This week, I had the opportunity to preview a new three-part series from the National Geographic Channel, Storm Worlds. It premieres Sunday, May 16, at 8 p.m. EDT. If you’re interested in all the craziness that exists in our solar system and what would happen if, hypothetically, Earth had some of the storm systems other planets have, this series will be right up your alley.
The first episode, Cosmic Fire, focuses on the power of our Sun and trying to understand the dangers it poses. Most of the 50-minute show discusses coronal mass ejections (CMEs), which send plasma blasts of solar wind through our solar system. A 1989 CME shut down all electric power in Quebec City. But the central theme of the episode is a CME 5 times the size of the 1989 one, which occurred September 1, 1859, and wiped out telegraph systems across the world. What would happen if such a storm hit us today? As the episode states, it “may be the largest natural disaster ever.” A little doomsday-esque? Yes. But CMEs that threaten Earth and its power and communication systems are a real possibility that scientists are studying as they try to better understand our home star.
Episode two, Alien Wind, is probably my favorite of the three. In this episode, we explore weather systems on the four gas giants and Saturn’s moon Titan. As we learn about each body’s weird effects (huge lightening storms, unbelievable winds, freezing temperatures), they simultaneously wreak havoc on San Francisco, which gives viewers the opportunity to better understand these systems by seeing how they would affect us if they were to occur on Earth. We also follow along with a few scientists as they use certain geographic areas on Earth to better understand the systems elsewhere in the solar system. But the conclusion of this episode was truly enlightening. Earth’s size plus its mountains, water, and abundant sunlight make it a weather anomaly. In terms of weather, we live on the most unpredictable planet.
The final episode, Deadly Dust, is all about Mars and what analogous dust movements we can find here on Earth. For example, did you know you can find African dust/sand particles during spring and autumn all the way in the Swiss Alps? We also head out to Nevada to chase dust devils with the Planetary Science Institute because these sandy cyclones also frequent dust storms on Mars. The difference? On Mars, they’re 5 times as wide and tower 5 miles high.
All in all, I thought it was 3 hours of quality programming, and I’d recommend you set your DVR Sunday night to check it out. After you do, let me know what you think of the series in the comments section below.