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WILLIAM SHATNER:
A vast subterranean chamber

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hidden for centuries.

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A legendary lost treasure
buried in an ancient mine.

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And a town
in the Australian Outback

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that is located
entirely underground.

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For as long as humans
have walked the Earth's surface,

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we've also wondered about

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what lies beneath our feet
deep underground.

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Are there profound secrets
about our planet

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buried beneath layers of rock,
or hidden in vast caves?

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What can the subterranean world

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tell us about humanity's past,

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and perhaps even its future?

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Well, that is what
we'll try and find out.

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♪

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SHATNER:
Human beings have
a strong desire to learn

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everything we can about
the planet that we live on.

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After all, we've launched
satellites into outer space

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that have photographed every
inch of the Earth's surface,

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and we've used
deep-sea submarines

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to journey to the bottom
of the ocean.

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However, there is one
final frontier in our world

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that remains almost
totally shrouded in mystery.

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For we have yet to fully explore
the vast underground depths

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of our planet Earth.

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It's really uncommon for someone
to know how deep the Earth is.

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Very smart people often guess,
"hundreds of miles?"

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When in fact, it's 4,000 miles
to the center of the planet.

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L.A. to New York
is just a fraction of that,

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with the 2,700 miles.

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The mass of the Earth is great.

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And when you think about
the amount of rock

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that's piled on rock, on rock,

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that pressure is incredible and
prevents us from going deeper.

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So, what's beneath our feet?

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We don't know.

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Mankind's relationship
with the underground

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stems from our innate curiosity,

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and the ground beneath our feet
is open season for that.

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SHATNER:
Today, scientists
and explorers are compelled

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to investigate
the subterranean world,

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in hopes of shedding new light
in the darkness of its depths.

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But these efforts
are just the latest chapter

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in humanity's long quest
to learn more

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about all that we cannot see
beneath us.

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In fact, our fascination with
the secrets of the underground

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stretches back
thousands of years.

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Going back 3,500 years,
we find drawings and paintings

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underground
where it's completely dark.

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So, we can see
how our early ancestors

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connected mythology
to the underground,

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in terms of their relationship
to the Earth.

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These explorations and forays

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meant something
on a spiritual level.

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They were pushing as far
as they could go

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with the technology
that they had.

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BRADLEY GARRETT: The underground
has always been important

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in human history,
and it's tantalizing

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but it's also
kind of frightening.

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For instance, we can look
to Hades in Greek mythology,

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this underworld
which is a metaphor

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for not being blessed
by the light of the heavens.

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Also, we can look to Dante

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going into the seven circles
of Hell in an Inferno.

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All of these point
to an underground space

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that you'll go into
and never come out from.

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(man screaming)

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SHATNER:
While often described
as a place of danger,

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darkness and doom
in the legends and folklore

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of cultures around the world,

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it was during
the 18th and 19th century

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that the perception
of an underground world

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became less mythological
and more scientific.

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This evolution in thinking
is perhaps best illustrated

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in author Jules Verne's
seminal novel

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Journey to the Center
of the Earth,

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which was published in 1864.

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LYNNE McNEILL:
Jules Verne's Journey
to the Center of the Earth

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is the story of a professor,
his nephew and their guide

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going into
the center of the Earth

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through a volcanic crater
in Iceland...

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...making their way through
these subterranean passages

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and finding
prehistoric plant life

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and creatures
and maybe even a suggestion

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of some sort of
humanlike creature

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that they glimpse
but don't interact with.

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Jules Verne
was a well-read author,

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he was up on the science
of the day,

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and he made
a really scientific effort

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at describing
an entire subterranean world.

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It's a fictional book,

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but it really resonated
with people's imaginations.

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SHATNER:
Journey to the Center
of the Earth

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had a profound effect not just
on science fiction readers

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but also on actual scientists,

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who were inspired to explore
deeper than ever before.

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By the 20th century,
modern drilling technology

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gave scientists a new tool
for satisfying

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our ongoing curiosity
about what lies underground.

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The most famous effort to drill
into the planet started in 1970,

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when the Soviet Union
embarked on an ambitious attempt

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to reach as deep as possible
into the Earth.

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The project, which was conducted

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on the Kola Peninsula in Russia,
lasted for more than 20 years,

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and resulted
in what is referred to

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as the Kola Superdeep Borehole.

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The hole,
which is nine inches wide,

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reaches an astounding
7.6 miles into the Earth.

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The Kola Superdeep Borehole

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is just a really thin,
narrow hole

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straight down into the Earth.

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One of the reasons why
they made the hole that shape

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is that the wider the space
it is that you're drilling,

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the more resistance
that you run into.

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One of the biggest obstacles

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to digging that hole
was the temperature increases

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about 60 degrees Fahrenheit

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for every kilometer
that you go down.

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These teams found,
when they were drilling down,

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that the rock started
to behave like plastic.

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And that the solid rock
was actually gumming up

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the works of-of their drills.

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ROBERT SCHOCH:
There's so much pressure there,

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there's so much heat there,
eventually,

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they could drill no deeper
and they had to abandon it.

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And since then,

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there has been no project
that has gotten deeper.

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It's actually the deepest hole
that has ever been drilled

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to this day by humans.

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SHATNER:
While the Kola
Superdeep Borehole

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is an inspiring feat
of engineering,

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at 7.6 miles in depth,

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it only reaches
less than one percent

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down to the center of the Earth.

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And in fact, many experts
believe that instead

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of using drills to dig
into the underground,

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we should instead listen

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to subtle vibrations
in the earth

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that are called seismic waves.

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By studying seismic waves,

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scientists detected
two giant structures

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deep inside
of the Earth's mantle.

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These formations
are so oddly shaped

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that they are commonly
referred to as "Earth blobs,"

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and according to experts,
Earth blobs pose a dire threat

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to the survival of humanity.

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GARNERO:
These blobs are massive.

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Hundreds of miles tall,
the size of continents,

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very irregular in shape,
and they're very hot.

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The temperature
of the surface of the Sun

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is the temperature
of these things.

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There's the possibility
that over time,

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these blobs might rise

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and come to the surface
and would result

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in crazy intense
volcanic eruptions.

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MICHIO KAKU:
The gigantic energy

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from a volcano
comes from underground,

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underground from the core
of the Earth itself,

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creating a catastrophe
beyond human comprehension.

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And so, when it comes
to what's underneath our feet,

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we have to watch out.

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It's staggering to think

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that we've only managed to drill

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less than one percent
into the Earth's crust.

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But even so,
archaeologists continue to make

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shocking underground
discoveries all the time,

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such as a baffling
man-made cave system in China

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that was carved
thousands of years ago

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by a mysterious
unknown civilization.

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SHATNER:
In a small village,

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a group of farmers begin
draining several ponds

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to create space
for new planting fields.

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But as the waters recede,

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they make
a remarkable discovery.

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CLEMENTS:
The villagers saw

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the water was slowly going down

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and there were steps going down.

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So, they got very excited
that this was

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some kind of, you know,
archaeological discovery.

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And when they went inside,

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they found
that they were in a group

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of underground man-made caverns.

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SHATNER:
Once the water
was completely drained,

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the villagers discovered
a series of astonishing chambers

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that had been carved underground
centuries earlier.

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Further excavations
revealed the existence

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of 24 massive caverns.

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Each cavern covers an area
of approximately

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11,000 square feet,

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or roughly the size
of two mansions.

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Archaeologists have also
noted that the walls, pillars

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and ceilings of the caverns
were all precisely carved

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to have an unusually smooth
and symmetrical appearance.

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All told,
the massive underground complex

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measures 320,000 square feet,

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which is the size of more
than five football fields.

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These incredible
man-made structures

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are collectively referred to
as the Longyou Caves.

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The discovery
of the Longyou Caves

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is very fascinating

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because there was
absolutely nothing to suggest

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that there were
these carved, beautiful caves

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actually beneath the water.

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And so, when the actual caves
were discovered,

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everybody was absolutely amazed

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because there was no indication
that they existed.

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They have these pillars
inside them

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which are anything
up to 100 feet in height.

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And there are long corridors.

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There's some beautiful
relief carvings on the walls

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of animals and dragons
and things like this

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that are of immense
sophistication

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in their design and the manner
that they were carved.

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NEWMAN:
When you look at the carvings,
the chisel marks are so uniform,

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there's very detailed shaping
of some of the stones.

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To the untrained eye,
it looks like something created

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in the last 20 or 30 years.

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Some people suggest the caves

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are one of the Wonders
of the Ancient World,

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but they weren't discovered
until 1992.

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So this raises
so many questions.

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SHATNER:
Based on the carvings
on the walls

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and artifacts recovered
in the chambers,

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archaeologists estimate that
the extraordinary Longyou Caves

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are roughly 2,000 years old.

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While there are similar
ancient underground structures

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throughout China,

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the size and sophistication
of the Longyou Caves is unique.

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But just who exactly carved
these enormous caverns

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and why remains a mystery,

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because there is no mention
of this site

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in the historical record.

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How is it possible
that the existence of 24 caves

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can go unrecorded?

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This is very strange
because the Chinese

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have always been very meticulous

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in the way that they've recorded
provincial data.

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And yet,
there was absolutely nothing,

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no mention whatsoever
of these caves.

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CLEMENTS:
The caves themselves
are so massive,

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such a huge undertaking.

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It's not something
that a bunch of local villagers

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might have done for a hobby.

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We can estimate
that it would have taken

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a thousand people,
working 24 hours a day,

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six years
to carve out these caverns.

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There ought to be some kind
of geographical feature,

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some kind of odd-looking hill
or an infield valley

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or something where all
that sandstone has gone,

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but we don't know where that is.

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SHATNER:
In recent years,

252
00:14:07,292 --> 00:14:10,208
some historians have suggested
that the Longyou Caves

253
00:14:10,292 --> 00:14:12,958
disappeared from history
because they were intended

254
00:14:12,958 --> 00:14:15,000
to be secret caverns

255
00:14:15,083 --> 00:14:18,625
that were
never meant to be found.

256
00:14:18,708 --> 00:14:21,333
We do not know
who built the caves.

257
00:14:21,375 --> 00:14:24,125
But we can guess,
considering the fact

258
00:14:24,208 --> 00:14:26,167
that they're 2,000 years old,

259
00:14:26,250 --> 00:14:29,750
that they were built in a period
called the Warring States.

260
00:14:29,875 --> 00:14:32,292
And at the time,
China was a patchwork

261
00:14:32,375 --> 00:14:34,792
of different kingdoms
all fighting each other.

262
00:14:34,875 --> 00:14:40,292
And the fact that they are not
mentioned in ancient documents

263
00:14:40,292 --> 00:14:43,000
could well be a factor
of their use

264
00:14:43,042 --> 00:14:45,750
for some kind of
strategic purpose.

265
00:14:45,833 --> 00:14:46,708
So, "We're not gonna tell
the enemy

266
00:14:46,792 --> 00:14:48,208
"where our secret bunkers are.

267
00:14:48,333 --> 00:14:50,292
We're not gonna tell them
where our secret supplies are."

268
00:14:50,375 --> 00:14:53,042
SHATNER:
Could the Longyou Caves
have been a subterranean place

269
00:14:53,125 --> 00:14:55,958
to hide critical supplies

270
00:14:56,042 --> 00:15:00,958
or even people
from encroaching enemy forces?

271
00:15:01,042 --> 00:15:04,000
Or could their purpose
be tied to the deep waters

272
00:15:04,083 --> 00:15:06,875
that shrouded their location?

273
00:15:08,125 --> 00:15:10,667
What's interesting about
the Longyou Caves

274
00:15:10,750 --> 00:15:13,625
is it seems
that when they flooded,

275
00:15:13,708 --> 00:15:17,208
the water helped maintain
the structural integrity.

276
00:15:17,292 --> 00:15:20,833
Somehow, it took the load
off some of the beams,

277
00:15:20,958 --> 00:15:23,167
for example,
holding up the roofs.

278
00:15:23,250 --> 00:15:25,292
Now that the caves
have been drained,

279
00:15:25,375 --> 00:15:27,958
the Chinese have been
obliged to add

280
00:15:28,042 --> 00:15:30,000
extra buttressing
to hold them up.

281
00:15:30,042 --> 00:15:32,833
And so, I think they were

282
00:15:32,917 --> 00:15:35,042
a storage facility,
um, and I think,

283
00:15:35,125 --> 00:15:37,708
certainly, many of them
were intended for water.

284
00:15:37,792 --> 00:15:40,083
The area is drought-prone,

285
00:15:40,167 --> 00:15:43,667
so in the event
of some kind of military crisis,

286
00:15:43,708 --> 00:15:48,042
it would have been very handy
to have a secret base

287
00:15:48,125 --> 00:15:51,417
with enough water
for them to live on for years.

288
00:15:51,500 --> 00:15:56,000
SHATNER:
Were the Longyou Caves hidden
beneath a pond for centuries

289
00:15:56,042 --> 00:15:59,375
because they were built
to be a secret water reservoir?

290
00:15:59,458 --> 00:16:02,333
Or could they have had
another purpose,

291
00:16:02,333 --> 00:16:04,500
that has yet to be unearthed?

292
00:16:04,542 --> 00:16:08,458
For now, the answer remains
lost to history.

293
00:16:10,542 --> 00:16:13,583
But in modern times,
the caves have become

294
00:16:13,708 --> 00:16:17,708
an important source of pride
for the people of Longyou,

295
00:16:17,792 --> 00:16:21,917
who regularly hold festivals in
this ancient underground space

296
00:16:22,042 --> 00:16:25,208
to commemorate their heritage.

297
00:16:25,333 --> 00:16:28,833
The story of the Longyou Caves
is actually very fascinating

298
00:16:28,875 --> 00:16:32,000
because it would seem
that by looking

299
00:16:32,083 --> 00:16:34,083
beneath the earth itself,

300
00:16:34,208 --> 00:16:38,208
we're obviously going
to discover many, many caverns,

301
00:16:38,292 --> 00:16:42,458
underground chambers
or even cities

302
00:16:42,458 --> 00:16:46,250
done by human hands
that have been completely lost,

303
00:16:46,375 --> 00:16:50,083
and that's
a very exciting prospect.

304
00:16:52,167 --> 00:16:56,250
Archaeologists are conducting
ongoing excavations

305
00:16:56,375 --> 00:16:58,958
in an attempt
to unravel the mystery

306
00:16:59,042 --> 00:17:02,000
of who built the incredible
Longyou cave system.

307
00:17:02,083 --> 00:17:04,833
But some experts believe
the best way to solve

308
00:17:04,917 --> 00:17:07,500
an underground mystery
is not by digging,

309
00:17:07,542 --> 00:17:11,375
but rather
by researching historical texts.

310
00:17:11,458 --> 00:17:14,292
For instance,
there's a copper mine

311
00:17:14,375 --> 00:17:17,375
in southern Israel that,
according to the Bible,

312
00:17:17,458 --> 00:17:22,250
may have been the hiding place
of King Solomon's treasure.

313
00:17:26,000 --> 00:17:28,208
SHATNER: In the deserts
of southern Israel

314
00:17:28,292 --> 00:17:32,917
lies a mountainous region
that is called the Timna Valley.

315
00:17:33,042 --> 00:17:34,583
Today, this area is known

316
00:17:34,667 --> 00:17:38,500
for its uniquely shaped
sandstone cliffs.

317
00:17:38,583 --> 00:17:44,833
But more than 3,000 years ago,
the Timna Valley was the site

318
00:17:44,917 --> 00:17:47,625
of a vast network
of copper mines.

319
00:17:49,750 --> 00:17:53,750
MULLINS:
In the Timna Valley,
mining activity took place

320
00:17:53,833 --> 00:17:54,917
for a long, long time,

321
00:17:55,000 --> 00:17:56,667
and most
of the mining operations

322
00:17:56,708 --> 00:17:58,375
took place underground.

323
00:17:58,458 --> 00:18:02,125
The deepest is about 115 feet.

324
00:18:02,250 --> 00:18:06,292
They would hew in the ground
circular shafts,

325
00:18:06,375 --> 00:18:09,667
and going down that shaft,

326
00:18:09,708 --> 00:18:15,292
they would cut steps
into the side of the shaft.

327
00:18:15,375 --> 00:18:18,458
And they would tunnel
along horizontally,

328
00:18:18,542 --> 00:18:21,333
where they would
extract the copper

329
00:18:21,417 --> 00:18:23,833
and take it back up
to the surface.

330
00:18:23,875 --> 00:18:27,500
SHATNER:
In recent years, the Timna mines
have attracted attention

331
00:18:27,542 --> 00:18:29,667
because there are those
who believe

332
00:18:29,708 --> 00:18:33,375
that buried underground
in one of these deep tunnels

333
00:18:33,500 --> 00:18:38,750
is the legendary lost treasure
of the biblical King Solomon.

334
00:18:40,958 --> 00:18:42,958
In the Old Testament
of the Bible,

335
00:18:43,042 --> 00:18:45,333
King Solomon is described
as a noble

336
00:18:45,458 --> 00:18:49,000
and wise ruler of Israel.

337
00:18:49,167 --> 00:18:52,417
Historians believe
that Solomon was a real person

338
00:18:52,500 --> 00:18:56,417
who lived
in the 10th century BC.

339
00:18:56,542 --> 00:18:58,417
King Solomon
is an intriguing figure

340
00:18:58,542 --> 00:19:02,042
because the Bible makes
so many claims about him

341
00:19:02,125 --> 00:19:05,333
controlling
vast amounts of territory.

342
00:19:05,375 --> 00:19:07,667
According to the Bible,

343
00:19:07,750 --> 00:19:12,208
Solomon expanded
ancient Israel considerably,

344
00:19:12,292 --> 00:19:14,167
from the Euphrates river
in the north

345
00:19:14,292 --> 00:19:18,208
all the way
to the River of Egypt,

346
00:19:18,333 --> 00:19:21,833
and so, a much more
expansive territory.

347
00:19:21,958 --> 00:19:24,125
The Bible also describes

348
00:19:24,208 --> 00:19:29,458
Solomon controlling
vast amounts of wealth.

349
00:19:29,542 --> 00:19:34,417
Solomon decides to build
a temple, uh, in Jerusalem.

350
00:19:34,417 --> 00:19:38,000
The temple becomes
the home of God,

351
00:19:38,042 --> 00:19:41,875
and he spares no expense.

352
00:19:41,958 --> 00:19:43,750
And he was so committed

353
00:19:43,833 --> 00:19:47,750
to having the best temple
in the region

354
00:19:47,833 --> 00:19:51,042
that he actually imports
the finest materials

355
00:19:51,042 --> 00:19:54,042
to build this temple.

356
00:19:54,125 --> 00:19:57,208
SHATNER:
According to the Bible,
Solomon's temple was built

357
00:19:57,333 --> 00:20:00,750
from the best limestone
and cedarwood.

358
00:20:00,750 --> 00:20:05,667
Inside, the walls were
overlaid with pure gold,

359
00:20:05,667 --> 00:20:09,750
and Solomon adorned the temple
with objects made out of copper,

360
00:20:09,833 --> 00:20:13,708
which was also
a precious metal at the time.

361
00:20:16,708 --> 00:20:18,833
King Solomon ruled Israel
for 40 years

362
00:20:18,958 --> 00:20:22,375
before dying in 931 BC.

363
00:20:22,500 --> 00:20:25,750
Upon his death,
Solomon reportedly left behind

364
00:20:25,833 --> 00:20:29,000
an enormous amount
of gold and other riches

365
00:20:29,083 --> 00:20:33,042
in his magnificent temple.

366
00:20:33,042 --> 00:20:37,458
But then, in 586 BC,

367
00:20:37,542 --> 00:20:40,500
the Babylonians
invaded Jerusalem

368
00:20:40,583 --> 00:20:44,333
and sacked Solomon's temple.

369
00:20:44,417 --> 00:20:49,333
When the Temple of Solomon
was destroyed in 586 BCE,

370
00:20:49,417 --> 00:20:53,250
all the temple
treasures were lost to history.

371
00:20:53,333 --> 00:20:57,708
An ancient legend says
that Solomon's treasures

372
00:20:57,833 --> 00:21:01,750
were taken out of Jerusalem
and buried.

373
00:21:03,833 --> 00:21:07,208
There are those who believe
that the treasures

374
00:21:07,333 --> 00:21:09,667
are, to this day, still hidden.

375
00:21:09,708 --> 00:21:13,833
SHATNER:
For centuries, the legend
of King Solomon's lost treasure

376
00:21:13,958 --> 00:21:18,625
has been a source
of fascination and mystery.

377
00:21:18,708 --> 00:21:21,708
In 1885, the story was exposed
to a wider audience

378
00:21:21,833 --> 00:21:25,083
when author H. R. Haggard
wrote his famous novel

379
00:21:25,167 --> 00:21:27,583
King Solomon's Mines,

380
00:21:27,667 --> 00:21:30,667
which speculated
that Solomon's treasures

381
00:21:30,750 --> 00:21:35,375
were hidden deep
in an underground mine shaft.

382
00:21:35,458 --> 00:21:39,333
But if there is some truth
to this legend,

383
00:21:39,458 --> 00:21:45,000
then where is King Solomon's
treasure buried?

384
00:21:45,083 --> 00:21:50,417
For some, the most likely
location is the Timna mines.

385
00:21:50,542 --> 00:21:52,708
MULLINS:
The Timna Valley is located

386
00:21:52,792 --> 00:21:56,167
not more than 150 miles
from Jerusalem.

387
00:21:56,208 --> 00:21:59,625
So we're talking about
close proximity.

388
00:21:59,708 --> 00:22:04,792
At Timna, there are 10,000
mine shafts, maybe more,

389
00:22:04,792 --> 00:22:09,917
and so, it's easy
for people to kind of say,

390
00:22:10,000 --> 00:22:11,625
"There must be a connection."

391
00:22:11,708 --> 00:22:13,667
SHATNER:
In the last several decades,

392
00:22:13,750 --> 00:22:16,375
numerous researchers have tried
to prove that the Timna mines

393
00:22:16,458 --> 00:22:19,542
are, in fact, the hiding place

394
00:22:19,625 --> 00:22:23,667
of King Solomon's
lost treasures.

395
00:22:23,708 --> 00:22:25,833
Some of the first evidence
in support of this theory

396
00:22:25,917 --> 00:22:29,333
was found by an archaeologist
named Nelson Glueck,

397
00:22:29,417 --> 00:22:32,333
who conducted a series
of excavations at Timna

398
00:22:32,375 --> 00:22:35,083
in the 1930s.

399
00:22:35,208 --> 00:22:36,417
COLLINS:
Nelson Glueck

400
00:22:36,500 --> 00:22:39,750
made a huge study
of the-the copper mines,

401
00:22:39,875 --> 00:22:41,500
the smelting works,

402
00:22:41,625 --> 00:22:44,542
and also, the camps
of those that were there.

403
00:22:44,625 --> 00:22:50,750
And what he found
under the ground was pottery

404
00:22:50,833 --> 00:22:56,083
dating from the 9th
to 10th century BC.

405
00:22:56,208 --> 00:22:59,167
And this was
the exact time frame

406
00:22:59,250 --> 00:23:03,000
of the reign of King Solomon.

407
00:23:03,083 --> 00:23:05,792
And so, for Nelson Glueck,

408
00:23:05,875 --> 00:23:12,250
he felt that he had discovered
evidence of Solomon's mines.

409
00:23:12,333 --> 00:23:14,750
SHATNER:
Nelson Glueck's discoveries

410
00:23:14,833 --> 00:23:18,625
made sensational headlines
around the world.

411
00:23:18,708 --> 00:23:21,417
However,
despite years of searching,

412
00:23:21,542 --> 00:23:25,583
Glueck was unable to locate
the fabled treasure,

413
00:23:25,667 --> 00:23:29,667
and some experts began to think
that Glueck was wrong

414
00:23:29,792 --> 00:23:34,167
to associate the Timna mines
with King Solomon.

415
00:23:34,250 --> 00:23:38,542
But then, in 2019,

416
00:23:38,625 --> 00:23:42,667
a team of archaeologists
led by Professor Erez Ben-Yosef

417
00:23:42,750 --> 00:23:46,708
of Tel Aviv University,
made a remarkable discovery.

418
00:23:46,792 --> 00:23:50,417
While excavating an ancient
mining worksite at Timna

419
00:23:50,500 --> 00:23:52,667
that is referred to
as Slaves' Hill,

420
00:23:52,792 --> 00:23:55,750
they found more evidence
that links this location

421
00:23:55,833 --> 00:23:57,667
to King Solomon.

422
00:24:36,250 --> 00:24:38,583
When you take
the totality of this,

423
00:24:38,667 --> 00:24:42,625
the Bible and what it says
about King Solomon,

424
00:24:42,708 --> 00:24:47,500
the presence of these copper
mines in the deserts of Israel,

425
00:24:47,583 --> 00:24:51,167
and put
all these elements together,

426
00:24:51,250 --> 00:24:52,583
for people of faith,

427
00:24:52,667 --> 00:24:54,750
it gives them
a greater assurance

428
00:24:54,833 --> 00:24:57,042
of the truthfulness
of the Bible,

429
00:24:57,125 --> 00:25:00,625
that it involves real people

430
00:25:00,625 --> 00:25:03,583
in real places in a real time.

431
00:25:05,667 --> 00:25:08,000
Is the treasure of King Solomon

432
00:25:08,083 --> 00:25:10,500
hidden somewhere
in the Timna copper mines?

433
00:25:10,583 --> 00:25:14,583
Experts continue to search
for clues deep underground

434
00:25:14,667 --> 00:25:18,417
in hopes of answering
that long-standing question.

435
00:25:18,542 --> 00:25:21,708
Not unlike another
subterranean mystery

436
00:25:21,792 --> 00:25:24,583
that has also persisted
for centuries.

437
00:25:24,667 --> 00:25:27,083
One that involves
the strange theory

438
00:25:27,208 --> 00:25:29,792
that there are vast open spaces

439
00:25:29,875 --> 00:25:33,083
located in the center
of the Earth.

440
00:25:40,583 --> 00:25:42,833
SHATNER:
Seismologist Dr. Paul Richards

441
00:25:42,917 --> 00:25:45,583
and his team
at Columbia University

442
00:25:45,583 --> 00:25:48,667
make a remarkable announcement.

443
00:25:48,750 --> 00:25:51,500
They discovered
that while a full rotation

444
00:25:51,500 --> 00:25:54,042
of the Earth's surface
takes 24 hours,

445
00:25:54,125 --> 00:25:57,292
the iron core
at the center of our planet

446
00:25:57,375 --> 00:26:00,250
actually spins faster.

447
00:26:01,792 --> 00:26:03,875
AGNEW:
They were measuring

448
00:26:03,958 --> 00:26:08,000
the rotation of the core
of the Earth

449
00:26:08,042 --> 00:26:10,875
in relation
to the surface of the Earth,

450
00:26:11,000 --> 00:26:14,250
and what they found was
that it's not constant.

451
00:26:14,375 --> 00:26:17,875
And it leads people to believe

452
00:26:17,958 --> 00:26:20,750
that there is a disconnection
between the two.

453
00:26:20,833 --> 00:26:23,250
Maybe it's not molten rock.

454
00:26:23,333 --> 00:26:25,125
It could be open air.

455
00:26:25,208 --> 00:26:27,792
So, when you put
all of that data together,

456
00:26:27,875 --> 00:26:29,625
it leaves open the idea,

457
00:26:29,708 --> 00:26:32,625
the hypothesis,
that Earth is hollow.

458
00:26:32,708 --> 00:26:35,542
Could there really be
vast hollow space

459
00:26:35,667 --> 00:26:37,542
beneath the Earth's surface?

460
00:26:37,667 --> 00:26:40,333
It sounds crazy.

461
00:26:40,417 --> 00:26:42,833
And yet, for thousands of years,

462
00:26:42,917 --> 00:26:45,958
the belief has persisted
that beneath our feet

463
00:26:46,042 --> 00:26:49,542
there are not just caves
and tunnels

464
00:26:49,667 --> 00:26:52,833
but an entire underground world.

465
00:26:54,917 --> 00:26:59,667
The idea of the Hollow Earth
is that we live on a shell

466
00:26:59,708 --> 00:27:04,500
and that inside the Earth
is a hollow cavity

467
00:27:04,583 --> 00:27:07,583
with its own atmosphere,
its own animals,

468
00:27:07,667 --> 00:27:10,708
and possibly,
its own inhabitants.

469
00:27:10,792 --> 00:27:13,000
AGNEW:
The concept of a Hollow Earth

470
00:27:13,083 --> 00:27:16,417
goes well back before
written word.

471
00:27:16,417 --> 00:27:18,875
We have pictograms,

472
00:27:18,958 --> 00:27:22,958
cave drawings,
things that describe

473
00:27:23,042 --> 00:27:25,208
either deities
coming out of the Earth

474
00:27:25,292 --> 00:27:29,833
or man trying to communicate
with deities in the Earth,

475
00:27:29,875 --> 00:27:33,292
and that's where the idea
of a Hollow Earth came from.

476
00:27:33,375 --> 00:27:37,333
SHATNER:
Of all the ancient tales
about Hollow Earth,

477
00:27:37,417 --> 00:27:39,625
perhaps the most intriguing

478
00:27:39,708 --> 00:27:44,042
is one that involves
the Garden of Eden.

479
00:27:44,125 --> 00:27:45,958
TZADOK:
There is an ancient legend

480
00:27:46,042 --> 00:27:49,958
that is recorded
from a very, very old text

481
00:27:50,042 --> 00:27:53,292
called the Sefer HaTemunah,
the "Book of the Image."

482
00:27:54,500 --> 00:27:56,667
The legend tells us

483
00:27:56,708 --> 00:28:01,417
that a cave called Machpelah

484
00:28:01,417 --> 00:28:05,125
is the doorway
to the Garden of Eden...

485
00:28:06,292 --> 00:28:09,583
...which exists in inner Earth.

486
00:28:09,667 --> 00:28:12,208
But here's
the interesting question:

487
00:28:12,333 --> 00:28:14,875
a garden in a cave?

488
00:28:14,958 --> 00:28:16,792
It doesn't work like that.

489
00:28:16,875 --> 00:28:22,042
Gardens have plant life
that grows, requires sun.

490
00:28:23,833 --> 00:28:26,917
But in inner Earth,
there's an inner sun.

491
00:28:27,000 --> 00:28:29,417
SHATNER:
Could Adam and Eve have lived

492
00:28:29,500 --> 00:28:33,083
in a lush paradise
deep underground?

493
00:28:33,167 --> 00:28:34,625
The incredible notion
that people

494
00:28:34,708 --> 00:28:37,000
could inhabit
subterranean spaces

495
00:28:37,083 --> 00:28:38,875
has been embraced
not just in ancient times

496
00:28:38,958 --> 00:28:42,625
but also, in the modern era.

497
00:28:42,708 --> 00:28:45,583
In fact, by the turn
of the 20th century,

498
00:28:45,708 --> 00:28:48,958
the fascination with
Hollow Earth was so strong

499
00:28:49,042 --> 00:28:52,042
that a new generation
of scientists and explorers

500
00:28:52,125 --> 00:28:55,083
set out to find proof
of the existence

501
00:28:55,167 --> 00:28:58,375
of a so-called "Inner Earth."

502
00:28:58,458 --> 00:29:01,500
Perhaps the most fascinating
of those expeditions

503
00:29:01,583 --> 00:29:03,875
was led by an American
Naval officer

504
00:29:04,000 --> 00:29:09,417
named Admiral Richard E. Byrd
in 1926.

505
00:29:09,500 --> 00:29:11,333
Admiral Richard Byrd

506
00:29:11,458 --> 00:29:16,667
was a famous American aviator
and explorer.

507
00:29:16,667 --> 00:29:21,458
And he claimed
that on one of the journeys

508
00:29:21,542 --> 00:29:23,958
that he made to the North Pole--

509
00:29:24,042 --> 00:29:27,417
in an aircraft-- he came across

510
00:29:27,500 --> 00:29:32,292
an environment down below
that was plush and green

511
00:29:32,375 --> 00:29:36,917
with animals, almost like a sort
of Garden of Eden, if you like.

512
00:29:37,000 --> 00:29:42,708
In other words, what was seen,
perhaps, by Admiral Byrd

513
00:29:42,792 --> 00:29:45,917
at the North Pole
was actually an entrance

514
00:29:46,000 --> 00:29:48,417
into a parallel world,

515
00:29:48,542 --> 00:29:50,667
a parallel existence

516
00:29:50,750 --> 00:29:53,667
that exists and coexists
with the Earth itself.

517
00:29:53,750 --> 00:29:57,083
SHATNER:
Is it possible that Admiral Byrd

518
00:29:57,167 --> 00:30:01,000
saw an entrance to Inner Earth
at the North Pole?

519
00:30:01,042 --> 00:30:03,750
Almost a century
after his alleged discovery,

520
00:30:03,833 --> 00:30:06,833
there's no way to know for sure.

521
00:30:06,917 --> 00:30:10,167
But modern science
is trying to solve

522
00:30:10,250 --> 00:30:14,333
this centuries-old mystery
by conducting seismic studies

523
00:30:14,458 --> 00:30:17,542
of the interior of the planet.

524
00:30:17,625 --> 00:30:21,250
One of the pieces of data
that was really earthshaking

525
00:30:21,333 --> 00:30:25,417
was when Washington University
published the discovery

526
00:30:25,542 --> 00:30:30,167
of another ocean underneath
the crust of the Atlantic Ocean.

527
00:30:30,208 --> 00:30:34,958
They could actually read
the waves crashing on a shore

528
00:30:35,042 --> 00:30:37,667
on the inside of the crust.

529
00:30:37,708 --> 00:30:40,167
That was really
quite remarkable.

530
00:30:40,208 --> 00:30:44,208
When I see reports like that,
it leads me to believe,

531
00:30:44,292 --> 00:30:46,042
at least,
that there's a possibility

532
00:30:46,125 --> 00:30:48,458
that we have a Hollow Earth.

533
00:30:49,750 --> 00:30:51,958
If we gather evidence to prove

534
00:30:52,042 --> 00:30:53,917
that our planet
is actually hollow,

535
00:30:54,000 --> 00:30:56,125
it could change everything.

536
00:30:56,125 --> 00:30:59,083
Maybe the ancients
were right all along.

537
00:31:01,125 --> 00:31:04,875
Does the Earth really have
enormous hollow expanses

538
00:31:04,875 --> 00:31:07,292
beneath its surface?
(chuckles)

539
00:31:07,375 --> 00:31:10,667
It's a wild thought to consider,
but one way or another,

540
00:31:10,792 --> 00:31:13,000
we may soon find out the answer.

541
00:31:13,083 --> 00:31:16,958
Because according to some,
the future of humanity lies

542
00:31:17,083 --> 00:31:18,833
not on the surface of the planet

543
00:31:18,917 --> 00:31:23,125
but rather deep underground.

544
00:31:29,333 --> 00:31:31,750
SHATNER: On the surface,
this remote town

545
00:31:31,833 --> 00:31:35,125
which is located
in a harsh sandstone desert,

546
00:31:35,208 --> 00:31:38,625
looks like
a normal rural community.

547
00:31:38,708 --> 00:31:40,417
But appearances
can be deceiving,

548
00:31:40,500 --> 00:31:42,000
because as it turns out,

549
00:31:42,083 --> 00:31:45,625
most of the town
is located underground.

550
00:31:48,208 --> 00:31:50,542
Beneath the surface
of Coober Pedy

551
00:31:50,625 --> 00:31:52,542
lies a subterranean world,

552
00:31:52,625 --> 00:31:56,125
complete with homes
that are known as "dugouts"

553
00:31:56,250 --> 00:32:00,583
and other living necessities.

554
00:32:00,708 --> 00:32:04,542
Coober Pedy is-is an incredible
town in the Australian Outback.

555
00:32:04,667 --> 00:32:08,333
You go down these ramps
into an underground space,

556
00:32:08,417 --> 00:32:11,750
and then, you start
seeing restaurants,

557
00:32:11,875 --> 00:32:14,250
hotels,

558
00:32:14,333 --> 00:32:16,333
people's houses,

559
00:32:16,458 --> 00:32:19,042
churches underground.

560
00:32:19,125 --> 00:32:25,125
All of this stuff excavated from
this soft but very firm rock.

561
00:32:25,208 --> 00:32:28,458
SHATNER:
What would possess people

562
00:32:28,542 --> 00:32:33,042
to live in such an unusual,
underground community?

563
00:32:34,333 --> 00:32:36,833
Well, the history
of subterranean living

564
00:32:36,875 --> 00:32:40,792
in Coober Pedy
dates back to 1915,

565
00:32:40,875 --> 00:32:44,458
when miners
first traveled to this area

566
00:32:44,542 --> 00:32:47,583
to dig for gold
and precious opals.

567
00:33:32,375 --> 00:33:35,333
GARRETT:
The name for Coober Pedy
comes from Aboriginal people

568
00:33:35,375 --> 00:33:39,958
that lived there when
the first explorers came out.

569
00:33:40,042 --> 00:33:42,000
Coober Pedy means
"white man in a hole."

570
00:33:42,083 --> 00:33:44,500
(laughs)
'Cause they saw these people

571
00:33:44,542 --> 00:33:47,292
digging into these things
and disappearing into the Earth.

572
00:33:47,375 --> 00:33:48,708
And of course,
were confounded, like,

573
00:33:48,833 --> 00:33:50,083
"Why do you keep going in there?

574
00:33:50,208 --> 00:33:52,000
What do you want in this place?"

575
00:33:52,083 --> 00:33:53,375
(machinery whirring)

576
00:34:34,042 --> 00:34:35,583
SHATNER:
Today, Coober Pedy
is more famous

577
00:34:35,667 --> 00:34:38,750
for being an alternative
lifestyle community

578
00:34:38,833 --> 00:34:41,333
than it is for opal mining.

579
00:34:41,417 --> 00:34:44,000
According to recent estimates,

580
00:34:44,083 --> 00:34:47,667
there are 1,000
individual dugouts carved

581
00:34:47,750 --> 00:34:50,042
into the rock at Coober Pedy,

582
00:34:50,167 --> 00:34:52,750
and approximately 2,500 people

583
00:34:52,875 --> 00:34:55,708
live and work here year-round.

584
00:35:14,375 --> 00:35:18,292
SHATNER:
But do residents
of this unorthodox community

585
00:35:18,375 --> 00:35:21,000
enjoy their
subterranean existence?

586
00:35:21,125 --> 00:35:23,333
Well, if you ask the people
of Coober Pedy,

587
00:35:23,458 --> 00:35:28,500
they'll tell you they wouldn't
want to live any other way.

588
00:35:54,500 --> 00:35:56,083
SHATNER:
While the story of Coober Pedy

589
00:35:56,167 --> 00:35:58,250
and its residents
is extraordinary,

590
00:35:58,333 --> 00:36:00,417
some people believe
that underground living

591
00:36:00,542 --> 00:36:04,708
is not a matter
of lifestyle preference

592
00:36:04,833 --> 00:36:09,292
but rather, survival.

593
00:36:09,375 --> 00:36:11,167
In recent years,
an increasing number

594
00:36:11,250 --> 00:36:14,417
of so-called "doomsday bunkers"
have been built,

595
00:36:14,500 --> 00:36:16,417
which are designed
to protect residents

596
00:36:16,500 --> 00:36:19,333
in the event of a catastrophe.

597
00:36:19,458 --> 00:36:23,125
One of the most prominent
of these subterranean shelters

598
00:36:23,208 --> 00:36:25,167
is Vivos xPoint,

599
00:36:25,208 --> 00:36:29,625
which is located
in South Dakota.

600
00:36:29,750 --> 00:36:34,000
Vivos xPoint is the largest
survival community on Earth.

601
00:36:34,083 --> 00:36:36,792
It was originally
a government facility

602
00:36:36,875 --> 00:36:41,208
that was in charge
of munitions for World War II.

603
00:36:41,292 --> 00:36:45,167
We have 575 bunkers

604
00:36:45,250 --> 00:36:48,500
spread out across 7,000 acres,

605
00:36:48,583 --> 00:36:50,292
or about nine square miles,

606
00:36:50,375 --> 00:36:52,417
which is about half the size
of Manhattan,

607
00:36:52,500 --> 00:36:57,917
that are now being used for
underground living and survival

608
00:36:58,000 --> 00:37:03,000
in case of the worst possible
events we might encounter.

609
00:37:03,083 --> 00:37:04,500
People who live out there,

610
00:37:04,542 --> 00:37:06,333
they're regular people
like you and I.

611
00:37:06,417 --> 00:37:09,458
And they come from
all different walks of life.

612
00:37:09,542 --> 00:37:11,958
I think it always pays
to be prepared

613
00:37:12,042 --> 00:37:14,333
to survive whatever may come.

614
00:37:15,333 --> 00:37:16,667
GARRETT:
If we think about

615
00:37:16,750 --> 00:37:18,708
bunkers that are being built
around the world,

616
00:37:18,792 --> 00:37:20,083
all of these spaces
are connected

617
00:37:20,167 --> 00:37:21,792
by a fundamental belief

618
00:37:21,875 --> 00:37:24,833
that the underground
is a space of protection.

619
00:37:24,917 --> 00:37:28,292
So it completely makes sense,

620
00:37:28,375 --> 00:37:33,083
because humanity has always
sought the underground

621
00:37:33,208 --> 00:37:36,125
to hide
from a hostile environment.

622
00:37:36,250 --> 00:37:38,333
In the future,
will millions of people

623
00:37:38,417 --> 00:37:42,208
actually live
a subterranean existence?

624
00:37:42,333 --> 00:37:44,083
It may seem unlikely,

625
00:37:44,208 --> 00:37:46,500
but the truth is
that humanity's fate

626
00:37:46,583 --> 00:37:50,667
may indeed rely
on what's deep underground.

627
00:37:50,750 --> 00:37:54,750
For instance, there are places
where people have drilled

628
00:37:54,833 --> 00:37:57,792
two and a half miles
beneath the surface of the Earth

629
00:37:57,875 --> 00:38:00,542
in search of a rare
and precious metal

630
00:38:00,667 --> 00:38:03,167
that is critical
to our survival.

631
00:38:03,208 --> 00:38:05,500
Gold.

632
00:38:11,375 --> 00:38:15,583
SHATNER:
In this nation located between
South Africa and Mozambique,

633
00:38:15,667 --> 00:38:18,875
stands an ancient,
stepped mountain canyon

634
00:38:18,958 --> 00:38:21,167
known as Bomvu Ridge.

635
00:38:21,250 --> 00:38:25,500
The Bomvu Ridge is significant
because, according to experts,

636
00:38:25,583 --> 00:38:30,667
it is the site
of the oldest mine in history.

637
00:38:30,750 --> 00:38:33,250
Radiocarbon dating, uh,
shows evidence

638
00:38:33,333 --> 00:38:38,000
that this place was mined
40, 50,000 years ago.

639
00:38:38,125 --> 00:38:41,250
And 50,000 years later,

640
00:38:41,375 --> 00:38:44,333
the place is still
producing iron today.

641
00:38:44,458 --> 00:38:46,333
So, the history
of the human species,

642
00:38:46,458 --> 00:38:48,833
from the Stone Age
to the digital age,

643
00:38:48,875 --> 00:38:53,333
has this relationship
to going after the metals

644
00:38:53,458 --> 00:38:56,667
that we need
at that particular place.

645
00:38:56,750 --> 00:39:01,000
SHATNER:
It's astonishing to think that,
from the humble beginnings

646
00:39:01,083 --> 00:39:03,625
of the first mine
at Bomvu Ridge,

647
00:39:03,708 --> 00:39:06,958
there are now more than
6,000 active mines

648
00:39:07,042 --> 00:39:09,625
located all over the world.

649
00:39:09,708 --> 00:39:13,875
Some of today's mines extend
incredibly deep into the Earth,

650
00:39:14,000 --> 00:39:18,417
such as the Mponeng gold mine
in South Africa,

651
00:39:18,500 --> 00:39:20,208
which reaches an astonishing

652
00:39:20,208 --> 00:39:23,000
two and a half miles
underground.

653
00:39:25,542 --> 00:39:28,500
Every year, more than
3.2 billion tons of iron,

654
00:39:28,625 --> 00:39:32,417
gold, silver, platinum
and other precious metals

655
00:39:32,500 --> 00:39:35,250
are extracted from our planet.

656
00:39:35,333 --> 00:39:38,250
Today, we rely on mining
perhaps even more

657
00:39:38,333 --> 00:39:39,917
than our ancestors did,

658
00:39:40,000 --> 00:39:44,375
because modern electronics
depend on what are referred to

659
00:39:44,458 --> 00:39:46,542
as rare earth elements.

660
00:39:46,542 --> 00:39:48,250
KLINGER:
The term "rare earths"

661
00:39:48,333 --> 00:39:51,708
refers to 17 chemically
similar elements

662
00:39:51,792 --> 00:39:55,667
that have fantastic magnetic
and conductive properties.

663
00:39:55,750 --> 00:39:58,625
They are called things
like europium,

664
00:39:58,708 --> 00:40:01,500
lanthanum, praseodymium, cerium,

665
00:40:01,583 --> 00:40:06,000
and together they are
absolutely essential

666
00:40:06,083 --> 00:40:09,000
for life as we know it today.

667
00:40:09,000 --> 00:40:12,667
We need these elements
for medical technologies,

668
00:40:12,708 --> 00:40:15,667
communications,
computer hardware.

669
00:40:15,750 --> 00:40:18,500
But eventually,
rare earth elements

670
00:40:18,625 --> 00:40:20,625
are going to peter out.

671
00:40:20,708 --> 00:40:23,667
And the real question is,

672
00:40:23,792 --> 00:40:26,750
how deep will we go
into the Earth

673
00:40:26,833 --> 00:40:28,750
to get the elements
that we need?

674
00:40:28,875 --> 00:40:30,542
I think the simple answer
to that is we will go

675
00:40:30,625 --> 00:40:33,167
as far as our technologies
allow us to go.

676
00:40:33,208 --> 00:40:37,833
SHATNER:
Will the Earth's supply of
rare metals eventually run out?

677
00:40:37,958 --> 00:40:39,750
It appears the only way
to find out

678
00:40:39,875 --> 00:40:41,833
is to keep digging
into our planet,

679
00:40:41,958 --> 00:40:45,000
in search of both
essential resources

680
00:40:45,083 --> 00:40:48,625
and also answers

681
00:40:48,708 --> 00:40:52,708
to the many mysteries
that lie beneath our feet.

682
00:40:52,792 --> 00:40:55,458
GARNERO:
As humans, we share

683
00:40:55,542 --> 00:40:57,667
this curiosity,

684
00:40:57,708 --> 00:41:01,000
this desire to understand
what's beneath our feet.

685
00:41:01,125 --> 00:41:03,167
And we want to explore.

686
00:41:03,208 --> 00:41:05,375
We want to follow
the breadcrumbs

687
00:41:05,458 --> 00:41:08,625
of this mystery
of what is down there.

688
00:41:08,708 --> 00:41:11,833
COLLINS:
Geophysical research

689
00:41:11,917 --> 00:41:15,417
is revealing
cave systems, caverns,

690
00:41:15,500 --> 00:41:18,458
and obviously, whole cities

691
00:41:18,542 --> 00:41:21,667
that were never
known about in the past.

692
00:41:21,750 --> 00:41:25,042
And we are going to discover

693
00:41:25,125 --> 00:41:29,667
incredible things beneath
the Earth in the future

694
00:41:29,750 --> 00:41:34,833
that we could not even have
imagined existing before.

695
00:41:34,875 --> 00:41:38,500
There is something that compels
humanity to explore underground,

696
00:41:38,542 --> 00:41:40,542
whether we're looking
for precious metals

697
00:41:40,625 --> 00:41:42,583
or building new living spaces

698
00:41:42,708 --> 00:41:47,292
or simply satisfying our desire
to descend into the unknown.

699
00:41:47,375 --> 00:41:49,875
And just like
our ancestors before us,

700
00:41:50,000 --> 00:41:54,667
we'll keep digging in search
of all the subterranean secrets

701
00:41:54,708 --> 00:41:58,000
held by our planet that,
for now, remain...

702
00:41:59,208 --> 00:42:00,583
...unexplained.

703
00:42:00,667 --> 00:42:02,458
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