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Jet engines debuted in the waning days of World War II, as a stunning new fighter plane arrived too late to help the Nazi cause. Since then, they have revolutionized transportation and brought the world closer together. This episode of Modern Marvels uses extensive footage, computer animation, and interviews with pilots, scientists, and industry insiders to tell the powerful story of jet engines. From the secret Nazi attempts to develop a revolutionary...

In order to be a competent pilot, one must develop a thorough understanding of how and why a plane flies, as well as the forces that affect the flight of an aircraft. This video gives viewers just that. It outlines the forces of Lift and Gravity on an aircraft and goes on to describe how different structures on the plane are used to control these forces. Experts on aeronautics and flight give exciting commentary on their area of expertise.

Do you really understand speed properly? James May does. In this fast-moving mix of animation and motion graphics, he tries to figure out how you can catch speeding bullets in your teeth, why the Moon doesn't fall out of the sky, why his cat knows more about terminal velocity than he does, and why a six-ton chicken cannot run.

Fascinated by flight? In this episode of the PBS Scientific American Frontiers series, host Alan Alda takes the viewer on a captivating journey through the world of aviation. From the evolution of flight in primitive insects to the latest in high-tech aircrafts, Flying High explores the flight secrets of birds, insects, and airplanes. This program features individual stories of avionic ingenuity and our natural world, such as: how birds fly; the test-flight...

A Jumbo Jet Engine is the story of the thousands of people who design, build, and test engines at Rolls-Royce's manufacturing plants in Derby and across the U.K., making Rolls-Royce a central part of life for the people who work there. Exploring some of the astonishing technology behind the engines' advanced components, the BBC documentary program meets the skilled engineers who design and build them, and experience the ups and downs of life on the...

Since the time of Stonehenge, now thought to be a possible lunar observatory, up until today's age of highly sophisticated telescopes, man has developed technology to assist in exploring the skies. Modern Marvels traces the history of the technology behind mankind's stargazing.

The moon’s proximity to earth, as well as the discovery of water there, have placed this natural satellite front and center as a viable location for our first interstellar colony. In fact, the director of the European Space Agency has already outlined their plans for a “moon village”, intended not only for scientific and technological research, but also for activities based on exploiting resources and even tourism. This is not without challenges,...

Recent discoveries of water at the moon's poles and on Mars have encouraged public institutions, such as NASA and the European Space Agency, as well as private companies, like SpaceX, to lead projects that will let us settle in these harsh, distant environments in the near future. This episode explores the challenges of setting up an orbital space colony or a settlement on an asteroid, such as the need for habitats, storage facilities, workspaces,...

This program highlights five firsts for NASA: the first manned space flight to orbit the moon successfully; the Space Shuttle--the first operational orbital spacecraft designed for reuse; the construction of the International Space Station--the first habitable artificial satellite, and the largest human-made body in low Earth orbit; the first safe return of astronauts to earth following an accident in space--the famous Apollo 13 rescue; and finally,...