Engineering Ground Zero Last year, to commemorate the 10th anniversary of 9/11, NOVA presented an epic story of engineering, innovation, and the perseverance of the human spirit. With extraordinary access granted by The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, “Engineering Ground Zero” followed the five-year construction of One World Trade Center and the National September 11 Memorial and Museum. Watch the full episode and learn more about the program.
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Engineering Ground Zero

Last year, to commemorate the 10th anniversary of 9/11, NOVA presented an epic story of engineering, innovation, and the perseverance of the human spirit.

With extraordinary access granted by The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, “Engineering Ground Zero” followed the five-year construction of One World Trade Center and the National September 11 Memorial and Museum.

Watch the full episode and learn more about the program.

Source: to.pbs.org

August 30, 1983: Guion S. Bluford Becomes the First African American in Space On this day in 1983, Dr. Guion “Guy” S. Bluford, Jr. became the first African American in space on board the Challenger flight STS-8. According to NASA, Bluford logged over 688 hours in space during four Shuttle missions. In 2008, before the NASA space shuttle program ended, NOVA scienceNOW explored the challenges astronauts facewhile training to work in space. Watch spacewalker Mike Massimino discuss his intensive training for the Hubble repair mission in the Neutral Buoyancy Lab, the NASA simulation pool. Photo: NASA
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August 30, 1983:

Guion S. Bluford Becomes the First African American in Space
 
On this day in 1983, Dr. Guion “Guy” S. Bluford, Jr. became the first African American in space on board the Challenger flight STS-8. According to NASA, Bluford logged over 688 hours in space during four Shuttle missions.
 
In 2008, before the NASA space shuttle program ended, NOVA scienceNOW explored the challenges astronauts facewhile training to work in space.
 
Watch spacewalker Mike Massimino discuss his intensive training for the Hubble repair mission in the Neutral Buoyancy Lab, the NASA simulation pool.

Photo: NASA

Source: to.pbs.org

August 29, 2005:  Hurricane Katrina Hits New Orleans Seven years ago, Hurricane Katrina made landfall in New Orleans, Louisiana. The Category 4 storm claimed almost 2,000 lives and caused $80 billion in damage. Watch NOVA’s “Storm that Drowned a City” to see what led to the devastating floods that Katrina unleashed on New Orleans.
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August 29, 2005:  Hurricane Katrina Hits New Orleans

Seven years ago, Hurricane Katrina made landfall in New Orleans, Louisiana. The Category 4 storm claimed almost 2,000 lives and caused $80 billion in damage.

Watch NOVA’s “Storm that Drowned a City” to see what led to the devastating floods that Katrina unleashed on New Orleans.

Source: to.pbs.org

August 24, 2006:  Pluto Loses Planet Status Papier-mâché solar systems dangling from strings in science classrooms made before this day in 2006 were deemed irrelevant as the International Astronomical Union declared that Pluto was no longer a planet.  Since its discovery in 1930, icy Pluto (now considered a “dwarf planet) had been classified as the 9th planet from the sun. Join Neil deGrasse Tyson in NOVA’s “The Pluto Files” to find out what it is about Pluto that captured so many hearts and caused an uproar upon its demotion.  Photo: Lunar and Planetary Institute
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August 24, 2006:  Pluto Loses Planet Status

Papier-mâché solar systems dangling from strings in science classrooms made before this day in 2006 were deemed irrelevant as the International Astronomical Union declared that Pluto was no longer a planet.  Since its discovery in 1930, icy Pluto (now considered a “dwarf planet) had been classified as the 9th planet from the sun.

Join Neil deGrasse Tyson in NOVA’s “The Pluto Files” to find out what it is about Pluto that captured so many hearts and caused an uproar upon its demotion. 

Photo: Lunar and Planetary Institute

Source: to.pbs.org

August 21, 1911:  Theft of the Mona Lisa On this day in 1911, Leonardo da Vinci’s masterpiece, the Mona Lisa, was stolen from the Louvre in Paris by an employee who walked out of the museum with the painting in his jacket. The thief, Vincenzo Peruggia, claimed to have been motivated by his patriotism to Italy, to where he believed the Mona Lisa should be returned.  However, after two years of having the da Vinci painting in his possession, Peruggia was apprehended trying exchange it for ransom money. In 1998, a portrait of a young Renaissance woman was sold for $20,000.  This portrait is now thought to be an undiscovered masterwork by Leonardo da Vinci worth more than $100 million.  NOVA’s “Mystery of a Masterpiece” investigates whether or not the painting was really a lost Leonardo.
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August 21, 1911:  Theft of the Mona Lisa

On this day in 1911, Leonardo da Vinci’s masterpiece, the Mona Lisa, was stolen from the Louvre in Paris by an employee who walked out of the museum with the painting in his jacket.

The thief, Vincenzo Peruggia, claimed to have been motivated by his patriotism to Italy, to where he believed the Mona Lisa should be returned.  However, after two years of having the da Vinci painting in his possession, Peruggia was apprehended trying exchange it for ransom money.

In 1998, a portrait of a young Renaissance woman was sold for $20,000.  This portrait is now thought to be an undiscovered masterwork by Leonardo da Vinci worth more than $100 million. 

NOVA’s “Mystery of a Masterpiece” investigates whether or not the painting was really a lost Leonardo.

Source: to.pbs.org

August 12, 1981:  IBM’s First Personal Computer Released On this day in 1981, IBM released its first PC – “personal computer.”  This PC came with one or two floppy disk drives and an optional color monitor, and went for $1,565 USD and up (nearly $4,000 today). In 1982, following the IBM PC’s release, Time magazine prophetically named The Computer as the “Man of the Year.” Today, we use computers to perform many functions in our daily lives, which raises the question: are computers smarter than humans?  NOVA goes behind the scenes to determine whether a computer can win the popular trivia game Jeopardy!. Photo: Watson on Jeopardy!
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August 12, 1981:  IBM’s First Personal Computer Released

On this day in 1981, IBM released its first PC – “personal computer.”  This PC came with one or two floppy disk drives and an optional color monitor, and went for $1,565 USD and up (nearly $4,000 today).

In 1982, following the IBM PC’s release, Time magazine prophetically named The Computer as the “Man of the Year.”

Today, we use computers to perform many functions in our daily lives, which raises the question: are computers smarter than humans?  NOVA goes behind the scenes to determine whether a computer can win the popular trivia game Jeopardy!.

Photo: Watson on Jeopardy!

Source: to.pbs.org

July 14, 1965:  American Space Probe Captures Pictures of Mars On this day in 1965, the Mariner 4 flyby of Mars took the first close-up photos of another planet.  These ground-breaking photos were the first of many attempts to study the planet, raising the question, “Is there life on Mars?”. Watch as NOVA goes behind the scenes of the latest NASA missions to the Red Planet to see if there really can be life on Mars.
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July 14, 1965:  American Space Probe Captures Pictures of Mars

On this day in 1965, the Mariner 4 flyby of Mars took the first close-up photos of another planet.  These ground-breaking photos were the first of many attempts to study the planet, raising the question, “Is there life on Mars?”.

Watch as NOVA goes behind the scenes of the latest NASA missions to the Red Planet to see if there really can be life on Mars.

Source: to.pbs.org

May 18, 1980: Mount St. Helens Erupts On this day in 1980, Mount St. Helens in Washington State erupted as a result of an earthquake. One of the greatest natural disasters of our time, the eruption killed 57 people, sheared 1,300 feet off the summit of the mountain, and turned a pristine forested landscape into a barren, lifeless wasteland. 30 years after the massive eruption…could it happen again? Watch NOVA’s “Mt. St. Helens: Back From the Dead” to find out.
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May 18, 1980: Mount St. Helens Erupts

On this day in 1980, Mount St. Helens in Washington State erupted as a result of an earthquake. One of the greatest natural disasters of our time, the eruption killed 57 people, sheared 1,300 feet off the summit of the mountain, and turned a pristine forested landscape into a barren, lifeless wasteland.

30 years after the massive eruption…could it happen again? Watch NOVA’s “Mt. St. Helens: Back From the Dead” to find out.

Source: to.pbs.org

April 27, 2006: Construction Begins at One World Trade Center

Six years ago today, construction began on the 1,776-foot building formerly known as the Freedom Tower.

Last year, on the 10th anniversary of 9/11, NOVA presented “Engineering Ground Zero,”  which follows the construction of One World Trade Center (1 WTC) and the National September 11 Memorial and Museum. Watch the full episode.

Source: to.pbs.org

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