Smithsonian Channel

A look at how navy weapons have evolved over the centuries, from cannons to gun turrets to nuclear missiles and beyond.

Dictators are characterized as charismatic, narcissistic and sadistic, but most of all by their thirst for power; once in power, holding on to it requires negotiation, coercion and force.

Look back at the wartime manufacturing boom, when countries across the world leveraged their industrial might to churn out the perfect tank. Marvel at the most iconic models, including the Soviet T-34, American M4 Sherman, and German Tiger I.

A look at how navy weapons have evolved over the centuries, from cannons to gun turrets to nuclear missiles and beyond.

Witness animal spectacles from high above the Earth; watch a whirling herd of northern nomads; see undersea behemoths show off in the Pacific shallows; track a U.S. porcine stampede; confront top ocean predators on the Florida coast.

Responding to an emergency call, Northstar marine sets out to salvage a sunken tug in the Delaware Bay; following the devastation caused by Hurricane Sally, Capt. Chris Ward and his crew work to salvage sunken sailboats and wrecked powerboats.

Rumoured to be the cleanest river in Europe, few dispute it's the coldest; cascading down from the Dinaric Alps in Serbia, it soon crosses the border into Bosnia-Herzegovina, where marine biologist and fisherman Sanel Riđanović casts for salmon.

Get a bird's-eye view of a mysterious explosion in China and a quickly melting glacier on Earth's iciest continent; investigate an orange haze enveloping the Big Apple, then float over a toxic, too-hot-to-handle lake in New Zealand.

A mysterious object is raised from the depths of the ocean; a stranded speedboat; an elite crew works to salvage America's biggest shipwreck before hurricane season.

Rumoured to be the cleanest river in Europe, few dispute it's the coldest; cascading down from the Dinaric Alps in Serbia, it soon crosses the border into Bosnia-Herzegovina, where marine biologist and fisherman Sanel Riđanović casts for salmon.

Get a bird's-eye view of a mysterious explosion in China and a quickly melting glacier on Earth's iciest continent; investigate an orange haze enveloping the Big Apple, then float over a toxic, too-hot-to-handle lake in New Zealand.

A mysterious object is raised from the depths of the ocean; a stranded speedboat; an elite crew works to salvage America's biggest shipwreck before hurricane season.

Rethink what it's known about death and preservation; see why Denmark's perfectly preserved Tollund Man raises questions, observe Portuguese bodies that rewrite history, and uncover the mystery of Scotland's Frankenstein mummies.

Open burial sites filled with secrets. Find powerful artifacts in a French rulers tomb, see what a tomb adorned with conch shells says about sacred ceremonies, and expose complex beliefs about animals and the afterlife in an Egyptian zoo graveyard.

Look back at the wartime manufacturing boom, when countries across the world leveraged their industrial might to churn out the perfect tank. Marvel at the most iconic models, including the Soviet T-34, American M4 Sherman, and German Tiger I.

A look at how navy weapons have evolved over the centuries, from cannons to gun turrets to nuclear missiles and beyond.

Dictators are characterized as charismatic, narcissistic and sadistic, but most of all by their thirst for power; once in power, holding on to it requires negotiation, coercion and force.

Look back at the wartime manufacturing boom, when countries across the world leveraged their industrial might to churn out the perfect tank. Marvel at the most iconic models, including the Soviet T-34, American M4 Sherman, and German Tiger I.

A look at how navy weapons have evolved over the centuries, from cannons to gun turrets to nuclear missiles and beyond.

Dictators are characterized as charismatic, narcissistic and sadistic, but most of all by their thirst for power; once in power, holding on to it requires negotiation, coercion and force.

Engineers grapple with an apartment building, ripped apart by a man-made canyon; the Gateway Arch takes shape in St. Louis; an unpromising plot in Copenhagen, Denmark, is transformed by a gleaming new triangular office.

Takes an unprecedented look inside the secret chambers of the Great Pyramid of Giza, the only one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World still standing, and see what they reveal about the pyramid's origins.

Part 2/6. Uncover the secrets of the Old Kingdom ruler who revolutionized architecture alongside his vizier, Imhotep; piece together the mysterious life of the very first king to build a step pyramid in the heart of a grandiose and complex burial site.

Engineers grapple with an apartment building, ripped apart by a man-made canyon; the Gateway Arch takes shape in St. Louis; an unpromising plot in Copenhagen, Denmark, is transformed by a gleaming new triangular office.

Takes an unprecedented look inside the secret chambers of the Great Pyramid of Giza, the only one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World still standing, and see what they reveal about the pyramid's origins.

Part 2/6. Uncover the secrets of the Old Kingdom ruler who revolutionized architecture alongside his vizier, Imhotep; piece together the mysterious life of the very first king to build a step pyramid in the heart of a grandiose and complex burial site.

Engineers grapple with an apartment building, ripped apart by a man-made canyon; the Gateway Arch takes shape in St. Louis; an unpromising plot in Copenhagen, Denmark, is transformed by a gleaming new triangular office.

Takes an unprecedented look inside the secret chambers of the Great Pyramid of Giza, the only one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World still standing, and see what they reveal about the pyramid's origins.

Get a bird's-eye view of a mysterious explosion in China and a quickly melting glacier on Earth's iciest continent; investigate an orange haze enveloping the Big Apple, then float over a toxic, too-hot-to-handle lake in New Zealand.

A mysterious object is raised from the depths of the ocean; a stranded speedboat; an elite crew works to salvage America's biggest shipwreck before hurricane season.

Tackling the grade 6 rapids and untamed waters of the Buller River on the west coast of New Zealand's South Island, blessed by a Māori elder of the Ngāti Apa ki te Rā Tō.

Examine mysterious holes in Israel; explore a ghost village hidden in the Colombian jungle, a shipwreck off the coast of Sri Lanka and a gutted airplane fuselage abandoned in Iceland.

A salvage maestro returns to raise more valuable tropical hardwood trying not to wreck his own boat in the process; the multimillion dollar operation to salvage America's biggest shipwreck.

Tackling the grade 6 rapids and untamed waters of the Buller River on the west coast of New Zealand's South Island, blessed by a Māori elder of the Ngāti Apa ki te Rā Tō.

Examine mysterious holes in Israel; explore a ghost village hidden in the Colombian jungle, a shipwreck off the coast of Sri Lanka and a gutted airplane fuselage abandoned in Iceland.

A salvage maestro returns to raise more valuable tropical hardwood trying not to wreck his own boat in the process; the multimillion dollar operation to salvage America's biggest shipwreck.

Puzzling over history-making structures and artifacts; Searching for clues about civilization's origins in Göbekli Tepe, visiting a German statue that reveals symbolic thought; witnessing the brutality of colonization in a Mexican skull tower.

Learning how displaced artifacts spark fresh investigations and rewrite timelines; unearthing a forgotten tragedy in a remote mountain lake in India, checking out footprints that change human migration stories; reopening an ancient cold case.

Engineers grapple with an apartment building, ripped apart by a man-made canyon; the Gateway Arch takes shape in St. Louis; an unpromising plot in Copenhagen, Denmark, is transformed by a gleaming new triangular office.

Takes an unprecedented look inside the secret chambers of the Great Pyramid of Giza, the only one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World still standing, and see what they reveal about the pyramid's origins.

Part 2/6. Uncover the secrets of the Old Kingdom ruler who revolutionized architecture alongside his vizier, Imhotep; piece together the mysterious life of the very first king to build a step pyramid in the heart of a grandiose and complex burial site.

Engineers grapple with an apartment building, ripped apart by a man-made canyon; the Gateway Arch takes shape in St. Louis; an unpromising plot in Copenhagen, Denmark, is transformed by a gleaming new triangular office.

Takes an unprecedented look inside the secret chambers of the Great Pyramid of Giza, the only one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World still standing, and see what they reveal about the pyramid's origins.

Part 2/6. Uncover the secrets of the Old Kingdom ruler who revolutionized architecture alongside his vizier, Imhotep; piece together the mysterious life of the very first king to build a step pyramid in the heart of a grandiose and complex burial site.

Dig into a groundbreaking medieval silver mine revealed by a German sinkhole.

Shedding light on the origins of organized warfare and the brutality it left behind; hunting for the beginnings of organized combat in Germany; finding evidence of Roman power in Denmark, and pondering the symbolic role of elite fighters.

Diving into the mystery of the HMS Terror, an Arctic ship found 150 years after it and its crew vanished without a trace; seeing if the explosion of the SS Sultana on the Mississippi was an accident or sabotage; boarding the ghost ship Mary Celeste.

Dig into a groundbreaking medieval silver mine revealed by a German sinkhole.

Shedding light on the origins of organized warfare and the brutality it left behind; hunting for the beginnings of organized combat in Germany; finding evidence of Roman power in Denmark, and pondering the symbolic role of elite fighters.

Diving into the mystery of the HMS Terror, an Arctic ship found 150 years after it and its crew vanished without a trace; seeing if the explosion of the SS Sultana on the Mississippi was an accident or sabotage; boarding the ghost ship Mary Celeste.

Dig into a groundbreaking medieval silver mine revealed by a German sinkhole.

Shedding light on the origins of organized warfare and the brutality it left behind; hunting for the beginnings of organized combat in Germany; finding evidence of Roman power in Denmark, and pondering the symbolic role of elite fighters.

Examine mysterious holes in Israel; explore a ghost village hidden in the Colombian jungle, a shipwreck off the coast of Sri Lanka and a gutted airplane fuselage abandoned in Iceland.

A salvage maestro returns to raise more valuable tropical hardwood trying not to wreck his own boat in the process; the multimillion dollar operation to salvage America's biggest shipwreck.

The St. Lawrence River is one that forged North America, allowing ships to traverse the continent; the adventure begins in Canada's first capital city of Kingston and near Canada's second-largest city of Montreal.

Investigate an abandoned village in the shifting sands on Dubai's outskirts and a collection of inexplicable stone circles in Colombia; a mysterious hilltop tower in Iran and a puzzling purple phenomenon in Chile's Atacama Desert.

The team must remove thousands of wrecked cars from the hull before it becomes an environmental disaster; repairing a vessel before the waters of the River Solent flood the hull.

The St. Lawrence River is one that forged North America, allowing ships to traverse the continent; the adventure begins in Canada's first capital city of Kingston and near Canada's second-largest city of Montreal.

Investigate an abandoned village in the shifting sands on Dubai's outskirts and a collection of inexplicable stone circles in Colombia; a mysterious hilltop tower in Iran and a puzzling purple phenomenon in Chile's Atacama Desert.

The team must remove thousands of wrecked cars from the hull before it becomes an environmental disaster; repairing a vessel before the waters of the River Solent flood the hull.

Re-evaluating what we know about evolution, extinction, and animals' sacred roles. Dig up a Canadian dinosaur that sparks questions about fossilization, meet a prehistoric survivor in China, and see the religious parts crocodiles played in Egypt.

Shedding light on the origins of organized warfare and the brutality it left behind; hunting for the beginnings of organized combat in Germany; finding evidence of Roman power in Denmark, and pondering the symbolic role of elite fighters.

Dig into a groundbreaking medieval silver mine revealed by a German sinkhole.

Shedding light on the origins of organized warfare and the brutality it left behind; hunting for the beginnings of organized combat in Germany; finding evidence of Roman power in Denmark, and pondering the symbolic role of elite fighters.

Diving into the mystery of the HMS Terror, an Arctic ship found 150 years after it and its crew vanished without a trace; seeing if the explosion of the SS Sultana on the Mississippi was an accident or sabotage; boarding the ghost ship Mary Celeste.

Dig into a groundbreaking medieval silver mine revealed by a German sinkhole.

Shedding light on the origins of organized warfare and the brutality it left behind; hunting for the beginnings of organized combat in Germany; finding evidence of Roman power in Denmark, and pondering the symbolic role of elite fighters.

Diving into the mystery of the HMS Terror, an Arctic ship found 150 years after it and its crew vanished without a trace; seeing if the explosion of the SS Sultana on the Mississippi was an accident or sabotage; boarding the ghost ship Mary Celeste.

How Hitler's heavy narcotic use played a role in his murderous regime, as well as fueled an already delusional character.

The most-produced bomber in US history, used during World War II by every branch of the American military, as well as by the Royal Air Force.

Scan the heavens for revolutionary aerial threats and combat tactics. Learn how the first ballistic missile struck London without warning, follow elite teams hunting mobile rocket launchers in Iraq, and watch US pilots train against real Soviet MiGs.

How Hitler's heavy narcotic use played a role in his murderous regime, as well as fueled an already delusional character.

The most-produced bomber in US history, used during World War II by every branch of the American military, as well as by the Royal Air Force.

Scan the heavens for revolutionary aerial threats and combat tactics. Learn how the first ballistic missile struck London without warning, follow elite teams hunting mobile rocket launchers in Iraq, and watch US pilots train against real Soviet MiGs.

How Hitler's heavy narcotic use played a role in his murderous regime, as well as fueled an already delusional character.

The most-produced bomber in US history, used during World War II by every branch of the American military, as well as by the Royal Air Force.

Investigate an abandoned village in the shifting sands on Dubai's outskirts and a collection of inexplicable stone circles in Colombia; a mysterious hilltop tower in Iran and a puzzling purple phenomenon in Chile's Atacama Desert.

The team must remove thousands of wrecked cars from the hull before it becomes an environmental disaster; repairing a vessel before the waters of the River Solent flood the hull.

Navigating the historic Potomac River from West Virginia to Chesapeake Bay, passing through Washington, D.C. and the national monuments and ending at George Washington's Mount Vernon estate.

Come across a set of disturbingly familiar stone monoliths in Colombia, then explore a lost city in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta; puzzle over an ancient ruin in Corinth, Greece, and explore an old structure on a Maltese island.

Salvage crews work to install the world's largest environmental protection barrier; flying into a highly volatile region, crews battle pirates, tornadoes, and riots to salvage a wrecked cargo ship.

Navigating the historic Potomac River from West Virginia to Chesapeake Bay, passing through Washington, D.C. and the national monuments and ending at George Washington's Mount Vernon estate.

Come across a set of disturbingly familiar stone monoliths in Colombia, then explore a lost city in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta; puzzle over an ancient ruin in Corinth, Greece, and explore an old structure on a Maltese island.

Scientists are now probing to detect gravity waves in space and mapping the gravity patterns of the moon for the first time.

Paid programming.

Explore three discoveries that change what we know about magic and superstition; delve into a Polish vampire grave, open a UK witch bottle used to ward off evil, and see if alien-like skulls in Mexico were shaped by humans or otherworldly beings.

Exhume chilling insights into ancient rituals, legendary warriors, and brutal deaths; investigate dozens of children's skeletons in Peru, find out if Amazon warriors once lived in Russia, and see what a UK cave full of butchered remains reveals.

Find out how the highly adaptable Douglas DC-3 revolutionized air travel, flying farther and more safely than previous commercial aircraft; Then discover how this model reinvented itself as a cargo- and paratrooper-carrying workhorse for the Allies.

The most-produced bomber in US history, used during World War II by every branch of the American military, as well as by the Royal Air Force.

Scan the heavens for revolutionary aerial threats and combat tactics. Learn how the first ballistic missile struck London without warning, follow elite teams hunting mobile rocket launchers in Iraq, and watch US pilots train against real Soviet MiGs.

Find out how the highly adaptable Douglas DC-3 revolutionized air travel, flying farther and more safely than previous commercial aircraft; Then discover how this model reinvented itself as a cargo- and paratrooper-carrying workhorse for the Allies.

The most-produced bomber in US history, used during World War II by every branch of the American military, as well as by the Royal Air Force.

Scan the heavens for revolutionary aerial threats and combat tactics. Learn how the first ballistic missile struck London without warning, follow elite teams hunting mobile rocket launchers in Iraq, and watch US pilots train against real Soviet MiGs.

A mass uprising that shows the world the truth about the Nazis' secret Sobibor death camp; learn how the Davao Dozen break out of a harsh Japanese penal colony and explore how two plucky German pilots plot to get out of Britain.

With thousands of German soldiers trapped in the Falaise Pocket, a small Canadian tank squadron tries to close off the escape route.

A high-profile murder case in Brazil during the 1970s captures the world's attention and leads to a national scandal.

A mass uprising that shows the world the truth about the Nazis' secret Sobibor death camp; learn how the Davao Dozen break out of a harsh Japanese penal colony and explore how two plucky German pilots plot to get out of Britain.

With thousands of German soldiers trapped in the Falaise Pocket, a small Canadian tank squadron tries to close off the escape route.

A high-profile murder case in Brazil during the 1970s captures the world's attention and leads to a national scandal.

A mass uprising that shows the world the truth about the Nazis' secret Sobibor death camp; learn how the Davao Dozen break out of a harsh Japanese penal colony and explore how two plucky German pilots plot to get out of Britain.

With thousands of German soldiers trapped in the Falaise Pocket, a small Canadian tank squadron tries to close off the escape route.

Come across a set of disturbingly familiar stone monoliths in Colombia, then explore a lost city in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta; puzzle over an ancient ruin in Corinth, Greece, and explore an old structure on a Maltese island.

Salvage crews work to install the world's largest environmental protection barrier; flying into a highly volatile region, crews battle pirates, tornadoes, and riots to salvage a wrecked cargo ship.

A journey down one of the wild rivers in the world, the Yukon; the unusual trip starts in an aircraft piloted by a painter and the odyssey ends with a visit to a graveyard of disintegrating rear-wheel steamers.

Unlock an abandoned site on a remote Antarctic isle and check out mysterious shapes in the Finnish snow. Puzzle over an inexplicable monolith in the far reaches of Norway, then get shocked by a blood-red frozen waterfall at the bottom of the world.

In rough water, salvors scramble to retrieve a cruise ship's anchor lost at sea; teams hope to salvage cherished floating homes damaged by hurricane Sandy.

A journey down one of the wild rivers in the world, the Yukon; the unusual trip starts in an aircraft piloted by a painter and the odyssey ends with a visit to a graveyard of disintegrating rear-wheel steamers.

Unlock an abandoned site on a remote Antarctic isle and check out mysterious shapes in the Finnish snow. Puzzle over an inexplicable monolith in the far reaches of Norway, then get shocked by a blood-red frozen waterfall at the bottom of the world.

For more than 25 years, the shuttle was our ticket to space and our laboratory in orbit.

Paid programming.

Challenge long-held beliefs about Viking leadership, weaponry, and brutality; inspect a warriors tomb full of clues in Sweden, a sword of unparalleled quality in Norway, and a pile of headless skeletons in the UK that reveal unimaginable violence.

Discovering shocking truths about religious rituals, sacred symbols, and spiritual traditions; learning the brutal truth about execution rites in Roman England, looking at shark bones in a Peruvian temple; unearthing a silver amulet in Germany.

A mass uprising that shows the world the truth about the Nazis' secret Sobibor death camp; learn how the Davao Dozen break out of a harsh Japanese penal colony and explore how two plucky German pilots plot to get out of Britain.

With thousands of German soldiers trapped in the Falaise Pocket, a small Canadian tank squadron tries to close off the escape route.

A high-profile murder case in Brazil during the 1970s captures the world's attention and leads to a national scandal.

A mass uprising that shows the world the truth about the Nazis' secret Sobibor death camp; learn how the Davao Dozen break out of a harsh Japanese penal colony and explore how two plucky German pilots plot to get out of Britain.

With thousands of German soldiers trapped in the Falaise Pocket, a small Canadian tank squadron tries to close off the escape route.

A high-profile murder case in Brazil during the 1970s captures the world's attention and leads to a national scandal.

A dazzling new 1400 foot tapering skyscraper is built right next to New York's Grand Central. A curving wine museum requires ingenious engineering in Bordeaux, France. And possibly the world's most glamorous parking garage.

Mike joins crews as they build the world's longest railway tunnel in the Alps, fixing gridlock through the infamous Brenner Pass by drilling, blasting and digging their way through the mountains.

Going behind the scenes with the Panama Canal Railway; big track repairs, massive machines, and unrelenting deadlines.

A dazzling new 1400 foot tapering skyscraper is built right next to New York's Grand Central. A curving wine museum requires ingenious engineering in Bordeaux, France. And possibly the world's most glamorous parking garage.

Mike joins crews as they build the world's longest railway tunnel in the Alps, fixing gridlock through the infamous Brenner Pass by drilling, blasting and digging their way through the mountains.