Smithsonian Channel

In less than 200 years, the Aztecs rose from nomadic origins to build the powerful empire of Tenochtitlan. Combining archaeology and stunning 3D reconstructions, this series reveals the rise and fall of a remarkable civilization.

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.

Mummy expert Ramy Romany investigates a mysterious underwater grave believed to be guarded by a Mayan serpent deity; when Ramy dives in, he uncovers evidence of biological warfare.

The remains of Tutankhamun's parents.

Mummy expert Ramy Romany investigates a mysterious underwater grave believed to be guarded by a Mayan serpent deity; when Ramy dives in, he uncovers evidence of biological warfare.

The remains of Tutankhamun's parents.

Mummy expert Ramy Romany investigates a mysterious underwater grave believed to be guarded by a Mayan serpent deity; when Ramy dives in, he uncovers evidence of biological warfare.

The remains of Tutankhamun's parents.

Visiting London's Gherkin, Seattle's Evergreen Point Floating Bridge and Lyon's Musée des Confluences to uncover how and why they were built.

In Philadelphia, Mike is on streets, in tunnels, on tracks and in trolley restoration garages; he is working shoulder-to-shoulder with the team that keeps one of America's largest and oldest mass transit systems running smoothly and on time.

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.

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.

Jeremy Birch takes on a salvage to raise a vessel with a concrete hull; it's been in the Fraser River for a month, collecting silt and mud, adding 30 tons to its deadweight.

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.

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.

Jeremy Birch takes on a salvage to raise a vessel with a concrete hull; it's been in the Fraser River for a month, collecting silt and mud, adding 30 tons to its deadweight.

Visiting Australia's One Central Park, the Oslo Opera House and the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco to reveal their architectural secrets.

Mike helps fix the vessels that the U.S. Coast Guard use to keep the oceans safe; he replaces key parts of ship engines, removes a large crane from a buoy tender, and fixes a helicopter for a critical exercise.

The Hawker Harrier flies as fast as a jet and hovers like a helicopter; uncover the groundbreaking technology behind this unique ability and how the Harrier became crucial for Britain in the Falklands War.

Customs agents intercept a grenade launcher smuggled into the U.S.; a blizzard threatens to cut off a remote island airport; warm winter weather turns a village runway to mud.

In Mexico's North, ancient runners defy impossible distances and living fossils reveal Earth's secrets; from Monterrey's industrial city to Guanajuato's revolutionary past, discover how mighty mountains forge unbreakable spirit.

Mummy expert Ramy Romany investigates a mysterious underwater grave believed to be guarded by a Mayan serpent deity; when Ramy dives in, he uncovers evidence of biological warfare.

The remains of Tutankhamun's parents.

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

The Sphinx, the Shroud of Turin, El Dorado, and other ancient mysteries.

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.

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

The Sphinx, the Shroud of Turin, El Dorado, and other ancient mysteries.

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.

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

The Sphinx, the Shroud of Turin, El Dorado, and other ancient mysteries.

Visiting Australia's One Central Park, the Oslo Opera House and the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco to reveal their architectural secrets.

Mike helps fix the vessels that the U.S. Coast Guard use to keep the oceans safe; he replaces key parts of ship engines, removes a large crane from a buoy tender, and fixes a helicopter for a critical exercise.

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.

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.

Chris Ward sets out with Josh Moreira and Ward's younger brother to salvage a light aircraft that's sitting on the seabed; Jeremy Birch braves the arctic conditions to salvage two vessels that have fallen prey to the crushing ice conditions.

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.

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.

Chris Ward sets out with Josh Moreira and Ward's younger brother to salvage a light aircraft that's sitting on the seabed; Jeremy Birch braves the arctic conditions to salvage two vessels that have fallen prey to the crushing ice conditions.

Exploring the design and engineering stories behind D.C.'s Museum of African American History, the Montreal Tower and the Equinor building in Oslo.

Mike helps fix the machines that keep one of the United States' biggest ports moving; he assists a team in moving a 3-million pound crane.

Mummy expert Ramy Romany investigates a mysterious underwater grave believed to be guarded by a Mayan serpent deity; when Ramy dives in, he uncovers evidence of biological warfare.

The remains of Tutankhamun's parents.

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

The Sphinx, the Shroud of Turin, El Dorado, and other ancient mysteries.

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.

The technological race intensifies as superpowers use imported German scientists for rockets and nukes; high-stakes intelligence relies on spy balloons and planes over the North Pole.

The history of the F-111 and how the fighter-bomber no one wanted went on to dominate both air and battlefields in the late 20th century.

First-hand accounts, re-creations and expert interviews of D-Day in 1944, where the Allied Forces of Britain, America, Canada and France attacked German forces on the coast of Normandy, France.

The technological race intensifies as superpowers use imported German scientists for rockets and nukes; high-stakes intelligence relies on spy balloons and planes over the North Pole.

The history of the F-111 and how the fighter-bomber no one wanted went on to dominate both air and battlefields in the late 20th century.

First-hand accounts, re-creations and expert interviews of D-Day in 1944, where the Allied Forces of Britain, America, Canada and France attacked German forces on the coast of Normandy, France.

The technological race intensifies as superpowers use imported German scientists for rockets and nukes; high-stakes intelligence relies on spy balloons and planes over the North Pole.

The history of the F-111 and how the fighter-bomber no one wanted went on to dominate both air and battlefields in the late 20th century.

Exploring the design and engineering stories behind D.C.'s Museum of African American History, the Montreal Tower and the Equinor building in Oslo.

Mike helps fix the machines that keep one of the United States' biggest ports moving; he assists a team in moving a 3-million pound crane.

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.

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.

Bundles of cedar wood tree trunks are smashed apart, releasing thousands of logs on the shoreline; Jeremy and his crew must work fast to recover the cargo.

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.

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.

Bundles of cedar wood tree trunks are smashed apart, releasing thousands of logs on the shoreline; Jeremy and his crew must work fast to recover the cargo.

The first great empire of the Akkadians, led by Sargon the Great, dominated the Fertile Crescent, replacing the Sumerians and extending its influence as far north as Syria and south as Oman.

Examine a unique silver scroll found in a collapsed Umayyad-period house in Jerash, Jordan; watch an advanced CT scanner penetrate its lead casing, revealing mysterious grooves and an enigmatic message that suggests it may be a protective amulet.

Deploy futuristic lidar technology to map the Amber Road, an ancient trade network linking the Baltic Sea to the Mediterranean. Follow researchers as they retrace the route and reshape our understanding of historical trade and cultural exchange.

Unlock the secrets of Newgrange, a 5,000-year-old Irish tomb aligned with the winter solstice sun; analyze DNA evidence that reveals a powerful, incestuous dynastic bloodline and suggests that this monument was built to honor a lost ruling class.

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

The technological race intensifies as superpowers use imported German scientists for rockets and nukes; high-stakes intelligence relies on spy balloons and planes over the North Pole.

The history of the F-111 and how the fighter-bomber no one wanted went on to dominate both air and battlefields in the late 20th century.

First-hand accounts, re-creations and expert interviews of D-Day in 1944, where the Allied Forces of Britain, America, Canada and France attacked German forces on the coast of Normandy, France.

President Harry Truman decides to drop the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki; Emperor Hirohito surrenders, and Gen. Douglas MacArthur arrives to oversee the country's occupation; mortal enemies must now become partners in Japan's rebirth.

In pursuit of their Aryan dream, the Nazis were encumbered by an ideological war from within that would undermine their ability to succeed in World War II.

Take a look at some of the escapes that took place during World War II.

President Harry Truman decides to drop the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki; Emperor Hirohito surrenders, and Gen. Douglas MacArthur arrives to oversee the country's occupation; mortal enemies must now become partners in Japan's rebirth.

In pursuit of their Aryan dream, the Nazis were encumbered by an ideological war from within that would undermine their ability to succeed in World War II.

Take a look at some of the escapes that took place during World War II.

President Harry Truman decides to drop the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki; Emperor Hirohito surrenders, and Gen. Douglas MacArthur arrives to oversee the country's occupation; mortal enemies must now become partners in Japan's rebirth.

In pursuit of their Aryan dream, the Nazis were encumbered by an ideological war from within that would undermine their ability to succeed in World War II.

Take a look at some of the escapes that took place during World War II.

Bundles of cedar wood tree trunks are smashed apart, releasing thousands of logs on the shoreline; Jeremy and his crew must work fast to recover the cargo.

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.

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.

Arctic conditions continue to wreak havoc in British Columbia; Jeremy Birch is called upon to raise a concrete-hulled vessel.

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.

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.

Arctic conditions continue to wreak havoc in British Columbia; Jeremy Birch is called upon to raise a concrete-hulled vessel.

The British Avro Vulcan pushes the boundaries of long-distance flying, completing one of the longest bombing raids in history during the 1982 Falklands War.

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.

Get to know the Supermarine Spitfire, which changed the fate of an entire nation in 1940; explore this legendary fighter's superior engineering and see how its revolutionary elliptical wings helped it emerge victorious in the Battle of Britain.

Salute the Boeing 747, a massive airliner designed to carry more passengers than was ever thought possible in the 1960s. Discover the engineering innovations and the high-stakes risks it took to bring the aptly named Queen of the Skies to life.

Racing to the top with the Concorde, the world's first supersonic passenger jet.

President Harry Truman decides to drop the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki; Emperor Hirohito surrenders, and Gen. Douglas MacArthur arrives to oversee the country's occupation; mortal enemies must now become partners in Japan's rebirth.

In pursuit of their Aryan dream, the Nazis were encumbered by an ideological war from within that would undermine their ability to succeed in World War II.

Take a look at some of the escapes that took place during World War II.

Witness amazing buildings, bridges, lifts, and other structures that pushed structural concrete engineering to the edge.

Mike joins the U.S. Marines' Heavy Haulers helicopter squadron and gets inside their battle to keep a fleet of souped-up Sikorsky CH-53E Super Stallion choppers flying as they prepare for intense war games in the desert and mountains.

Going under one of the world's largest lakes for a multi-million dollar tunnel boring project in one of the fastest growing cities on Earth.

Witness amazing buildings, bridges, lifts, and other structures that pushed structural concrete engineering to the edge.

Mike joins the U.S. Marines' Heavy Haulers helicopter squadron and gets inside their battle to keep a fleet of souped-up Sikorsky CH-53E Super Stallion choppers flying as they prepare for intense war games in the desert and mountains.