,810 So two teams of hurricane hunters deploy from 612 00:33:33,879 --> 00:33:36,346 the U.S. Virgin Islands to intercept it. 613 00:33:36,415 --> 00:33:39,416 Most people don't think of meteorology as being 614 00:33:39,418 --> 00:33:41,618 a life-threatening job, but in 615 00:33:41,620 --> 00:33:43,353 the case of the hurricane hunters, 616 00:33:43,455 --> 00:33:47,057 they are true heroes that risk their lives to try to 617 00:33:47,126 --> 00:33:49,059 help us figure out what's gonna 618 00:33:49,128 --> 00:33:50,627 happen in terms of our weather. 619 00:33:51,663 --> 00:33:55,699 NARRATOR: As the planes approach the storm, they split up. 620 00:33:55,701 --> 00:33:58,201 The faster, more agile jet, 621 00:33:58,303 --> 00:34:02,406 a Gulfstream IV, flies above the hurricane, tracing 622 00:34:02,408 --> 00:34:06,276 the star pattern seen in the satellite data. 623 00:34:06,278 --> 00:34:07,711 By skirting the periphery of 624 00:34:07,813 --> 00:34:10,313 these storms in very specific patterns, 625 00:34:10,449 --> 00:34:13,550 the scientists are able to maximize their efforts 626 00:34:13,652 --> 00:34:16,119 and gather the important bits of data as quickly 627 00:34:16,121 --> 00:34:18,622 as possible before they have to return back to base. 628 00:34:20,225 --> 00:34:22,159 One of the critical instruments on 629 00:34:22,227 --> 00:34:24,761 the Gulfstream is what we call a radiometer. 630 00:34:24,863 --> 00:34:27,497 It is looking at the heat 631 00:34:27,633 --> 00:34:30,233 that's being put out by this hurricane. 632 00:34:30,335 --> 00:34:33,637 NARRATOR: One hurricane can release heat energy equivalent 633 00:34:33,705 --> 00:34:37,941 to a 10-megaton nuclear bomb exploding every 20 minutes. 634 00:34:39,178 --> 00:34:40,944 Measuring it helps predict 635 00:34:41,013 --> 00:34:44,047 the hurricane's intensity and its destructive power. 636 00:34:45,217 --> 00:34:47,217 CERVENY: As our image shows you, 637 00:34:47,319 --> 00:34:50,220 we actually go through multiple passes, because we want 638 00:34:50,222 --> 00:34:52,322 to get quite different views of 639 00:34:52,424 --> 00:34:54,724 what actually all parts of the hurricane are doing. 640 00:34:55,727 --> 00:34:59,563 NARRATOR: Meanwhile, NOAA's sturdy Orion P-3 aircraft 641 00:34:59,631 --> 00:35:01,865 heads straight into the eye of the storm. 642 00:35:01,967 --> 00:35:05,202 We're gonna be studying the area right around the eye, 643 00:35:05,304 --> 00:35:07,104 the thing that we call the eye wall. 644 00:35:07,106 --> 00:35:08,738 That's the most intense, 645 00:35:08,807 --> 00:35:10,807 the most dangerous part of the hurricane. 646 00:35:12,945 --> 00:35:16,446 NARRATOR: After battling 180-mile-per-hour winds, 647 00:35:16,515 --> 00:35:19,149 the hurricane hunters enter the eye of the storm, 648 00:35:19,218 --> 00:35:24,654 a circular patch of calm weather up to 40 miles wide. 649 00:35:24,756 --> 00:35:29,426 Precisely how the eye forms remains unclear, 650 00:35:29,428 --> 00:35:31,728 but tracking the way it moves and evolves 651 00:35:31,863 --> 00:35:35,031 helps to estimate the storm's path across the Atlantic. 652 00:35:36,101 --> 00:35:39,302 This is knowledge that we can only get by sampling 653 00:35:39,304 --> 00:35:41,037 directly in the hurricane 654 00:35:41,106 --> 00:35:43,206 by using these kinds of planes, 655 00:35:43,208 --> 00:35:45,208 and so it's absolutely critical work. 656 00:35:46,645 --> 00:35:49,713 NARRATOR: The data gathered by the plane accurately predicts 657 00:35:49,715 --> 00:35:53,450 Larry will swing north, making landfall in Canada. 658 00:35:55,053 --> 00:35:56,953 Thanks to the hurricane hunters, 659 00:35:57,055 --> 00:36:01,057 such forecasts have improved threefold in the last 20 years. 660 00:36:02,461 --> 00:36:04,227 During this period, some hurricanes 661 00:36:04,329 --> 00:36:08,198 have mysteriously intensified just before landfall, 662 00:36:08,200 --> 00:36:10,800 meaning their work is more vital than ever. 663 00:36:12,337 --> 00:36:14,905 We're getting a better knowledge of hurricanes 664 00:36:14,907 --> 00:36:17,007 in general, and that's helping us with 665 00:36:17,009 --> 00:36:19,809 things like climate change and understanding what's gonna 666 00:36:19,811 --> 00:36:22,112 happen to hurricanes in the future. 667 00:36:27,419 --> 00:36:31,521 NARRATOR: Coming up, a $100 million dollar mystery. 668 00:36:31,523 --> 00:36:34,558 Reports suggest that this could be 669 00:36:34,560 --> 00:36:36,560 devastating to the local environment. 670 00:36:45,604 --> 00:36:48,505 NARRATOR: May 2021. 671 00:36:48,507 --> 00:36:50,807 Eyes in the sky surveying 672 00:36:50,909 --> 00:36:52,809 a coastal area of Fujian Province, 673 00:36:52,811 --> 00:36:56,446 Vietnam, capture something strange. 674 00:36:56,481 --> 00:36:59,849 There are all these little squares with white circles at 675 00:36:59,985 --> 00:37:02,118 the corners, lots of them in a row. 676 00:37:02,221 --> 00:37:05,622 linked by something long and thin, 677 00:37:05,724 --> 00:37:08,058 and then every now and then, there's a larger structure 678 00:37:08,126 --> 00:37:10,327 with deep circles around it. 679 00:37:10,429 --> 00:37:12,495 SCHUTTLER: It's really difficult to tell 680 00:37:12,497 --> 00:37:16,032 what's going on underneath the surface. 681 00:37:16,101 --> 00:37:18,802 NARRATOR: The mystery pattern covers around 682 00:37:18,904 --> 00:37:22,339 4.5 football fields worth of ocean. 683 00:37:23,809 --> 00:37:26,610 It reminds some analysts of a tech innovation 684 00:37:26,712 --> 00:37:30,046 aiming to solve an impending energy crisis. 685 00:37:30,115 --> 00:37:33,049 There's a technological race going on to find innovative 686 00:37:33,118 --> 00:37:36,720 ways to cool data centers and even avoid meltdowns. 687 00:37:37,956 --> 00:37:39,122 RODRIGUEZ McROBBIE: On a small scale, 688 00:37:39,190 --> 00:37:42,359 it's your laptop working too hard, maybe overheating, 689 00:37:42,427 --> 00:37:45,428 maybe even shutting down, but on a larger scale, 690 00:37:45,497 --> 00:37:48,898 a server meltdown can render internet services 691 00:37:48,900 --> 00:37:51,501 inoperable for days at a time. 692 00:37:51,503 --> 00:37:54,037 [alarm sounding] 693 00:37:54,139 --> 00:37:57,207 NARRATOR: From social networking to stock markets, 694 00:37:57,209 --> 00:38:00,944 we produce over one million petabytes of data a day, 695 00:38:01,046 --> 00:38:03,913 which is stored in energy-hungry data centers. 696 00:38:05,784 --> 00:38:09,052 Much of this energy is used to prevent overheating, 697 00:38:09,121 --> 00:38:11,955 which can crash vital computer infrastructure. 698 00:38:14,059 --> 00:38:15,225 [alarm sounding] 699 00:38:15,360 --> 00:38:18,094 The latest solution to this problem 700 00:38:18,096 --> 00:38:20,563 is to move server farms underwater. 701 00:38:20,665 --> 00:38:23,900 If you can harness naturally cold ocean temperatures and use 702 00:38:23,902 --> 00:38:26,403 them to cool servers, even just by a few degrees, 703 00:38:26,405 --> 00:38:28,305 you can avoid meltdowns. 704 00:38:31,710 --> 00:38:35,445 NARRATOR: Zoologist Roland Kays studies the image. 705 00:38:35,614 --> 00:38:38,315 He thinks the mystery structures are designed to 706 00:38:38,317 --> 00:38:40,950 satisfy our hunger for luxury food, 707 00:38:41,019 --> 00:38:42,519 not phones. 708 00:38:42,587 --> 00:38:45,322 I think this is evidence of some kind of aquaculture. 709 00:38:45,324 --> 00:38:49,125 Vietnam has over 2,000 miles of coastline, and one of 710 00:38:49,127 --> 00:38:52,329 the most valuable industries there is raising lobsters 711 00:38:52,464 --> 00:38:54,364 for sale in the seafood market. 712 00:38:54,432 --> 00:38:58,902 NARRATOR: Lobsters are aliens of the deep with two stomachs, 713 00:38:58,904 --> 00:39:02,439 blue blood, and the ability to pee out of their heads. 714 00:39:02,507 --> 00:39:06,810 Yet we still crunch our way through 400,000 tons 715 00:39:06,812 --> 00:39:09,546 of these cockroach-like critters every year. 716 00:39:09,647 --> 00:39:12,048 The most highly prized species of lobster 717 00:39:12,117 --> 00:39:13,950 in Vietnam is the ornate lobster. 718 00:39:14,052 --> 00:39:16,853 It's demanded in Europe, North America, Asia. 719 00:39:16,955 --> 00:39:18,521 In fact, in China, 720 00:39:18,623 --> 00:39:22,525 one pound of ornate lobster costs over 90 U.S. dollars. 721 00:39:23,729 --> 00:39:25,628 NARRATOR: But there's a problem. 722 00:39:25,731 --> 00:39:27,964 Wild lobster are overfished, 723 00:39:28,066 --> 00:39:31,201 and the number caught worldwide is plummeting. 724 00:39:31,303 --> 00:39:32,635 KAYS: A few centuries ago, 725 00:39:32,737 --> 00:39:34,504 they were very plentiful, and they were even 726 00:39:34,506 --> 00:39:37,207 fed to prisoners, because nobody else wanted to eat them. 727 00:39:37,309 --> 00:39:39,309 Now, the situation is completely different. 728 00:39:39,444 --> 00:39:40,610 In Vietnam alone, 729 00:39:40,712 --> 00:39:42,212 it's a 100-million-dollar industry. 730 00:39:44,182 --> 00:39:47,217 NARRATOR: Vietnamese farms, like the one captured from 731 00:39:47,219 --> 00:39:51,821 the skies, produce around 1,600 tons of lobster each year. 732 00:39:54,426 --> 00:39:57,327 They have a disturbing tendency to eat each other, 733 00:39:57,329 --> 00:40:00,597 but the farmers here face bigger challenges than that. 734 00:40:00,599 --> 00:40:04,501 You can't actually breed lobsters in captivity. 735 00:40:04,603 --> 00:40:08,705 So smaller lobsters, called seeds, are captured so 736 00:40:08,807 --> 00:40:12,108 they can fatten up and reach larger sizes. 737 00:40:14,713 --> 00:40:18,715 Demand for these juvenile lobsters is so high that 738 00:40:18,817 --> 00:40:23,119 they are routinely smuggled from abroad into Vietnam. 739 00:40:23,121 --> 00:40:25,622 RUBEN: Smugglers pack thousands 740 00:40:25,624 --> 00:40:28,324 of lobster seeds into bags or styrofoam containers, 741 00:40:28,326 --> 00:40:30,560 and some have even tried to get them in through the airport 742 00:40:30,662 --> 00:40:31,828 in their luggage. 743 00:40:31,830 --> 00:40:34,531 Authorities have even set up a special task force 744 00:40:34,533 --> 00:40:37,600 to crack down on lobster seed smuggling. 745 00:40:37,736 --> 00:40:39,903 NARRATOR: Organized crime is not the only 746 00:40:39,905 --> 00:40:41,538 dark side of the industry. 747 00:40:43,608 --> 00:40:47,110 SCHUTTLER: Reports suggest that this growing aquaculture 748 00:40:47,245 --> 00:40:51,714 could be devastating to the local environment. 749 00:40:51,716 --> 00:40:55,051 RODRIGUEZ McROBBIE: Much like industrial farming on land, 750 00:40:55,120 --> 00:40:59,522 industrial farming in the sea will have an impact. 751 00:40:59,524 --> 00:41:02,625 RUBEN: Aquaculture is not limited to lobster farms 752 00:41:02,627 --> 00:41:05,528 in Vietnam -- in fact, in the past decade or so, 753 00:41:05,663 --> 00:41:11,000 we have actually been farming more fish by weight than beef. 754 00:41:11,002 --> 00:41:13,903 NARRATOR: Each year, the aquaculture industry uses 755 00:41:13,905 --> 00:41:17,407 over 3.5 million tons of fish food. 756 00:41:18,443 --> 00:41:20,743 KAYS: All the food that goes in for the fish, 757 00:41:20,845 --> 00:41:22,345 and all the waste that comes out, 758 00:41:22,447 --> 00:41:25,215 ends up being fertilizer for the ocean for the algae 759 00:41:25,217 --> 00:41:26,282 that grows around there. 760 00:41:26,284 --> 00:41:28,818 You have all sorts of algal blooms, which 761 00:41:28,820 --> 00:41:30,920 then caused their own problems for the environment. 762 00:41:31,957 --> 00:41:35,158 NARRATOR: The poisonous algae can accumulate in shellfish 763 00:41:35,260 --> 00:41:36,259 like lobsters. 764 00:41:36,361 --> 00:41:39,262 If they're eaten, they can cause anything 765 00:41:39,331 --> 00:41:42,599 from stomach upsets to paralysis and death, 766 00:41:42,601 --> 00:41:45,735 a high price to pay for a lobster dinner. 767 00:41:46,905 --> 00:41:49,439 The human population around the world is going to continue 768 00:41:49,541 --> 00:41:51,508 to grow, so we need to find ways 769 00:41:51,610 --> 00:41:54,944 to do aquaculture in a sustainable manner 770 00:41:55,046 --> 00:41:57,313 so that it doesn't cause more problems than it solves.