Host Basil Singer explores Saturn's moon Titan, one of the most earth-like objects in the solar system. In a rare look beneath the clouds of this far away moon viewers will get a glimpse at a familiar landscape of valleys, lakes and rivers. But the view is not as inviting as it appears. Most everything is made of solid methane with liquid methane lakes, as well as volcanoes that spew a slushy ice and deadly cold of minus 300 degrees Fahrenheit. Long favored by science fiction writers as a future home for mankind, Singer discovers that with some survival technology it might be possible to turn science fiction into science fact.
Venus is so hot that no water exists on the planet's surface. Clouds consist of metal-dissolving sulfuric acid and the air pressure would kill anyone who made it to the surface. It seems as though human life existing on this planet would be nearly impossible. But host Basil Singer finds scientists who are working to build refrigerated rovers to explore the surface and enormous air-filled bubble habitats where humans could live high in the atmosphere.
With plans under way for a NASA mission to the red planet within 30 years, Singer's challenge is to find out how to make Mars a place where humans could live permanently. He investigates technology that will make oxygen from rocks, as well as fuel from the thin Martian air. Basil also investigates Robert Zubrin and the Mars Society's current research into the practicality of life on Mars, along with a look at NASA's latest human transport and exploration vehicle.
A long journey to Jupiter would expose space pioneers to an unacceptable dose of radiation. Host Basil Singer explores how humans will survive radiation on the planet and how a new rocket could transform the journey there from years to months.
The closest planet to the sun, Mercury is a harsh planet that experiences light, heat and radiation at ten times the strength as Earth. Temperatures are extreme with 800 degrees Fahrenheit on the hot side and minus 300 degrees Fahrenheit on the cold side. NASA scientists working on Messenger, a mission to Mercury that is now closing in on the planet, tell host Basil Singer that it's not all bad news. The latest evidence shows that near the planet's poles, there may be water ice lurking in deep craters - something vital for the survival of future space pioneers.
The most difficult mission is the the journey to Gliese 581c, a planet orbiting a distant sun. It may be perfect, but in order to get there in a human lifespan, Basil must investigate extreme propulsion methods, including solar sails and nuclear bombs.
