NASA's Unexplained Files (2012–…): Season 4, Episode 3 - NASA's Unexplained Files - full transcript
NASA Astronaut discusses the 1997 collision of the Progress into the Mir and the life and death struggle that followed. NASA OIG Senior Special Agent uncovers what the Russians are not telling NASA about the collision and the Mir.
NASA's MISSION
IS TO EXPLORE THE UNKNOWN.
WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT THE UNIVERSE
IS A TINY FRACTION
OF WHAT'S ACTUALLY OUT THERE.
IN THE SEARCH FOR ANSWERS,
IT LAUNCHES ITS SCIENTISTS
INTO SPACE,
ITS CRAFT BEYOND THE LIMITS
OF THE SOLAR SYSTEM.
WE HAVE NO IDEA
WHAT'S OUT THERE.
THERE MIGHT BE DANGERS
LURKING IN THE DARKNESS.
WE'VE RUN ACROSS MORE
MYSTERIES THAN DISCOVERIES.
WE DON'T KNOW WHAT
IT'S GONNA THROW AT US NEXT.
EVIDENCE OF LIFE
ON A FROZEN MOON...
WHEN WE SAW THIS
ACTIVITY ON ENCELADUS,
I STOPPED CALLING IT A MOON.
I STARTED CALLING IT A WORLD.
...A MYSTERIOUS OBJECT
FLIES ON A COLLISION COURSE
WITH A DANGEROUS ASTEROID...
SO WHAT IS IT?
IS IT AN ALIEN SPACECRAFT?
...AND CLOSE ENCOUNTERS
OF THE PRESIDENTIAL KIND.
THE GUY WHO SAW
AND REPORTED THE UFO
WAS THE FUTURE PRESIDENT
OF THE UNITED STATES.
THESE ARE...
NASA's Unexplained Files - SEASON 4
EP - 3 - A President's Close Encounter
Subtitles Diego Moraes
DISASTER STRIKES RUSSIA'S MIR
SPACE STATION.
HE'S COMING IN WAY TOO FAST.
IMMEDIATELY START YELLING,
"BRAKE, BRAKE, BRAKE!"
HE SLAMS INTO THE SOLAR PANELS.
THE IMPACT RIPS
A HOLE IN THE HULL.
OXYGEN IS LEAKING
FROM THE STATION.
IT'S A SERIOUS, SERIOUS PROBLEM.
THEY'VE GOT MINUTES
TO FIND THE BREACH
AND FIX IT, OR THEY'RE DEAD.
IN 1997,
NASA ASTRONAUT MIKE FOALE JOINS
TWO COSMONAUTS ON A JOINT
U.S./RUSSIA MISSION
ON BOARD THE MIR SPACE STATION.
MIR IS THE PRIDE
OF THE RUSSIAN SPACE PROGRAM.
IT'S ALSO THE ONLY OPERATIONAL
MANNED SPACE STATION.
THOUGH THE COLD WAR IS OVER,
THE RUSSIANS KEEP TIGHT CONTROL
ON ALL ASPECTS OF THE MISSION.
IN SECRET, THEY DECIDE
TO TRY OUT SOMETHING
THEY HAVE NOT TOLD NASA ABOUT.
ON THIS MISSION, RUSSIA DECIDES
ON ITS OWN, UNILATERALLY,
TO TEST ITS MANUAL
DOCKING SYSTEM.
MOSCOW'S MISSION CONTROL ORDERS
MIR'S CREW TO TURN OFF
THE AUTOMATED DOCKING SYSTEM
ON THE RESUPPLY VEHICLE
AND ATTEMPT
TO RE-DOCK IT MANUALLY.
THEY'RE PUTTING THE MIR
IN DANGER.
MICHAEL FOALE DOESN'T KNOW
WHAT'S ABOUT TO HAPPEN.
COSMONAUT VASILY TSIBLIYEV
IS TASKED WITH THE PROCEDURE.
HE DECOUPLES THEIR UNMANNED
CARGO SHIP, PROGRESS,
AND SENDS IT OUT INTO SPACE
BEFORE TRYING
TO STEER IT BACK REMOTELY.
ON THE PROGRESS VESSEL,
THERE'S A CAMERA.
SO YOU'RE SEEING THE VIEW
AS IF YOU'RE SITTING
IN THE PROGRESS SPACE SHIP
AS IT COMES IN.
IN ADDITION TO THE CAMERA,
A RADAR FEED GIVES
TSIBLIYEV SPEED
AND DISTANCE READINGS
FROM THE INCOMING CRAFT.
BUT THE GUIDANCE SYSTEM
IS RUDIMENTARY.
THE FEED FROM THE CAMERAS
KEEPS CUTTING OUT.
RUSSIAN MISSION CONTROL DECIDES
THAT THE RADAR IS INTERFERING
WITH THE VIDEO FEED.
THEY'RE ASKED TO TURN IT OFF.
BUT THE RADAR THE THING
THAT IS CALCULATING THE SPEED
AND DISTANCE FROM THE MIR.
WITHOUT THE RADAR,
TSIBLIYEV MUST DEPEND ENTIRELY
ON THE POOR VIDEO FEED.
THE VIDEO FEED ISN'T EXACTLY HD.
THE ANGLE OF THE APPROACH MEANS
THAT, ON PROGRESS' CAMERA,
MIR APPEARS INDISTINGUISHABLE
FROM THE CLOUDS BELOW.
HE'S REALLY NOT QUITE SURE IF
HE'S LOOKING AT THE SPACESHIP
OR IF HE'S LOOKING AT A CLOUD.
IT'S A VERY,
VERY DIFFICULT TASK.
AND I TELL YOU, I DON'T WANT
TO BE DOING THAT TASK.
IT'S WAY, WAY TOO DIFFICULT
FOR MOST PEOPLE TO HANDLE.
HE'S BASICALLY FLYING BLIND.
FOALE AND THE OTHER COSMONAUT
TRY TO ASSIST TSIBLIYEV BY
POINTING MANUAL RANGE FINDERS
OUT THE STATION'S WINDOWS.
HE'S TRYING TO DRIVE
IT IN FROM A DISTANCE...
FIRING THRUSTERS, PEOPLE
LOOKING OUT PORTHOLE WINDOWS
TRYING TO TELL HIM
HOW THE VEHICLE'S REACTING.
BUT THEIR VIEW
OF THE APPROACHING SHIP
IS BLOCKED
BY MIR'S SOLAR PANELS.
THE PROGRESS
VEHICLE'S COMING IN,
COMING IN, COMING IN.
ALL OF A SUDDEN,
IT'S RIGHT ON TOP OF THEM.
IMMEDIATELY START YELLING,
"BRAKE, BRAKE, BRAKE!"
IT'S TOO LATE TO DO ANYTHING.
THE PROGRESS HITS A SOLAR PANEL.
THAT IMMEDIATELY GETS
THE SPACE STATION SPINNING.
BUT THEN A LARGE CLUNK SOUND
AS IT LITERALLY HITS A MODULE
AND THEN FINALLY CAREENS
OFF INTO SPACE.
SUDDENLY, THE DECOMPRESSION
ALARM GOES OFF,
WHICH MEANS THAT THE MIR
HAS BEEN PUNCTURED AND AIR
IS ESCAPING INTO SPACE.
THE CREW REALIZE
THEY ARE IN MORTAL DANGER.
PRECIOUS AIR IS HISSING OUT
INTO SPACE THROUGH THE BREACH.
RIGHT AWAY, YOU DO
A QUICK CALCULATION.
IS THIS A SMALL LEAK?
DO WE HAVE 24 HOURS
BEFORE IT'S GONNA BE
LIFE-THREATENING?
WHEN THEY DID THAT CALCULATION,
THEY'VE GOT LESS THAN 5 MINUTES.
THE CREW SCRAMBLE TO
LOCATE THE SOURCE OF THE LEAK.
THE LIFE-SUSTAINING
ATMOSPHERE IS BLEEDING OUT.
THEY ONLY HAVE MINUTES
TO REPAIR IT OR THEY'RE DEAD.
THE TEAM DISCOVER THE AIR
IS WHISTLING OUT OF A TEAR
IN THE SIDE
OF THE SPEKTR SCIENCE MODULE.
THEIR ONLY CHOICE IS TO SEAL OFF
THE MODULE AND TO DO IT QUICKLY.
THERE'S A LOT OF WIRES
GOING THROUGH THE HATCH.
MIR'S WIRING IS A MESS
OF POORLY-RIGGED CABLES,
SNAKING BETWEEN MODULES,
BLOCKING THE AIR-LOCKED DOORS.
IF THEY TAKE THE TIME
TO UNPLUG IT, THEY'RE DEAD.
FINALLY HAD TO CUT IT,
YOU KNOW, SPARKS FLYING.
THE CREW CLOSE THE HATCH,
PRESERVING THEIR PRECIOUS
OXYGEN SUPPLY.
NOW THEY HAVE A WHOLE
NEW SET OF PROBLEMS.
THE CRAFT IS SPINNING
UNCONTROLLABLY.
THE SOLAR PANELS
THAT POWER THE STATION
AREN'T CATCHING THE SUN.
CRITICAL EQUIPMENT IS
STARTING TO SHUT DOWN.
POWER IS RUNNING OUT.
THE CREW HAS NO WAY
OF CONTACTING GROUND CONTROL.
THEY'RE CUT OFF FROM ALL HELP.
MIR IS OUT OF POWER.
IT'S STARTING TO
GET DANGEROUSLY COLD.
IT'S EFFECTIVELY DEAD IN SPACE.
UNABLE TO POWER MIR'S THRUSTERS,
THE CREW HAS NO WAY TO STABILIZE
THE SPINNING CRAFT.
THEY'VE GOT TO STOP THAT SPIN,
OR IT'S ALL OVER.
JUNE 1997.
AN EXPERIMENTAL DOCKING MANEUVER
INVOLVING THE MIR SPACE
STATION HAS GONE BADLY WRONG.
THE COLLISION LEAVES
IT SPINNING OUT OF CONTROL.
NASA ASTRONAUT MIKE FOALE
AND HIS RUSSIAN CREW MATES
COME UP WITH A DESPERATE PLAN.
THEIR ONLY OPTION
IS TO FIRE THE THRUSTERS
OF THE SOYUZ SHUTTLE TO COUNTER
THE SPIN OF THE STATION.
USING A SOYUZ CAPSULE
IS A HUGE GAMBLE.
IT'S THEIR ONLY RIDE HOME.
IF THEY USE TOO MUCH FUEL,
THEY'LL NEVER GET HOME.
IF THEIR PLAN DOESN'T WORK,
THEY'RE STRANDED IN SPACE.
WITH ABSOLUTELY NO GUIDANCE
EQUIPMENT AVAILABLE,
FOALE HAS TO GO OLD SCHOOL
AND USE NAUTICAL KNOWLEDGE
AND THE STARS
TO GUIDE HIM AND CALCULATE
THE SPIN RATE OF THE STATION.
FOALE HOLDS HIS THUMB
TO THE VIEWING PORT
AS A MEASURING STICK
TO GAUGE THEIR RATE OF SPIN
AGAINST THE HORIZON.
FOALE IS SHOUTING THESE
MEASUREMENTS TO HIS COLLEAGUE,
WHO IS CONTROLLING
THE SOYUZ THRUSTERS.
AND OVER A COURSE OF 4 HOURS
OF TRIAL AND ERROR,
THEY'RE EVENTUALLY ABLE
TO STABILIZE THE MIR
AND GET THE SOLAR PANELS
PARTIALLY WORKING AGAIN.
AS MIR FINALLY COMES TO REST,
THE SOLAR CELL BEGINS TO CHARGE,
POWERING UP THE STATION
AND REPLENISHING
THEIR PRECIOUS OXYGEN SUPPLY.
THE CREW ARE SAFE.
BACK ON EARTH, NASA
DEMANDS AN EXPLANATION
FOR THE NEAR CATASTROPHE.
NASA DID NOT KNOW THAT THIS
MANUAL DOCKING WAS TAKING PLACE.
AND THEY'RE NOT HAPPY
THAT THEIR ASTRONAUT'S LIFE
WAS PUT IN DANGER.
THE RUSSIANS TRY
TO PLACE THE BLAME
ON THEIR COSMONAUT, TSIBLIYEV.
BUT NASA IS DEEPLY SUSPICIOUS.
IT LAUNCHES AN INVESTIGATION
HEADED UP BY SPECIAL
AGENT JOE GUTHEINZ.
OUR INVESTIGATION
REVEALED THAT THERE
WERE SERIOUS PROBLEMS
WITH THE MIR
AND THE RUSSIAN SPACE PROGRAM.
THOUGH THE COLD WAR IS OVER,
IT IS CLEAR THAT THE RUSSIANS
HAVEN'T BEEN
TOTALLY OPEN WITH NASA.
IT APPEARS THAT THE RISKY
DOCKING PROCEDURE
WAS A CRAZY SCHEME TO CUT COSTS.
THE RUSSIANS WANTED
TO SAVE A LITTLE MONEY.
THEY DIDN'T WANT TO
EQUIP THIS THING
WITH THIS AUTOMATIC
DOCKING DEVICE,
WHICH WAS BUILT IN THE UKRAINE
AND COST THEM HARD CASH.
THE ENTIRE DOCKING MANEUVER
IT SHOULD NEVER
HAVE BEEN ATTEMPTED.
AND IT CERTAINLY SHOULD HAVE
HAD A GROUND SIMULATION FIRST,
EVEN IF IT WAS ATTEMPTED.
IT WAS A DISASTER
WAITING TO HAPPEN.
WHAT THEY WERE DOING WAS
THEY WERE EXPERIMENTING IN SPACE
WITH ALREADY A VERY SHAKY
AND UNRELIABLE MIR
SPACE STATION.
IT WAS CRAZY.
NASA ONLY ALLOWS ITS ASTRONAUTS
TO CONTINUE TRAINING ON MIR
ON THE CONDITION
THAT IT HAS GREATER
OVERSIGHT OVER THE MISSIONS.
ALTHOUGH THE AGED SPACE STATION
STILL POSES A RISK
TO ASTRONAUT LIVES,
THE EXPERIENCE THEY GAIN PAVES
THE WAY FOR THE NEXT STEPS
IN THE MANNED
EXPLORATION OF SPACE.
A NASA PROBE DIVES
DOWN TO A WORLD
IN SEARCH OF ALIEN LIFE.
WHEN WE SAW THIS
ACTIVITY ON ENCELADUS,
I STOPPED CALLING IT A MOON.
I STARTED CALLING IT A WORLD.
COULD EXTRA-TERRESTRIAL LIFE
HAVE BEEN IN OUR OWN
BACKYARD ALL ALONG?
THE MISSION HAS NEW GOALS NOW.
THE MISSION IS GOING
TO STUDY ENCELADUS.
IN 2005, NASA'S
BILLION-DOLLAR PROBE, CASSINI,
IS ON A FLYBY PAST SATURN
WHEN IT CAPTURES IMAGES
OF SOMETHING UNUSUAL
ON THE ICY MOON, ENCELADUS.
THERE ARE WHAT SEEM TO BE
BRIGHT LIGHTS COMING
FROM ENCELADUS' SOUTH POLE,
SHINING OUT INTO SPACE.
ENORMOUS
PLUMES OF A MYSTERIOUS VAPOR
ARE JETTING FROM
THE FROZEN MOON'S SOUTH POLE.
THEY LOOK SO LIKE THE GEOTHERMAL
ERUPTIONS FOUND ON EARTH
THAT SCIENTISTS IMMEDIATELY
CALL THEM GEYSERS.
THERE WERE GEYSERS SHOOTING OUT
FROM THE SIDE OF THIS
TINY LITTLE MOON.
THE PLUMES ABOVE ENCELADUS
ARE MORE THAN 8,000 TIMES LARGER
THAN ANY GEYSER FOUND
ON OUR PLANET.
SO HERE WE HAVE THESE GEYSERS
SPEWING 150 MILES INTO SPACE,
WHICH IS THE DISTANCE
FROM SAN DIEGO TO LOS ANGELES.
WE KNOW RIGHT AWAY THAT
ENCELADUS IS AN ACTIVE WORLD.
SPECTACULAR.
THIS IS A HUGE DISCOVERY.
IF THERE IS WATER
FLOWING ON ENCELADUS,
IT BECOMES A WORLD
WHERE LIFE CAN EXIST.
NASA RIPS UP CASSINI'S
ORIGINAL MISSION PLAN.
ONCE NASA SCIENTISTS SEE
WHAT'S HAPPENING ON ENCELADUS,
EVERYTHING CHANGES.
THE MISSION HAS NEW GOALS NOW.
THE MISSION IS GOING
TO STUDY ENCELADUS.
THE NEW MISSION
BRINGS NEW PROBLEMS.
CASSINI WAS DESIGNED
TO OBSERVE PLANETS
FROM DISTANT ORBITS,
NOT TO COLLECT SAMPLES
AND ANALYZE UNIDENTIFIED
SUBSTANCES.
THE CASSINI TEAM BASICALLY
REDESIGNED THE MISSION
SO THAT THEY COULD FLY
THROUGH THE PLUMES.
CASSINI IS
800 MILLION MILES FROM EARTH.
TO MAKE THIS WORK,
NASA'S MISSION
CONTROL MUST COMPLETELY
REBUILD ITS SOFTWARE REMOTELY.
BY REPURPOSING THE INSTRUMENTS
THAT WERE ON THE SPACECRAFT,
WE'VE REALLY ADAPTED
THE SPACECRAFT
TO BE ABLE TO DO SOMETHING
THAT WE NEVER REALLY
INTENDED IT TO DO.
THEY'RE GOING TO BUZZ
THE SURFACE OF ENCELADUS,
FLY RIGHT THROUGH THE PLUMES
AND SEE WHAT THEY'RE
MADE OUT OF.
NASA'S MANTRA
IN THE QUEST FOR LIFE
ANYWHERE IN THE UNIVERSE
IS "FOLLOW THE WATER."
COULD THESE MYSTERIOUS
PLUMES BE MADE OF WATER?
AND COULD THIS WATER
HARBOR ALIEN BIOLOGY?
WHERE THERE'S LIQUID WATER,
THAT'S ONE OF THE KEY STEPS
TO FINDING POTENTIAL LIFE.
THE SCIENTISTS ARE LOOKING
FOR THREE KEY CONDITIONS
THAT LED TO LIFE ON EARTH...
LIQUID WATER,
A HIGH SALT CONTENT,
AND EVIDENCE
OF A HOT ACTIVE CORE
DEEP BENEATH THE SEA.
AFTER 3 YEARS
OF INTENSE REPROGRAMMING,
THE PROBE IS FINALLY
READY TO SKIM
THE SURFACE OF SATURN'S
SIXTH LARGEST MOON.
NASA'S BILLION-DOLLAR PROBE
COULD FINALLY ANSWER
THE QUESTION
OF WHETHER THERE
IS LIFE BEYOND EARTH,
IF IT SURVIVES THE CLOSE
ENCOUNTER WITH ENCELADUS.
AT 32,000 MILES PER HOUR,
NASA'S CASSINI PROBE DIVES
THROUGH THE GEYSERS OF ENCELADUS
IN SEARCH FOR LIFE-GIVING WATER.
ONE OF 22 SORTIES
OVER THE FROZEN WORLD.
WHEN CASSINI FLEW
THROUGH THE PLUMES
THAT ARE SHOOTING
OUT OF ENCELADUS,
IT ACTUALLY HAD A CHANCE
TO TASTE THESE PLUMES,
TO SMELL THEM,
TO SEE WHAT THEY'RE MADE OUT OF.
AFTER AN AGONIZING
WAIT, THE DATA CONFIRMS
THAT THE GEYSERS ERUPTING
FROM THE ICY MOON
ARE LIQUID WATER.
THE DISCOVERY OF THESE
ICY WATER VAPOR JETS
ON ENCELADUS
IS PROBABLY THE MOST IMPORTANT
DISCOVERY OF
THE ENTIRE CASSINI MISSION.
BUT WATER IS ONLY
THE FIRST INGREDIENT FOR LIFE.
THE OTHER ESSENTIAL COMPONENTS
ARE SALT AND HEAT.
GOING DEEPER INTO THE PLUME,
THE SPACECRAFT
COLLECTED PARTICLES AND SHOWED
THAT THEY HAD SALT IN THEM.
THAT'S A BIG DEAL.
SCIENTISTS BELIEVE SALT
INTERACTING WITH CHEMICALS
FROM UNDERWATER VOLCANOES
COULD BE HOW ALL LIFE BEGINS.
THERE'S CHEMISTRY
THAT HAPPENS WHEN WATER,
ESPECIALLY SALTY WATER,
IS IN CONTACT
WITH A ROCKY SURFACE.
THE WATER INSIDE ENCELADUS
THAT'S BEING SPRAYED OUT
INTO SPACE HAS A SALINITY
THAT MATCHES EARTH'S OCEANS.
THAT'S HUGE.
FURTHER READINGS REVEAL,
THE OCEANS ON ENCELADUS
ARE ASTONISHINGLY
SIMILAR TO OUR OWN.
THERE WERE ELEMENTS IN THE PLUME
THAT CLEARLY SHOWED
THAT THE WATER
IN THE OCEAN WAS HYDROTHERMAL.
SOMETHING WITHIN ENCELADUS
IS HEATING THE WATER.
HEAT IS THE FINAL
MISSING INGREDIENT
IN THE QUEST FOR LIFE,
THE CATALYST
FOR THE CHAIN REACTION
THAT KICK-STARTED LIFE ON EARTH.
IT'S GOT EVERYTHING
WE WERE HOPING TO FIND.
IT'S GOT EVIDENCE
OF LIQUID WATER,
ORGANICS, NITROGEN,
ENERGY SOURCE.
IT WAS... IT WAS UNBELIEVABLE.
IT'S NOT JUST WATER, IT'S...
IT'S THE SOUP THAT WE THINK
WAS CREATIVE OF LIFE.
IF THERE'S A RECIPE FOR LIFE,
ENCELADUS HAS IT.
WHEN WE SAW THIS
ACTIVITY ON ENCELADUS,
I STOPPED CALLING IT A MOON.
I STARTED CALLING IT A WORLD.
IT IS NOW POSSIBLE
THAT WE WILL ENCOUNTER
ALIEN LIFE ON ANOTHER WORLD,
ONE ACCESSIBLE WITH EXISTING
HUMAN TECHNOLOGY.
BASED ON THE HISTORY
OF LIFE ON EARTH,
WE SHOULD HAVE EVERY
REASON TO EXPECT
THAT THERE SHOULD BE LIFE
ON ENCELADUS.
BUT ENCELADUS IS A VERY DI
WE CAN ONLY SPECULATE
WHAT FORM LIFE WILL TAKE THERE,
AND HOW ADVANCED IT MAY BE.
THESE OCEANS WOULD BE
DARK AND FOREBODING.
THERE MAY BE CREATURES,
IF THEY'RE LIVING IN THERE,
THAT LIGHT UP.
CREATURES THAT PROTECT
THEMSELVES OR HUNT
WITH LITTLE FLUORESCENT LIGHTS.
OR THIS COULD BE AN OCEAN
WHERE NOTHING HAS EYES.
THERE'S NO LIGHT.
NOTHING CAN SEE.
BUT THERE'S OTHER WAYS
THEY COULD SURVIVE.
NASA'S PLANNING
A BRAND NEW MISSION
TO SEEK OUT LIFE
ON THIS STRANGE NEW WORLD.
THIS TIME, THE PROBE
WILL BE DESIGNED
SPECIFICALLY FOR THE TASK.
RIGHT NOW, I SPEND
MY DAYS PLANNING
FOR A MISSION TO ENCELADUS.
FOR ME, PERSONALLY,
THIS IS THE CULMINATION
OF EVERYTHING I'VE DONE.
FOR EXOBIOLOGISTS
LIKE CHRIS McKAY,
IT'S HARD TO UNDERESTIMATE
HOW PROFOUND
THE DISCOVERY OF LIFE COULD BE.
IN A WAY, IT FEELS LIKE
ALL THE RESEARCH I'VE DONE
UP TO NOW HAS BEEN
IN PREPARATION
FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY.
IT'S AN AMAZING
POSSIBILITY THAT,
IN 10 YEARS OR SO FROM NOW,
WE'LL HAVE GONE FROM ONE
TO TWO EXAMPLES OF LIFE
IN OUR SOLAR SYSTEM.
AND THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN
ONE AND TWO IS PROFOUND.
AN ASTEROID HURTLES
THROUGH OUR SOLAR SYSTEM,
HEADING TOWARDS THE EARTH.
IT LOOKS LIKE IT'S ON
A COLLISION COURSE.
IT COULD WIPE OUT SPECIES
ACROSS THE BOARD.
NASA RADAR SCANS
OF THE DEADLY THREAT
REVEAL SOMETHING
TOTALLY UNEXPECTED.
THERE'S AN OBJECT FLYING
STRAIGHT TOWARDS THAT ASTEROID.
WHATEVER IT IS,
IT'S COME OUT OF NOWHERE.
PERHAPS NASA'S
MOST IMPORTANT JOB
IS TO PROTECT PLANET EARTH
FROM EXTRATERRESTRIAL THREATS.
IT MONITORS SPACE
FOR LARGE ASTEROIDS
THAT MIGHT DESTROY
LIFE ON EARTH.
ALL WE HAVE TO DO IS LOOK
TO SEE WHAT HAPPENED
TO THE DINOSAURS
65 MILLION YEARS AGO
WHEN AN ASTEROID HIT THE EARTH
AND WIPED THEM OUT.
THERE ARE CURRENTLY
14,000 OBJECTS
FLYING CLOSE TO THE EARTH.
THOSE THAT TRAVEL
WITHIN 5 MILLION MILES
ARE CLASSIFIED AS
POTENTIALLY HAZARDOUS.
IN JANUARY 2015,
NASA SPOTS AN ASTEROID LESS
THAN 1 MILLION MILES
FROM OUR PLANET.
IT'S 1,100 FEET WIDE,
THE SIZE OF A SUPERTANKER.
AN IMPACT WOULD HAVE
DEVASTATING EFFECTS.
ASTRONOMERS
GIVE THE POTENTIAL KILLER
THE DESIGNATION "2004 BL86."
IF IT HIT THE OCEAN,
IT WOULD CAUSE A HUGE TSUNAMI.
IF IT HIT THE GROUND,
IT WOULD CAUSE A LARGE CRATER
AND THROW ALL THAT
DUST UP INTO THE ATMOSPHERE.
AND IT COULD CHANGE THE WEATHER
ON THE EARTH FOR YEARS TO COME.
AN IMPACT FROM A BODY
OF THIS SIZE IS EQUIVALENT
TO 750 MEGATONS
OF EXPLOSIVE MATERIAL.
NASA TURNS ITS GOLDSTONE RADAR
ON THE ASTEROID
TO TRACK ITS TRAJECTORY.
THE DATA COMES IN.
THE ASTEROID WILL MISS
THE EARTH BY A NARROW MARGIN.
WHEN SCIENTISTS FURTHER
ANALYZE THE RADAR IMAGES,
THEY FIND SOMETHING
TOTALLY UNEXPECTED.
THE RADAR IMAGES SHOW A STRANGE,
BRIGHT OBJECT HEADING
TOWARDS THE ASTEROID.
THE OBJECT LOOKS
KIND OF ELONGATED,
CIGAR-SHAPED ALMOST.
WHATEVER IT IS,
IT CAME OUT OF NOWHERE.
THE MYSTERY OBJECT'S
TRAJECTORY CAUSES ALARM.
IT'S FLYING STRAIGHT
TOWARDS THAT ASTEROID.
IT LOOKS LIKE IT'S
ON A COLLISION COURSE.
WHAT IS IT?
NASA RADAR SCANS HAVE DETECTED
A MYSTERIOUS OBJECT
APPROACHING THE EARTH
ASTEROID 2004 BL86.
COULD IT BE ANOTHER ASTEROID?
ASTEROIDS DO RUN INTO ONE
ANOTHER EVERY NOW AND THEN.
THERE ARE CRATERS ON ASTEROIDS. CLEARLY,
THEY GET HIT.
AND THEY HIT EACH OTHER.
THIS CLOSE TO
THE EARTH, ASTEROIDS ARE RARE,
TYPICALLY SEPARATED BY
HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS OF MILES.
SO THE CHANCES OF US
SEEING TWO ASTEROIDS
ABOUT TO COLLIDE
WITH ONE ANOTHER WERE,
ESSENTIALLY, CLOSE TO ZERO.
THE VIDEO CUTS OUT
BEFORE A POTENTIAL IMPACT.
THE INITIAL RADAR
SCAN ONLY CAPTURES
8 SECONDS OF FOOTAGE.
THE MYSTERIOUS OBJECT
LOOKS SUSPICIOUSLY
LIKE A MISSILE
HEADING TOWARDS THE ROCK.
IF NASA DISCOVERS AN ASTEROID
ON A COLLISION COURSE
WITH EARTH,
ONE OF THE POTENTIAL WAYS
TO STOP IT IS TO SEND
A MISSILE TO BLOW IT UP.
BUT WHATEVER THE OBJECT IS,
IT DOESN'T SEEM TO HARM
THE ASTEROID IN ANY WAY.
WE DID NOT OBSERVE A COLLISION.
THE MAIN OBJECT SEEMED
TO CONTINUE ON IT'S COURSE
AFTER THE SMALLER ONE SOMEHOW
DISAPPEARED FROM THE RADAR.
ANALYSIS OF THE FOOTAGE PROVES
THE OBJECT CANNOT BE A MISSILE.
THIS VIDEO THAT
YOU'RE SEEING WAS CREATED
WITH ONLY 20 IMAGES.
AND THOSE 20 IMAGES
WERE ACQUIRED OVER A FULL DAY.
SO IT'S CERTAINLY NOT A
FAST-MOVING MISSILE OF ANY KIND.
IT'S ACTUALLY
MOVING FAIRLY SLOWLY.
SO WHAT IS IT?
IS IT A SPACECRAFT?
NO NATIONAL SPACE AGENCY ADMITS
TO LAUNCHING A PROBE
TARGETED AT THIS ROCK.
BUT NATIONALLY FUNDED
SCIENCE INSTITUTIONS
ARE NOT THE ONLY ONES
WITH THEIR SIGHTS
SET ON ASTEROIDS.
TO A NEW BREED OF BUSINESSES,
ASTEROIDS MEAN BIG BUCKS.
COULD THEY BE PROBING
EARTH-BOUND ASTEROIDS IN SECRET?
ASTEROIDS ARE FULL
OF VALUABLE ELEMENTS.
THINGS LIKE SILVER,
GOLD, PLATINUM, TITANIUM.
IT IS ESTIMATED THAT
SOME ASTEROIDS COULD BE WORTH
AS MUCH AS 100 TRILLION DOLLARS.
ENGINEER GRANT BONIN
IS CURRENTLY WORKING
ON AN ASTEROID MINING
PROJECT CALLED DRAGONFLY.
ASTEROID MINING ISN'T THE
STUFF OF SCIENC
IN FACT, THERE IS AN ENTIRE
INDUSTRY NOW OF COMPANIES
THAT ARE BEGINNING TO DEVELOP
THE TECHNOLOGIES REQUIRED
TO BEGIN TO HARVEST SPACE
RESOURCES FROM ASTEROIDS,
FROM COMETS, FROM THE MOON,
FOR USE IN SPACE.
BUT NONE OF THESE COMPANIES
WANTS TO HIDE
WHAT THEY'RE DOING.
IF A COMPANY COULD
SUCCESSFULLY MINE AN ASTEROID,
ITS REPUTATION WOULD GO
THROUGH THE ROOF.
WHY WOULD THEY KEEP THAT SECRET?
TO DATE, NO HUMAN
ORGANIZATION HAS THE ABILITY
TO CONDUCT MINING
OPERATIONS IN SPACE.
WHILE WE'RE WORKING
ON EXPLOITING THE RESOURCES
OF ASTEROIDS IN THE FUTURE,
WE'RE NOT THERE YET.
THIS IS SOMETHING
THE COMPANIES ARE WORKING ON
TO ACCOMPLISH
WITHIN THE NEXT DECADE.
AND SO THIS IMAGE
DOESN'T SHOW US ANY NATION
OR COMPANY ON ITS WAY
TO EXPLORING
THE RESOURCES OF AN ASTEROID.
FURTHER SCANS OF THE
ASTEROID SPARK A NEW THEORY
ABOUT THE MYSTERY OBJECT.
FOOTAGE FROM A LATER
OBSERVATIONAL PASS SHOWS
THE OBJECT STILL IN THE
VICINITY OF THE ASTEROID,
BUT APPEARING TO CROSS ITS FACE.
THIS MOVEMENT PRESENTS
AN INTRIGUING NEW POSSIBILITY.
WE KNOW THAT MANY
OF THESE ASTEROIDS
ARE JUST
LOOSELY-HELD RUBBLE PILES.
SO THE FASTER THEY ROTATE,
THERE'S THE CHANCE
THAT ONE OF THESE
LOOSELY-HELD RUBBLE PILE PIECES
WILL FLY OFF
AND THEN BECOME A MOON
TO THE CENTRAL ASTEROID.
AN ASTEROID WITH ITS OWN MOONS
MAY SOUND STRANGE,
BUT IT CAN HAPPEN.
WHEN WE THINK OF MOONS,
WE THINK OF GIANT,
GIANT CELESTIAL BODIES.
THINGS THAT ARE
BASICALLY PLANETS.
BUT IT'S REALLY COOL TO THINK
THAT ASTEROIDS LIKE THIS,
THEY CAN HAVE TINY
MOONS OF THEIR OWN.
NASA CONTINUES TO
MONITOR THE APPROACHING ROCK,
AND LATER FOOTAGE APPEARS TO
CONFIRM THE MOON HYPOTHESIS.
VIEWED FROM A DIFFERENT
PERSPECTIVE,
THE OBJECT CAN CLEARLY BE
SEEN ORBITING THE ASTEROID.
THE DISCOVERY OF THE MOON
SOLVES THE MYSTERY.
BUT IT ALSO RAISES
THE DISTURBING POSSIBILITY
THAT ASTEROIDS
COULD BE MORE DEADLY
THAN ANYONE EVER IMAGINED.
SO THIS REVELATION
SHOULD REALLY CAUSE US S
'CAUSE IT'S GONNA TURN A SINGLE
ASTEROID IMPACT INTO SOMETHING
THAT'S NOT JUST A RIFLE SHOT.
IT'S GONNA BE
A MACHINE GUN EFFECT.
THAT'S GOING TO
INCREASE THE THREAT
THAT WE ACTUALLY FACE
FROM IMPACTS FROM ASTEROIDS.
A PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES
ASKS TO SEE
SECRET FILES ON UFOs.
WILL YOU TELL THE TRUTH TO THE
AMERICAN PEOPLE ABOUT UFOS?
THE CIA REFUSES.
THE PRESIDENT
OF THE UNITED STATES
DOESN'T HAVE ACCESS
TO EVERYTHING.
YOU HAVE NO NEED TO KNOW.
EVEN THOUGH YOU'RE
THE COMMANDER IN CHIEF.
WHY IS THE PRESIDENT
SO INTERESTED IN UFOs,
AND WHAT ARE
HIS AGENCIES HIDING?
OCTOBER 1969.
A YOUNG POLITICIAN IS LEAVING A
FUND-RAISING EVENT IN GEORGIA
WHEN HE SPOTS A LARGE,
EERIE OBJECT GLOWING
IN THE EVENING SKY.
WHEN HE LOOKS UP IN
THE SKY AND HE SEES AN OBJECT,
IT'S AN OBJECT THAT IS BIG.
IT'S BIGGER THAN THE MOON.
AND HE THINKS TO HIMSELF,
"THAT'S THE DARNDEST THING
I EVER SAW."
THERE IS NO
REASONABLE EXPLANATION
FOR THE STRANGE OBJECT
HE IS SEEING IN THE SKY.
IT TRULY IS SOMETHING
HE CAN'T IDENTIFY.
IT'S FLASHING,
IT'S MOVING NEAR TO HIM
AND MOVING FURTHER AWAY.
HE'S SURE HE'S SEEN A UFO.
THE WITNESS IS SO
DISTURBED BY WHAT HE'S SEEING,
HE FILES A REPORT WITH
THE NATIONAL INVESTIGATIONS
COMMITTEE ON AERIAL PHENOMENA,
NICAP, AND THE INTERNATIONAL
UFO BUREAU.
THESE TWO AGENCIES, AT THE TIME,
WERE PROFESSIONAL INVESTIGATORS
MADE UP OF SCIENTISTS
AND ASTRONOMERS.
AND THIS IS THE VERY
TYPE OF OBJECT
THAT THEY WOULD
HAVE INVESTIGATED.
THE REPORT SOUNDS
LIKE MANY OTHER UFO SIGHTINGS.
BUT IT'S NOT.
WHAT MAKES THIS REPORT
STAND OUT IS THE IDENTITY
OF THE WITNESS.
YOU CAN STILL SEE THE DOCUMENT
OF THE SIGHTINGS ONLINE.
AND THE WITNESS HAS SIGNED
HIS NAME, JIMMY CARTER.
YEAH, THE GUY WHO SAW
AND REPORTED THE UFO
WAS THE FUTURE PRESIDENT
OF THE UNITED STATES,
JIMMY CARTER.
IN 1969, GEORGIA GOVERNOR
AND FUTURE U.S. PRESIDENT
JIMMY CARTER
CLAIMS HE WITNESSED A UFO.
THERE HAVE BEEN
NUMEROUS ATTEMPTS
TO EXPLAIN THE SIGHTING.
SOME HAVE SPECULATED THAT,
PERHAPS, WHAT JIMMY CARTER
SAW WAS SOME TYPE OF WEATHER
BALLOON FILLED WITH HELIUM.
IT WOULDN'T BE THE FIRST TIME
THIS IS A VERY COMMON
EXPLANATION FOR UFO SIGHTINGS.
'CAUSE THEY'RE SOMETHING
WE DON'T SEE EVERY DAY.
THEY LOOK REALLY UNUSUAL.
AND THEY CAN MOVE
IN QUITE UNUSUAL WAYS
AS THEY'RE RISING UP
THROUGH DIFFERENT LAYERS
OF THE ATMOSPHERE.
BUT ASPECTS OF THE SIGHTING
DON'T FIT THE WEATHER
BALLOON THEORY.
CARTER'S SIGHTINGS,
FILED AT NICAP
AND THE UFO BUREAU, DESCRIBE
THE OBJECT CHANGING COLOR.
IT WAS THE SIZE OF THE MOON,
MOVING BIZARRELY THROUGH THE SKY
BEFORE IT DISAPPEARED.
OH, JIMMY CARTER,
THE GOVERNOR OF GEORGIA,
GRADUATE FROM ANNAPOLIS
IS REALLY ONLY SEEING
A WEATHER BALLOON.
A WEATHER BALLOON?
ARE WE BACK TO ROSWELL IN 1947?
WEATHER BALLOONS
DON'T CHANGE COLOR.
WEATHER BALLOONS DON'T HOVER.
WEATHER BALLOONS
AREN'T THAT BIG.
THIS WAS BIG. THEY RISE.
AND THEY DON'T STAY IN THE SKY.
JIMMY CARTER DIDN'T SEE
A WEATHER BALLOON.
AT THE TIME,
THERE IS NO OFFICIAL EXPLANATION GIVEN
FOR WHAT JIMMY CARTER SAW.
EVEN THOUGH HE CAN'T PROVE IT,
THE EXPERIENCE OF THE SIGHTING
STAYS WITH HIM.
JIMMY CARTER IS
RUNNING FOR PRESIDENT.
AND HE'S ASKED ON
THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL,
"GOVERNOR CARTER,
WILL YOU TELL THE TRUTH
TO THE AMERICAN PEOPLE
ABOUT UFOs?"
AND JIMMY CARTER SAYS,
"YES, I WILL."
HE'S GONNA REVEAL THE TRUTH.
IN 1977, WHEN CARTER
WINS THE PRESIDENCY,
HE DIRECTS THE CIA TO RELEASE
TOP SECRET REPORTS ON UFOs
AND EXTRATERRESTRIAL LIFE.
THE CIA REFUSES.
JUST FLAT OUT SAY
NO TO THE PRESIDENT,
THAT'S REALLY SOMETHING.
CARTER TRIES ANOTHER WAY.
JIMMY CARTER ASKS THE DIRECTOR
OF CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE,
GEORGE H.W. BUSH,
"MR. DIRECTOR, CAN YOU TELL ME
WHAT THE CIA KNOWS ABOUT UFOs?"
AND GEORGE,
A CONSUMMATE PROFESSIONAL,
SAYS, "MR. PRESIDENT-ELECT,
YOU HAVE NO NEED TO KNOW."
THE CIA HAS DENIED
THE NEW PRESIDENT
PERMISSION TO RELEASE
TOP SECRET INFORMATION
TO THE PUBLIC.
IT SURPRISES PEOPLE TO FIND OUT
THAT THE PRESIDENT
OF THE UNITED STATES
DOESN'T HAVE ACCESS
TO EVERYTHING.
THE UFO SECRET IS A HIGHER LEVEL
OF TOP SECRET THAN YOU,
EVEN THOUGH YOU'RE
THE COMMANDER IN CHIEF.
BUT SOMETHING
MYSTERIOUS HAPPENS.
JUST AS IT SEEMS A STANDOFF
IS ON THE CARDS,
CARTER MAKES A U-TURN,
RETRACTING HIS PROMISE
TO DECLASSIFY UFO DOCUMENTS
AND MAKE KEY REPORTS PUBLIC.
HE CITES A SERIOUS THREAT
TO NATIONAL SECURITY
AS THE REASON FOR BACKING DOWN.
PRESIDENT CARTER NEVER
MENTIONS THE WORD UFO AGAIN.
WAS SOMETHING
REVEALED TO THE PRESIDENT
SO SHOCKING HE HAD
TO KEEP IT SECRET?
IT SOUNDS SUSPICIOUS,
BUT THERE ARE SOME
VERY SENSIBLE REASONS
WHY YOU DON'T RELEASE
SENSITIVE NATIONAL
SECURITY INFORMATION.
NASA ASTRONAUT AND TEST PILOT
HOOT GIBSON HAS BEEN INVOLVED
IN PROJECTS LIKE THESE.
I DO KNOW, AS A TEST PILOT,
THAT WE HAVE VERY HIGHLY
CLASSIFIED PROJECTS
THAT ARE FLYING.
AND I'LL SAY WHERE
THEY'RE FLYING FROM.
THEY'RE FLYING FROM AREA 51.
WE KNOW THAT THIS HAS BEEN
GOING ON FOR YEARS AND YEARS,
BECAUSE SUCH AIRPLANES
AS THE SR-71 BLACKBIRD,
THE U-2, THE STEALTH FIGHTER,
THE F-117,
THOSE ALL STARTED LIFE UP
IN THAT AREA AND FLEW
FROM THAT SPOT.
I WOULD BE VERY SURPRISED
IF WE DON'T STILL HAVE SECRET,
TOP SECRET MILITARY PROTOTYPE
AIRCRAFT FLYING FROM THERE.
COULD SUCH TOP SECRET PROJECTS
REALLY JUSTIFY
SHUTTING THE PRESIDENT DOWN?
WHAT WE KNOW IS JUST
A TINY FRACTION
OF WHAT'S REALLY OUT THERE.
SO WITHOUT A NASA
INVESTIGATION INTO THAT SIGHTING,
WE'RE NEVER GONNA KNOW
WHAT JIMMY CARTER REALLY SAW.
FOR NOW, THIS SECRET
REMAINS UNEXPLAINED.
A NASA SPACEWALK GOES
BADLY WRONG.
THE SPACE SUIT
IS TURNING INTO A DEATH TRAP.
AN ASTRONAUT IS JUST
MINUTES AWAY FROM DROWNING.
YOU PANIC, THAT'S IT.
IT'S OVER, YOU'RE DEAD.
AND THE KILLER SUIT
HAS STRUCK BEFORE.
WHY WOULD THE SPACE SUIT
THAT LEAKED IN 2013
LEAK AGAIN IN 2016
AFTER IT HAD BEEN
FULLY INSPECTED?
IN JULY 2013,
ASTRONAUT LUCA PARMITANO
NEARLY DIED
ON A SPACEWALK OUTSIDE THE ISS.
LUCA NEARLY DROWNED
IN HIS SPACE SUIT,
AND THAT'S THE CLOSEST
WE'VE EVER COME TO LOSING
AN ASTRONAUT DURING A SPACEWALK.
A NASA INVESTIGATION
CONCLUDES THAT A BLOCKAGE
IN THE SUIT'S COOLANT SYSTEM
MOST LIKELY CAUSED
AN OVERFLOW OF WATER
TO FILL THE SPACE SUIT'S HELMET.
THEY TOOK THE SPACE SUIT APART.
THEY COULDN'T FIND
ANYTHING WRONG,
SO THE PROBLEM SEEMED
TO HAVE FIXED ITSELF.
THREE YEARS LATER,
ASTRONAUT TIM KOPRA IS
CHECKING THE SAME SUIT,
READY TO TAKE IT OUT
ON A ROUTINE MAINTENANCE
SPACEWALK WITH HIS PARTNER,
TIM PEAKE.
KOPRA WAS CLEANING THE SUIT
WHEN HE THINKS HE SEES A LEAK.
HE TAKES A PICTURE,
MOPS UP THE FLUID.
BUT WHEN HE TRIES TO RECREATE
THE LEAK, IT'S NOT THERE.
IT'S AS IF IT JUST DISAPPEARED.
SUBSEQUENT TESTS SHOW NOTHING.
UNABLE TO IDENTIFY ANY FAULT,
KOPRA READIES THE SUIT
FOR HIS SPACEWALK.
IT'S A DECISION THAT
COULD COST HIM HIS LIFE.
JANUARY 2016.
NASA ASTRONAUTS TIM PEAKE
AND TIM KOPRA BEGIN
THEIR SCHEDULED
SIX-AND-A-HALF-HOUR
SPACEWALK TO REPLACE
A FAILED POWER REGULATOR
ON THE EXTERIOR OF THE
INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION.
OKAY, GUYS.
WE'RE WORKING, RIGHT NOW,
FOR TIM KOPRA OFF PAGE 13
OF THE CUFF CHECKLIST.
FOUR AND A HALF
HOURS INTO THE MISSION,
KOPRA GETS
AN UNPLEASANT SURPRISE.
KOPRA ALERTS MISSION CONTROL
TO THIS LIFE-THREATENING
SITUATION.
OKAY, TIM, WE'RE GONNA
HAVE YOU HOLD RIGHT THERE.
JUST LET US TALK SOME STUFF
OUT HERE FOR A SECOND.
MISSION CONTROL
COMES UP WITH AN IDEA.
THEY SAY, "WELL, SINCE YOU GUYS
HAVE BEEN OUT THERE FOR 4 HOURS
AND YOU'RE MOVING THIS
HEAVY EQUIPMENT AROUND,
MAYBE IT'S SWEAT."
WHEN YOU'RE IN THE SPACE SUIT,
YOU'RE WORKING,
PHYSICALLY, VERY HARD.
AND SO YOU CAN GENERATE
A LOT OF HEAT VERY QUICKLY.
IF THERE'S ANY WAY TO GET
A TEMPERATURE OF THE WATER...
I DON'T KNOW IF YOU CAN MOVE
IT AROUND AND GET TO THAT.
OR TO TRY TO DRINK IT
AND NOTE THE TASTE.
MISSION CONTROL ORDERS
HIM TO TASTE IT.
KOPRA TRIES TO SAMPLE
THE FLOATING GLOBULE.
IF IT'S WARM AND SALTY,
IT COULD BE SWEAT.
IF IT'S COLD, THAT'S A PROBLEM.
THE WATER IS COLD.
THAT MEANS IT'S COMING FROM
THE SUIT'S COOLING SYSTEM.
AND THERE'S MORE
THAN ENOUGH WATER
IN THE COOLING SYSTEM
TO DROWN AN ASTRONAUT.
THE HELMET IS
HOOKED UP TO THE COOLING PACK.
A LEAK HERE COULD BE DEADLY.
YOU'RE ONE FAILURE
AWAY FROM A FATALITY.
KOPRA'S PARTNER,
TIM PEAKE, ARRIVES TO HELP.
BUT THE WATER
CONTINUES TO SPREAD.
THE SPACE SUIT THAT'S DESIGNED
TO PROTECT THE ASTRONAUTS
IS NOW TURNING INTO A DEATH TRAP
BECAUSE KOPRA LITERALLY COULD
DROWN IN HIS OWN COOLANT.
MISSION CONTROL HAS NO CHOICE.
THEY HAVE TO GET KOPRA BACK
INSIDE THE SPACE STATION.
THERE'S NO ALTERNATIVE.
THEY HAVE TO PULL
THE PLUG ON THE SPACEWALK.
GUYS, YOU CAN START OPENING
YOUR CUFF CHECKLIST
TO PAGE SEVEN.
WE ARE IN A TERMINATE CASE.
WHEN KOPRA FINALLY
GETS THROUGH THE AIRLOCK,
HIS COLLEAGUES REMOVE
HIS HELMET IN MINUTES.
THEY PEEL OFF KOPRA'S MASK.
AND IT'S FILLED WITH WATER.
AS THE CREW EXAMINES
KOPRA'S SUIT,
A SHOCKING REALIZATION
HITS THEM.
THE SPACE SUIT THAT LEAKED
FOR LUCA PARMITANO
IS THE EXACT SAME SPACE SUIT
THAT LEAKED FOR TIM KOPRA.
WHY WOULD THE SPACE SUIT
THAT LEAKED IN 2013
LEAK AGAIN IN 2016
AFTER IT HAD BEEN
FULLY INSPECTED?
NASA ENGINEERS CHECK
THE SUIT TO MAKE SURE
THAT THE COOLANT SYSTEM
HASN'T BLOCKED AGAIN.
THEY DISMANTLE THE SUIT.
THEY TAKE IT APART.
AND THERE IS NO BLOCKAGE.
THERE MUST BE
SOMETHING ELSE GOING ON.
IS THIS A CURSED SPACE SUIT?
THERE IS NO SCIENTIFIC BASIS
FOR THE IDEA OF A CURSED SUIT.
BUT NASA ENGINEERS
HAVE YET TO WORK OUT
WHY THIS ONE ALMOST
KILLED TWO MEN.
CAN A SPACE SUIT BE CURSED?
NO. THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE.
WOULD I WANT TO GO INTO SPACE
IN THIS PARTICULAR SPACE SUIT?
I THINK NOT.
THE SUIT WAS RETURNED
TO EARTH IN MAY 2016.
IT IS CURRENTLY
UNDER INVESTIGATION BY NASA.
Subtitles Diego Moraes
www.oakisland.tk
IS TO EXPLORE THE UNKNOWN.
WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT THE UNIVERSE
IS A TINY FRACTION
OF WHAT'S ACTUALLY OUT THERE.
IN THE SEARCH FOR ANSWERS,
IT LAUNCHES ITS SCIENTISTS
INTO SPACE,
ITS CRAFT BEYOND THE LIMITS
OF THE SOLAR SYSTEM.
WE HAVE NO IDEA
WHAT'S OUT THERE.
THERE MIGHT BE DANGERS
LURKING IN THE DARKNESS.
WE'VE RUN ACROSS MORE
MYSTERIES THAN DISCOVERIES.
WE DON'T KNOW WHAT
IT'S GONNA THROW AT US NEXT.
EVIDENCE OF LIFE
ON A FROZEN MOON...
WHEN WE SAW THIS
ACTIVITY ON ENCELADUS,
I STOPPED CALLING IT A MOON.
I STARTED CALLING IT A WORLD.
...A MYSTERIOUS OBJECT
FLIES ON A COLLISION COURSE
WITH A DANGEROUS ASTEROID...
SO WHAT IS IT?
IS IT AN ALIEN SPACECRAFT?
...AND CLOSE ENCOUNTERS
OF THE PRESIDENTIAL KIND.
THE GUY WHO SAW
AND REPORTED THE UFO
WAS THE FUTURE PRESIDENT
OF THE UNITED STATES.
THESE ARE...
NASA's Unexplained Files - SEASON 4
EP - 3 - A President's Close Encounter
Subtitles Diego Moraes
DISASTER STRIKES RUSSIA'S MIR
SPACE STATION.
HE'S COMING IN WAY TOO FAST.
IMMEDIATELY START YELLING,
"BRAKE, BRAKE, BRAKE!"
HE SLAMS INTO THE SOLAR PANELS.
THE IMPACT RIPS
A HOLE IN THE HULL.
OXYGEN IS LEAKING
FROM THE STATION.
IT'S A SERIOUS, SERIOUS PROBLEM.
THEY'VE GOT MINUTES
TO FIND THE BREACH
AND FIX IT, OR THEY'RE DEAD.
IN 1997,
NASA ASTRONAUT MIKE FOALE JOINS
TWO COSMONAUTS ON A JOINT
U.S./RUSSIA MISSION
ON BOARD THE MIR SPACE STATION.
MIR IS THE PRIDE
OF THE RUSSIAN SPACE PROGRAM.
IT'S ALSO THE ONLY OPERATIONAL
MANNED SPACE STATION.
THOUGH THE COLD WAR IS OVER,
THE RUSSIANS KEEP TIGHT CONTROL
ON ALL ASPECTS OF THE MISSION.
IN SECRET, THEY DECIDE
TO TRY OUT SOMETHING
THEY HAVE NOT TOLD NASA ABOUT.
ON THIS MISSION, RUSSIA DECIDES
ON ITS OWN, UNILATERALLY,
TO TEST ITS MANUAL
DOCKING SYSTEM.
MOSCOW'S MISSION CONTROL ORDERS
MIR'S CREW TO TURN OFF
THE AUTOMATED DOCKING SYSTEM
ON THE RESUPPLY VEHICLE
AND ATTEMPT
TO RE-DOCK IT MANUALLY.
THEY'RE PUTTING THE MIR
IN DANGER.
MICHAEL FOALE DOESN'T KNOW
WHAT'S ABOUT TO HAPPEN.
COSMONAUT VASILY TSIBLIYEV
IS TASKED WITH THE PROCEDURE.
HE DECOUPLES THEIR UNMANNED
CARGO SHIP, PROGRESS,
AND SENDS IT OUT INTO SPACE
BEFORE TRYING
TO STEER IT BACK REMOTELY.
ON THE PROGRESS VESSEL,
THERE'S A CAMERA.
SO YOU'RE SEEING THE VIEW
AS IF YOU'RE SITTING
IN THE PROGRESS SPACE SHIP
AS IT COMES IN.
IN ADDITION TO THE CAMERA,
A RADAR FEED GIVES
TSIBLIYEV SPEED
AND DISTANCE READINGS
FROM THE INCOMING CRAFT.
BUT THE GUIDANCE SYSTEM
IS RUDIMENTARY.
THE FEED FROM THE CAMERAS
KEEPS CUTTING OUT.
RUSSIAN MISSION CONTROL DECIDES
THAT THE RADAR IS INTERFERING
WITH THE VIDEO FEED.
THEY'RE ASKED TO TURN IT OFF.
BUT THE RADAR THE THING
THAT IS CALCULATING THE SPEED
AND DISTANCE FROM THE MIR.
WITHOUT THE RADAR,
TSIBLIYEV MUST DEPEND ENTIRELY
ON THE POOR VIDEO FEED.
THE VIDEO FEED ISN'T EXACTLY HD.
THE ANGLE OF THE APPROACH MEANS
THAT, ON PROGRESS' CAMERA,
MIR APPEARS INDISTINGUISHABLE
FROM THE CLOUDS BELOW.
HE'S REALLY NOT QUITE SURE IF
HE'S LOOKING AT THE SPACESHIP
OR IF HE'S LOOKING AT A CLOUD.
IT'S A VERY,
VERY DIFFICULT TASK.
AND I TELL YOU, I DON'T WANT
TO BE DOING THAT TASK.
IT'S WAY, WAY TOO DIFFICULT
FOR MOST PEOPLE TO HANDLE.
HE'S BASICALLY FLYING BLIND.
FOALE AND THE OTHER COSMONAUT
TRY TO ASSIST TSIBLIYEV BY
POINTING MANUAL RANGE FINDERS
OUT THE STATION'S WINDOWS.
HE'S TRYING TO DRIVE
IT IN FROM A DISTANCE...
FIRING THRUSTERS, PEOPLE
LOOKING OUT PORTHOLE WINDOWS
TRYING TO TELL HIM
HOW THE VEHICLE'S REACTING.
BUT THEIR VIEW
OF THE APPROACHING SHIP
IS BLOCKED
BY MIR'S SOLAR PANELS.
THE PROGRESS
VEHICLE'S COMING IN,
COMING IN, COMING IN.
ALL OF A SUDDEN,
IT'S RIGHT ON TOP OF THEM.
IMMEDIATELY START YELLING,
"BRAKE, BRAKE, BRAKE!"
IT'S TOO LATE TO DO ANYTHING.
THE PROGRESS HITS A SOLAR PANEL.
THAT IMMEDIATELY GETS
THE SPACE STATION SPINNING.
BUT THEN A LARGE CLUNK SOUND
AS IT LITERALLY HITS A MODULE
AND THEN FINALLY CAREENS
OFF INTO SPACE.
SUDDENLY, THE DECOMPRESSION
ALARM GOES OFF,
WHICH MEANS THAT THE MIR
HAS BEEN PUNCTURED AND AIR
IS ESCAPING INTO SPACE.
THE CREW REALIZE
THEY ARE IN MORTAL DANGER.
PRECIOUS AIR IS HISSING OUT
INTO SPACE THROUGH THE BREACH.
RIGHT AWAY, YOU DO
A QUICK CALCULATION.
IS THIS A SMALL LEAK?
DO WE HAVE 24 HOURS
BEFORE IT'S GONNA BE
LIFE-THREATENING?
WHEN THEY DID THAT CALCULATION,
THEY'VE GOT LESS THAN 5 MINUTES.
THE CREW SCRAMBLE TO
LOCATE THE SOURCE OF THE LEAK.
THE LIFE-SUSTAINING
ATMOSPHERE IS BLEEDING OUT.
THEY ONLY HAVE MINUTES
TO REPAIR IT OR THEY'RE DEAD.
THE TEAM DISCOVER THE AIR
IS WHISTLING OUT OF A TEAR
IN THE SIDE
OF THE SPEKTR SCIENCE MODULE.
THEIR ONLY CHOICE IS TO SEAL OFF
THE MODULE AND TO DO IT QUICKLY.
THERE'S A LOT OF WIRES
GOING THROUGH THE HATCH.
MIR'S WIRING IS A MESS
OF POORLY-RIGGED CABLES,
SNAKING BETWEEN MODULES,
BLOCKING THE AIR-LOCKED DOORS.
IF THEY TAKE THE TIME
TO UNPLUG IT, THEY'RE DEAD.
FINALLY HAD TO CUT IT,
YOU KNOW, SPARKS FLYING.
THE CREW CLOSE THE HATCH,
PRESERVING THEIR PRECIOUS
OXYGEN SUPPLY.
NOW THEY HAVE A WHOLE
NEW SET OF PROBLEMS.
THE CRAFT IS SPINNING
UNCONTROLLABLY.
THE SOLAR PANELS
THAT POWER THE STATION
AREN'T CATCHING THE SUN.
CRITICAL EQUIPMENT IS
STARTING TO SHUT DOWN.
POWER IS RUNNING OUT.
THE CREW HAS NO WAY
OF CONTACTING GROUND CONTROL.
THEY'RE CUT OFF FROM ALL HELP.
MIR IS OUT OF POWER.
IT'S STARTING TO
GET DANGEROUSLY COLD.
IT'S EFFECTIVELY DEAD IN SPACE.
UNABLE TO POWER MIR'S THRUSTERS,
THE CREW HAS NO WAY TO STABILIZE
THE SPINNING CRAFT.
THEY'VE GOT TO STOP THAT SPIN,
OR IT'S ALL OVER.
JUNE 1997.
AN EXPERIMENTAL DOCKING MANEUVER
INVOLVING THE MIR SPACE
STATION HAS GONE BADLY WRONG.
THE COLLISION LEAVES
IT SPINNING OUT OF CONTROL.
NASA ASTRONAUT MIKE FOALE
AND HIS RUSSIAN CREW MATES
COME UP WITH A DESPERATE PLAN.
THEIR ONLY OPTION
IS TO FIRE THE THRUSTERS
OF THE SOYUZ SHUTTLE TO COUNTER
THE SPIN OF THE STATION.
USING A SOYUZ CAPSULE
IS A HUGE GAMBLE.
IT'S THEIR ONLY RIDE HOME.
IF THEY USE TOO MUCH FUEL,
THEY'LL NEVER GET HOME.
IF THEIR PLAN DOESN'T WORK,
THEY'RE STRANDED IN SPACE.
WITH ABSOLUTELY NO GUIDANCE
EQUIPMENT AVAILABLE,
FOALE HAS TO GO OLD SCHOOL
AND USE NAUTICAL KNOWLEDGE
AND THE STARS
TO GUIDE HIM AND CALCULATE
THE SPIN RATE OF THE STATION.
FOALE HOLDS HIS THUMB
TO THE VIEWING PORT
AS A MEASURING STICK
TO GAUGE THEIR RATE OF SPIN
AGAINST THE HORIZON.
FOALE IS SHOUTING THESE
MEASUREMENTS TO HIS COLLEAGUE,
WHO IS CONTROLLING
THE SOYUZ THRUSTERS.
AND OVER A COURSE OF 4 HOURS
OF TRIAL AND ERROR,
THEY'RE EVENTUALLY ABLE
TO STABILIZE THE MIR
AND GET THE SOLAR PANELS
PARTIALLY WORKING AGAIN.
AS MIR FINALLY COMES TO REST,
THE SOLAR CELL BEGINS TO CHARGE,
POWERING UP THE STATION
AND REPLENISHING
THEIR PRECIOUS OXYGEN SUPPLY.
THE CREW ARE SAFE.
BACK ON EARTH, NASA
DEMANDS AN EXPLANATION
FOR THE NEAR CATASTROPHE.
NASA DID NOT KNOW THAT THIS
MANUAL DOCKING WAS TAKING PLACE.
AND THEY'RE NOT HAPPY
THAT THEIR ASTRONAUT'S LIFE
WAS PUT IN DANGER.
THE RUSSIANS TRY
TO PLACE THE BLAME
ON THEIR COSMONAUT, TSIBLIYEV.
BUT NASA IS DEEPLY SUSPICIOUS.
IT LAUNCHES AN INVESTIGATION
HEADED UP BY SPECIAL
AGENT JOE GUTHEINZ.
OUR INVESTIGATION
REVEALED THAT THERE
WERE SERIOUS PROBLEMS
WITH THE MIR
AND THE RUSSIAN SPACE PROGRAM.
THOUGH THE COLD WAR IS OVER,
IT IS CLEAR THAT THE RUSSIANS
HAVEN'T BEEN
TOTALLY OPEN WITH NASA.
IT APPEARS THAT THE RISKY
DOCKING PROCEDURE
WAS A CRAZY SCHEME TO CUT COSTS.
THE RUSSIANS WANTED
TO SAVE A LITTLE MONEY.
THEY DIDN'T WANT TO
EQUIP THIS THING
WITH THIS AUTOMATIC
DOCKING DEVICE,
WHICH WAS BUILT IN THE UKRAINE
AND COST THEM HARD CASH.
THE ENTIRE DOCKING MANEUVER
IT SHOULD NEVER
HAVE BEEN ATTEMPTED.
AND IT CERTAINLY SHOULD HAVE
HAD A GROUND SIMULATION FIRST,
EVEN IF IT WAS ATTEMPTED.
IT WAS A DISASTER
WAITING TO HAPPEN.
WHAT THEY WERE DOING WAS
THEY WERE EXPERIMENTING IN SPACE
WITH ALREADY A VERY SHAKY
AND UNRELIABLE MIR
SPACE STATION.
IT WAS CRAZY.
NASA ONLY ALLOWS ITS ASTRONAUTS
TO CONTINUE TRAINING ON MIR
ON THE CONDITION
THAT IT HAS GREATER
OVERSIGHT OVER THE MISSIONS.
ALTHOUGH THE AGED SPACE STATION
STILL POSES A RISK
TO ASTRONAUT LIVES,
THE EXPERIENCE THEY GAIN PAVES
THE WAY FOR THE NEXT STEPS
IN THE MANNED
EXPLORATION OF SPACE.
A NASA PROBE DIVES
DOWN TO A WORLD
IN SEARCH OF ALIEN LIFE.
WHEN WE SAW THIS
ACTIVITY ON ENCELADUS,
I STOPPED CALLING IT A MOON.
I STARTED CALLING IT A WORLD.
COULD EXTRA-TERRESTRIAL LIFE
HAVE BEEN IN OUR OWN
BACKYARD ALL ALONG?
THE MISSION HAS NEW GOALS NOW.
THE MISSION IS GOING
TO STUDY ENCELADUS.
IN 2005, NASA'S
BILLION-DOLLAR PROBE, CASSINI,
IS ON A FLYBY PAST SATURN
WHEN IT CAPTURES IMAGES
OF SOMETHING UNUSUAL
ON THE ICY MOON, ENCELADUS.
THERE ARE WHAT SEEM TO BE
BRIGHT LIGHTS COMING
FROM ENCELADUS' SOUTH POLE,
SHINING OUT INTO SPACE.
ENORMOUS
PLUMES OF A MYSTERIOUS VAPOR
ARE JETTING FROM
THE FROZEN MOON'S SOUTH POLE.
THEY LOOK SO LIKE THE GEOTHERMAL
ERUPTIONS FOUND ON EARTH
THAT SCIENTISTS IMMEDIATELY
CALL THEM GEYSERS.
THERE WERE GEYSERS SHOOTING OUT
FROM THE SIDE OF THIS
TINY LITTLE MOON.
THE PLUMES ABOVE ENCELADUS
ARE MORE THAN 8,000 TIMES LARGER
THAN ANY GEYSER FOUND
ON OUR PLANET.
SO HERE WE HAVE THESE GEYSERS
SPEWING 150 MILES INTO SPACE,
WHICH IS THE DISTANCE
FROM SAN DIEGO TO LOS ANGELES.
WE KNOW RIGHT AWAY THAT
ENCELADUS IS AN ACTIVE WORLD.
SPECTACULAR.
THIS IS A HUGE DISCOVERY.
IF THERE IS WATER
FLOWING ON ENCELADUS,
IT BECOMES A WORLD
WHERE LIFE CAN EXIST.
NASA RIPS UP CASSINI'S
ORIGINAL MISSION PLAN.
ONCE NASA SCIENTISTS SEE
WHAT'S HAPPENING ON ENCELADUS,
EVERYTHING CHANGES.
THE MISSION HAS NEW GOALS NOW.
THE MISSION IS GOING
TO STUDY ENCELADUS.
THE NEW MISSION
BRINGS NEW PROBLEMS.
CASSINI WAS DESIGNED
TO OBSERVE PLANETS
FROM DISTANT ORBITS,
NOT TO COLLECT SAMPLES
AND ANALYZE UNIDENTIFIED
SUBSTANCES.
THE CASSINI TEAM BASICALLY
REDESIGNED THE MISSION
SO THAT THEY COULD FLY
THROUGH THE PLUMES.
CASSINI IS
800 MILLION MILES FROM EARTH.
TO MAKE THIS WORK,
NASA'S MISSION
CONTROL MUST COMPLETELY
REBUILD ITS SOFTWARE REMOTELY.
BY REPURPOSING THE INSTRUMENTS
THAT WERE ON THE SPACECRAFT,
WE'VE REALLY ADAPTED
THE SPACECRAFT
TO BE ABLE TO DO SOMETHING
THAT WE NEVER REALLY
INTENDED IT TO DO.
THEY'RE GOING TO BUZZ
THE SURFACE OF ENCELADUS,
FLY RIGHT THROUGH THE PLUMES
AND SEE WHAT THEY'RE
MADE OUT OF.
NASA'S MANTRA
IN THE QUEST FOR LIFE
ANYWHERE IN THE UNIVERSE
IS "FOLLOW THE WATER."
COULD THESE MYSTERIOUS
PLUMES BE MADE OF WATER?
AND COULD THIS WATER
HARBOR ALIEN BIOLOGY?
WHERE THERE'S LIQUID WATER,
THAT'S ONE OF THE KEY STEPS
TO FINDING POTENTIAL LIFE.
THE SCIENTISTS ARE LOOKING
FOR THREE KEY CONDITIONS
THAT LED TO LIFE ON EARTH...
LIQUID WATER,
A HIGH SALT CONTENT,
AND EVIDENCE
OF A HOT ACTIVE CORE
DEEP BENEATH THE SEA.
AFTER 3 YEARS
OF INTENSE REPROGRAMMING,
THE PROBE IS FINALLY
READY TO SKIM
THE SURFACE OF SATURN'S
SIXTH LARGEST MOON.
NASA'S BILLION-DOLLAR PROBE
COULD FINALLY ANSWER
THE QUESTION
OF WHETHER THERE
IS LIFE BEYOND EARTH,
IF IT SURVIVES THE CLOSE
ENCOUNTER WITH ENCELADUS.
AT 32,000 MILES PER HOUR,
NASA'S CASSINI PROBE DIVES
THROUGH THE GEYSERS OF ENCELADUS
IN SEARCH FOR LIFE-GIVING WATER.
ONE OF 22 SORTIES
OVER THE FROZEN WORLD.
WHEN CASSINI FLEW
THROUGH THE PLUMES
THAT ARE SHOOTING
OUT OF ENCELADUS,
IT ACTUALLY HAD A CHANCE
TO TASTE THESE PLUMES,
TO SMELL THEM,
TO SEE WHAT THEY'RE MADE OUT OF.
AFTER AN AGONIZING
WAIT, THE DATA CONFIRMS
THAT THE GEYSERS ERUPTING
FROM THE ICY MOON
ARE LIQUID WATER.
THE DISCOVERY OF THESE
ICY WATER VAPOR JETS
ON ENCELADUS
IS PROBABLY THE MOST IMPORTANT
DISCOVERY OF
THE ENTIRE CASSINI MISSION.
BUT WATER IS ONLY
THE FIRST INGREDIENT FOR LIFE.
THE OTHER ESSENTIAL COMPONENTS
ARE SALT AND HEAT.
GOING DEEPER INTO THE PLUME,
THE SPACECRAFT
COLLECTED PARTICLES AND SHOWED
THAT THEY HAD SALT IN THEM.
THAT'S A BIG DEAL.
SCIENTISTS BELIEVE SALT
INTERACTING WITH CHEMICALS
FROM UNDERWATER VOLCANOES
COULD BE HOW ALL LIFE BEGINS.
THERE'S CHEMISTRY
THAT HAPPENS WHEN WATER,
ESPECIALLY SALTY WATER,
IS IN CONTACT
WITH A ROCKY SURFACE.
THE WATER INSIDE ENCELADUS
THAT'S BEING SPRAYED OUT
INTO SPACE HAS A SALINITY
THAT MATCHES EARTH'S OCEANS.
THAT'S HUGE.
FURTHER READINGS REVEAL,
THE OCEANS ON ENCELADUS
ARE ASTONISHINGLY
SIMILAR TO OUR OWN.
THERE WERE ELEMENTS IN THE PLUME
THAT CLEARLY SHOWED
THAT THE WATER
IN THE OCEAN WAS HYDROTHERMAL.
SOMETHING WITHIN ENCELADUS
IS HEATING THE WATER.
HEAT IS THE FINAL
MISSING INGREDIENT
IN THE QUEST FOR LIFE,
THE CATALYST
FOR THE CHAIN REACTION
THAT KICK-STARTED LIFE ON EARTH.
IT'S GOT EVERYTHING
WE WERE HOPING TO FIND.
IT'S GOT EVIDENCE
OF LIQUID WATER,
ORGANICS, NITROGEN,
ENERGY SOURCE.
IT WAS... IT WAS UNBELIEVABLE.
IT'S NOT JUST WATER, IT'S...
IT'S THE SOUP THAT WE THINK
WAS CREATIVE OF LIFE.
IF THERE'S A RECIPE FOR LIFE,
ENCELADUS HAS IT.
WHEN WE SAW THIS
ACTIVITY ON ENCELADUS,
I STOPPED CALLING IT A MOON.
I STARTED CALLING IT A WORLD.
IT IS NOW POSSIBLE
THAT WE WILL ENCOUNTER
ALIEN LIFE ON ANOTHER WORLD,
ONE ACCESSIBLE WITH EXISTING
HUMAN TECHNOLOGY.
BASED ON THE HISTORY
OF LIFE ON EARTH,
WE SHOULD HAVE EVERY
REASON TO EXPECT
THAT THERE SHOULD BE LIFE
ON ENCELADUS.
BUT ENCELADUS IS A VERY DI
WE CAN ONLY SPECULATE
WHAT FORM LIFE WILL TAKE THERE,
AND HOW ADVANCED IT MAY BE.
THESE OCEANS WOULD BE
DARK AND FOREBODING.
THERE MAY BE CREATURES,
IF THEY'RE LIVING IN THERE,
THAT LIGHT UP.
CREATURES THAT PROTECT
THEMSELVES OR HUNT
WITH LITTLE FLUORESCENT LIGHTS.
OR THIS COULD BE AN OCEAN
WHERE NOTHING HAS EYES.
THERE'S NO LIGHT.
NOTHING CAN SEE.
BUT THERE'S OTHER WAYS
THEY COULD SURVIVE.
NASA'S PLANNING
A BRAND NEW MISSION
TO SEEK OUT LIFE
ON THIS STRANGE NEW WORLD.
THIS TIME, THE PROBE
WILL BE DESIGNED
SPECIFICALLY FOR THE TASK.
RIGHT NOW, I SPEND
MY DAYS PLANNING
FOR A MISSION TO ENCELADUS.
FOR ME, PERSONALLY,
THIS IS THE CULMINATION
OF EVERYTHING I'VE DONE.
FOR EXOBIOLOGISTS
LIKE CHRIS McKAY,
IT'S HARD TO UNDERESTIMATE
HOW PROFOUND
THE DISCOVERY OF LIFE COULD BE.
IN A WAY, IT FEELS LIKE
ALL THE RESEARCH I'VE DONE
UP TO NOW HAS BEEN
IN PREPARATION
FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY.
IT'S AN AMAZING
POSSIBILITY THAT,
IN 10 YEARS OR SO FROM NOW,
WE'LL HAVE GONE FROM ONE
TO TWO EXAMPLES OF LIFE
IN OUR SOLAR SYSTEM.
AND THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN
ONE AND TWO IS PROFOUND.
AN ASTEROID HURTLES
THROUGH OUR SOLAR SYSTEM,
HEADING TOWARDS THE EARTH.
IT LOOKS LIKE IT'S ON
A COLLISION COURSE.
IT COULD WIPE OUT SPECIES
ACROSS THE BOARD.
NASA RADAR SCANS
OF THE DEADLY THREAT
REVEAL SOMETHING
TOTALLY UNEXPECTED.
THERE'S AN OBJECT FLYING
STRAIGHT TOWARDS THAT ASTEROID.
WHATEVER IT IS,
IT'S COME OUT OF NOWHERE.
PERHAPS NASA'S
MOST IMPORTANT JOB
IS TO PROTECT PLANET EARTH
FROM EXTRATERRESTRIAL THREATS.
IT MONITORS SPACE
FOR LARGE ASTEROIDS
THAT MIGHT DESTROY
LIFE ON EARTH.
ALL WE HAVE TO DO IS LOOK
TO SEE WHAT HAPPENED
TO THE DINOSAURS
65 MILLION YEARS AGO
WHEN AN ASTEROID HIT THE EARTH
AND WIPED THEM OUT.
THERE ARE CURRENTLY
14,000 OBJECTS
FLYING CLOSE TO THE EARTH.
THOSE THAT TRAVEL
WITHIN 5 MILLION MILES
ARE CLASSIFIED AS
POTENTIALLY HAZARDOUS.
IN JANUARY 2015,
NASA SPOTS AN ASTEROID LESS
THAN 1 MILLION MILES
FROM OUR PLANET.
IT'S 1,100 FEET WIDE,
THE SIZE OF A SUPERTANKER.
AN IMPACT WOULD HAVE
DEVASTATING EFFECTS.
ASTRONOMERS
GIVE THE POTENTIAL KILLER
THE DESIGNATION "2004 BL86."
IF IT HIT THE OCEAN,
IT WOULD CAUSE A HUGE TSUNAMI.
IF IT HIT THE GROUND,
IT WOULD CAUSE A LARGE CRATER
AND THROW ALL THAT
DUST UP INTO THE ATMOSPHERE.
AND IT COULD CHANGE THE WEATHER
ON THE EARTH FOR YEARS TO COME.
AN IMPACT FROM A BODY
OF THIS SIZE IS EQUIVALENT
TO 750 MEGATONS
OF EXPLOSIVE MATERIAL.
NASA TURNS ITS GOLDSTONE RADAR
ON THE ASTEROID
TO TRACK ITS TRAJECTORY.
THE DATA COMES IN.
THE ASTEROID WILL MISS
THE EARTH BY A NARROW MARGIN.
WHEN SCIENTISTS FURTHER
ANALYZE THE RADAR IMAGES,
THEY FIND SOMETHING
TOTALLY UNEXPECTED.
THE RADAR IMAGES SHOW A STRANGE,
BRIGHT OBJECT HEADING
TOWARDS THE ASTEROID.
THE OBJECT LOOKS
KIND OF ELONGATED,
CIGAR-SHAPED ALMOST.
WHATEVER IT IS,
IT CAME OUT OF NOWHERE.
THE MYSTERY OBJECT'S
TRAJECTORY CAUSES ALARM.
IT'S FLYING STRAIGHT
TOWARDS THAT ASTEROID.
IT LOOKS LIKE IT'S
ON A COLLISION COURSE.
WHAT IS IT?
NASA RADAR SCANS HAVE DETECTED
A MYSTERIOUS OBJECT
APPROACHING THE EARTH
ASTEROID 2004 BL86.
COULD IT BE ANOTHER ASTEROID?
ASTEROIDS DO RUN INTO ONE
ANOTHER EVERY NOW AND THEN.
THERE ARE CRATERS ON ASTEROIDS. CLEARLY,
THEY GET HIT.
AND THEY HIT EACH OTHER.
THIS CLOSE TO
THE EARTH, ASTEROIDS ARE RARE,
TYPICALLY SEPARATED BY
HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS OF MILES.
SO THE CHANCES OF US
SEEING TWO ASTEROIDS
ABOUT TO COLLIDE
WITH ONE ANOTHER WERE,
ESSENTIALLY, CLOSE TO ZERO.
THE VIDEO CUTS OUT
BEFORE A POTENTIAL IMPACT.
THE INITIAL RADAR
SCAN ONLY CAPTURES
8 SECONDS OF FOOTAGE.
THE MYSTERIOUS OBJECT
LOOKS SUSPICIOUSLY
LIKE A MISSILE
HEADING TOWARDS THE ROCK.
IF NASA DISCOVERS AN ASTEROID
ON A COLLISION COURSE
WITH EARTH,
ONE OF THE POTENTIAL WAYS
TO STOP IT IS TO SEND
A MISSILE TO BLOW IT UP.
BUT WHATEVER THE OBJECT IS,
IT DOESN'T SEEM TO HARM
THE ASTEROID IN ANY WAY.
WE DID NOT OBSERVE A COLLISION.
THE MAIN OBJECT SEEMED
TO CONTINUE ON IT'S COURSE
AFTER THE SMALLER ONE SOMEHOW
DISAPPEARED FROM THE RADAR.
ANALYSIS OF THE FOOTAGE PROVES
THE OBJECT CANNOT BE A MISSILE.
THIS VIDEO THAT
YOU'RE SEEING WAS CREATED
WITH ONLY 20 IMAGES.
AND THOSE 20 IMAGES
WERE ACQUIRED OVER A FULL DAY.
SO IT'S CERTAINLY NOT A
FAST-MOVING MISSILE OF ANY KIND.
IT'S ACTUALLY
MOVING FAIRLY SLOWLY.
SO WHAT IS IT?
IS IT A SPACECRAFT?
NO NATIONAL SPACE AGENCY ADMITS
TO LAUNCHING A PROBE
TARGETED AT THIS ROCK.
BUT NATIONALLY FUNDED
SCIENCE INSTITUTIONS
ARE NOT THE ONLY ONES
WITH THEIR SIGHTS
SET ON ASTEROIDS.
TO A NEW BREED OF BUSINESSES,
ASTEROIDS MEAN BIG BUCKS.
COULD THEY BE PROBING
EARTH-BOUND ASTEROIDS IN SECRET?
ASTEROIDS ARE FULL
OF VALUABLE ELEMENTS.
THINGS LIKE SILVER,
GOLD, PLATINUM, TITANIUM.
IT IS ESTIMATED THAT
SOME ASTEROIDS COULD BE WORTH
AS MUCH AS 100 TRILLION DOLLARS.
ENGINEER GRANT BONIN
IS CURRENTLY WORKING
ON AN ASTEROID MINING
PROJECT CALLED DRAGONFLY.
ASTEROID MINING ISN'T THE
STUFF OF SCIENC
IN FACT, THERE IS AN ENTIRE
INDUSTRY NOW OF COMPANIES
THAT ARE BEGINNING TO DEVELOP
THE TECHNOLOGIES REQUIRED
TO BEGIN TO HARVEST SPACE
RESOURCES FROM ASTEROIDS,
FROM COMETS, FROM THE MOON,
FOR USE IN SPACE.
BUT NONE OF THESE COMPANIES
WANTS TO HIDE
WHAT THEY'RE DOING.
IF A COMPANY COULD
SUCCESSFULLY MINE AN ASTEROID,
ITS REPUTATION WOULD GO
THROUGH THE ROOF.
WHY WOULD THEY KEEP THAT SECRET?
TO DATE, NO HUMAN
ORGANIZATION HAS THE ABILITY
TO CONDUCT MINING
OPERATIONS IN SPACE.
WHILE WE'RE WORKING
ON EXPLOITING THE RESOURCES
OF ASTEROIDS IN THE FUTURE,
WE'RE NOT THERE YET.
THIS IS SOMETHING
THE COMPANIES ARE WORKING ON
TO ACCOMPLISH
WITHIN THE NEXT DECADE.
AND SO THIS IMAGE
DOESN'T SHOW US ANY NATION
OR COMPANY ON ITS WAY
TO EXPLORING
THE RESOURCES OF AN ASTEROID.
FURTHER SCANS OF THE
ASTEROID SPARK A NEW THEORY
ABOUT THE MYSTERY OBJECT.
FOOTAGE FROM A LATER
OBSERVATIONAL PASS SHOWS
THE OBJECT STILL IN THE
VICINITY OF THE ASTEROID,
BUT APPEARING TO CROSS ITS FACE.
THIS MOVEMENT PRESENTS
AN INTRIGUING NEW POSSIBILITY.
WE KNOW THAT MANY
OF THESE ASTEROIDS
ARE JUST
LOOSELY-HELD RUBBLE PILES.
SO THE FASTER THEY ROTATE,
THERE'S THE CHANCE
THAT ONE OF THESE
LOOSELY-HELD RUBBLE PILE PIECES
WILL FLY OFF
AND THEN BECOME A MOON
TO THE CENTRAL ASTEROID.
AN ASTEROID WITH ITS OWN MOONS
MAY SOUND STRANGE,
BUT IT CAN HAPPEN.
WHEN WE THINK OF MOONS,
WE THINK OF GIANT,
GIANT CELESTIAL BODIES.
THINGS THAT ARE
BASICALLY PLANETS.
BUT IT'S REALLY COOL TO THINK
THAT ASTEROIDS LIKE THIS,
THEY CAN HAVE TINY
MOONS OF THEIR OWN.
NASA CONTINUES TO
MONITOR THE APPROACHING ROCK,
AND LATER FOOTAGE APPEARS TO
CONFIRM THE MOON HYPOTHESIS.
VIEWED FROM A DIFFERENT
PERSPECTIVE,
THE OBJECT CAN CLEARLY BE
SEEN ORBITING THE ASTEROID.
THE DISCOVERY OF THE MOON
SOLVES THE MYSTERY.
BUT IT ALSO RAISES
THE DISTURBING POSSIBILITY
THAT ASTEROIDS
COULD BE MORE DEADLY
THAN ANYONE EVER IMAGINED.
SO THIS REVELATION
SHOULD REALLY CAUSE US S
'CAUSE IT'S GONNA TURN A SINGLE
ASTEROID IMPACT INTO SOMETHING
THAT'S NOT JUST A RIFLE SHOT.
IT'S GONNA BE
A MACHINE GUN EFFECT.
THAT'S GOING TO
INCREASE THE THREAT
THAT WE ACTUALLY FACE
FROM IMPACTS FROM ASTEROIDS.
A PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES
ASKS TO SEE
SECRET FILES ON UFOs.
WILL YOU TELL THE TRUTH TO THE
AMERICAN PEOPLE ABOUT UFOS?
THE CIA REFUSES.
THE PRESIDENT
OF THE UNITED STATES
DOESN'T HAVE ACCESS
TO EVERYTHING.
YOU HAVE NO NEED TO KNOW.
EVEN THOUGH YOU'RE
THE COMMANDER IN CHIEF.
WHY IS THE PRESIDENT
SO INTERESTED IN UFOs,
AND WHAT ARE
HIS AGENCIES HIDING?
OCTOBER 1969.
A YOUNG POLITICIAN IS LEAVING A
FUND-RAISING EVENT IN GEORGIA
WHEN HE SPOTS A LARGE,
EERIE OBJECT GLOWING
IN THE EVENING SKY.
WHEN HE LOOKS UP IN
THE SKY AND HE SEES AN OBJECT,
IT'S AN OBJECT THAT IS BIG.
IT'S BIGGER THAN THE MOON.
AND HE THINKS TO HIMSELF,
"THAT'S THE DARNDEST THING
I EVER SAW."
THERE IS NO
REASONABLE EXPLANATION
FOR THE STRANGE OBJECT
HE IS SEEING IN THE SKY.
IT TRULY IS SOMETHING
HE CAN'T IDENTIFY.
IT'S FLASHING,
IT'S MOVING NEAR TO HIM
AND MOVING FURTHER AWAY.
HE'S SURE HE'S SEEN A UFO.
THE WITNESS IS SO
DISTURBED BY WHAT HE'S SEEING,
HE FILES A REPORT WITH
THE NATIONAL INVESTIGATIONS
COMMITTEE ON AERIAL PHENOMENA,
NICAP, AND THE INTERNATIONAL
UFO BUREAU.
THESE TWO AGENCIES, AT THE TIME,
WERE PROFESSIONAL INVESTIGATORS
MADE UP OF SCIENTISTS
AND ASTRONOMERS.
AND THIS IS THE VERY
TYPE OF OBJECT
THAT THEY WOULD
HAVE INVESTIGATED.
THE REPORT SOUNDS
LIKE MANY OTHER UFO SIGHTINGS.
BUT IT'S NOT.
WHAT MAKES THIS REPORT
STAND OUT IS THE IDENTITY
OF THE WITNESS.
YOU CAN STILL SEE THE DOCUMENT
OF THE SIGHTINGS ONLINE.
AND THE WITNESS HAS SIGNED
HIS NAME, JIMMY CARTER.
YEAH, THE GUY WHO SAW
AND REPORTED THE UFO
WAS THE FUTURE PRESIDENT
OF THE UNITED STATES,
JIMMY CARTER.
IN 1969, GEORGIA GOVERNOR
AND FUTURE U.S. PRESIDENT
JIMMY CARTER
CLAIMS HE WITNESSED A UFO.
THERE HAVE BEEN
NUMEROUS ATTEMPTS
TO EXPLAIN THE SIGHTING.
SOME HAVE SPECULATED THAT,
PERHAPS, WHAT JIMMY CARTER
SAW WAS SOME TYPE OF WEATHER
BALLOON FILLED WITH HELIUM.
IT WOULDN'T BE THE FIRST TIME
THIS IS A VERY COMMON
EXPLANATION FOR UFO SIGHTINGS.
'CAUSE THEY'RE SOMETHING
WE DON'T SEE EVERY DAY.
THEY LOOK REALLY UNUSUAL.
AND THEY CAN MOVE
IN QUITE UNUSUAL WAYS
AS THEY'RE RISING UP
THROUGH DIFFERENT LAYERS
OF THE ATMOSPHERE.
BUT ASPECTS OF THE SIGHTING
DON'T FIT THE WEATHER
BALLOON THEORY.
CARTER'S SIGHTINGS,
FILED AT NICAP
AND THE UFO BUREAU, DESCRIBE
THE OBJECT CHANGING COLOR.
IT WAS THE SIZE OF THE MOON,
MOVING BIZARRELY THROUGH THE SKY
BEFORE IT DISAPPEARED.
OH, JIMMY CARTER,
THE GOVERNOR OF GEORGIA,
GRADUATE FROM ANNAPOLIS
IS REALLY ONLY SEEING
A WEATHER BALLOON.
A WEATHER BALLOON?
ARE WE BACK TO ROSWELL IN 1947?
WEATHER BALLOONS
DON'T CHANGE COLOR.
WEATHER BALLOONS DON'T HOVER.
WEATHER BALLOONS
AREN'T THAT BIG.
THIS WAS BIG. THEY RISE.
AND THEY DON'T STAY IN THE SKY.
JIMMY CARTER DIDN'T SEE
A WEATHER BALLOON.
AT THE TIME,
THERE IS NO OFFICIAL EXPLANATION GIVEN
FOR WHAT JIMMY CARTER SAW.
EVEN THOUGH HE CAN'T PROVE IT,
THE EXPERIENCE OF THE SIGHTING
STAYS WITH HIM.
JIMMY CARTER IS
RUNNING FOR PRESIDENT.
AND HE'S ASKED ON
THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL,
"GOVERNOR CARTER,
WILL YOU TELL THE TRUTH
TO THE AMERICAN PEOPLE
ABOUT UFOs?"
AND JIMMY CARTER SAYS,
"YES, I WILL."
HE'S GONNA REVEAL THE TRUTH.
IN 1977, WHEN CARTER
WINS THE PRESIDENCY,
HE DIRECTS THE CIA TO RELEASE
TOP SECRET REPORTS ON UFOs
AND EXTRATERRESTRIAL LIFE.
THE CIA REFUSES.
JUST FLAT OUT SAY
NO TO THE PRESIDENT,
THAT'S REALLY SOMETHING.
CARTER TRIES ANOTHER WAY.
JIMMY CARTER ASKS THE DIRECTOR
OF CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE,
GEORGE H.W. BUSH,
"MR. DIRECTOR, CAN YOU TELL ME
WHAT THE CIA KNOWS ABOUT UFOs?"
AND GEORGE,
A CONSUMMATE PROFESSIONAL,
SAYS, "MR. PRESIDENT-ELECT,
YOU HAVE NO NEED TO KNOW."
THE CIA HAS DENIED
THE NEW PRESIDENT
PERMISSION TO RELEASE
TOP SECRET INFORMATION
TO THE PUBLIC.
IT SURPRISES PEOPLE TO FIND OUT
THAT THE PRESIDENT
OF THE UNITED STATES
DOESN'T HAVE ACCESS
TO EVERYTHING.
THE UFO SECRET IS A HIGHER LEVEL
OF TOP SECRET THAN YOU,
EVEN THOUGH YOU'RE
THE COMMANDER IN CHIEF.
BUT SOMETHING
MYSTERIOUS HAPPENS.
JUST AS IT SEEMS A STANDOFF
IS ON THE CARDS,
CARTER MAKES A U-TURN,
RETRACTING HIS PROMISE
TO DECLASSIFY UFO DOCUMENTS
AND MAKE KEY REPORTS PUBLIC.
HE CITES A SERIOUS THREAT
TO NATIONAL SECURITY
AS THE REASON FOR BACKING DOWN.
PRESIDENT CARTER NEVER
MENTIONS THE WORD UFO AGAIN.
WAS SOMETHING
REVEALED TO THE PRESIDENT
SO SHOCKING HE HAD
TO KEEP IT SECRET?
IT SOUNDS SUSPICIOUS,
BUT THERE ARE SOME
VERY SENSIBLE REASONS
WHY YOU DON'T RELEASE
SENSITIVE NATIONAL
SECURITY INFORMATION.
NASA ASTRONAUT AND TEST PILOT
HOOT GIBSON HAS BEEN INVOLVED
IN PROJECTS LIKE THESE.
I DO KNOW, AS A TEST PILOT,
THAT WE HAVE VERY HIGHLY
CLASSIFIED PROJECTS
THAT ARE FLYING.
AND I'LL SAY WHERE
THEY'RE FLYING FROM.
THEY'RE FLYING FROM AREA 51.
WE KNOW THAT THIS HAS BEEN
GOING ON FOR YEARS AND YEARS,
BECAUSE SUCH AIRPLANES
AS THE SR-71 BLACKBIRD,
THE U-2, THE STEALTH FIGHTER,
THE F-117,
THOSE ALL STARTED LIFE UP
IN THAT AREA AND FLEW
FROM THAT SPOT.
I WOULD BE VERY SURPRISED
IF WE DON'T STILL HAVE SECRET,
TOP SECRET MILITARY PROTOTYPE
AIRCRAFT FLYING FROM THERE.
COULD SUCH TOP SECRET PROJECTS
REALLY JUSTIFY
SHUTTING THE PRESIDENT DOWN?
WHAT WE KNOW IS JUST
A TINY FRACTION
OF WHAT'S REALLY OUT THERE.
SO WITHOUT A NASA
INVESTIGATION INTO THAT SIGHTING,
WE'RE NEVER GONNA KNOW
WHAT JIMMY CARTER REALLY SAW.
FOR NOW, THIS SECRET
REMAINS UNEXPLAINED.
A NASA SPACEWALK GOES
BADLY WRONG.
THE SPACE SUIT
IS TURNING INTO A DEATH TRAP.
AN ASTRONAUT IS JUST
MINUTES AWAY FROM DROWNING.
YOU PANIC, THAT'S IT.
IT'S OVER, YOU'RE DEAD.
AND THE KILLER SUIT
HAS STRUCK BEFORE.
WHY WOULD THE SPACE SUIT
THAT LEAKED IN 2013
LEAK AGAIN IN 2016
AFTER IT HAD BEEN
FULLY INSPECTED?
IN JULY 2013,
ASTRONAUT LUCA PARMITANO
NEARLY DIED
ON A SPACEWALK OUTSIDE THE ISS.
LUCA NEARLY DROWNED
IN HIS SPACE SUIT,
AND THAT'S THE CLOSEST
WE'VE EVER COME TO LOSING
AN ASTRONAUT DURING A SPACEWALK.
A NASA INVESTIGATION
CONCLUDES THAT A BLOCKAGE
IN THE SUIT'S COOLANT SYSTEM
MOST LIKELY CAUSED
AN OVERFLOW OF WATER
TO FILL THE SPACE SUIT'S HELMET.
THEY TOOK THE SPACE SUIT APART.
THEY COULDN'T FIND
ANYTHING WRONG,
SO THE PROBLEM SEEMED
TO HAVE FIXED ITSELF.
THREE YEARS LATER,
ASTRONAUT TIM KOPRA IS
CHECKING THE SAME SUIT,
READY TO TAKE IT OUT
ON A ROUTINE MAINTENANCE
SPACEWALK WITH HIS PARTNER,
TIM PEAKE.
KOPRA WAS CLEANING THE SUIT
WHEN HE THINKS HE SEES A LEAK.
HE TAKES A PICTURE,
MOPS UP THE FLUID.
BUT WHEN HE TRIES TO RECREATE
THE LEAK, IT'S NOT THERE.
IT'S AS IF IT JUST DISAPPEARED.
SUBSEQUENT TESTS SHOW NOTHING.
UNABLE TO IDENTIFY ANY FAULT,
KOPRA READIES THE SUIT
FOR HIS SPACEWALK.
IT'S A DECISION THAT
COULD COST HIM HIS LIFE.
JANUARY 2016.
NASA ASTRONAUTS TIM PEAKE
AND TIM KOPRA BEGIN
THEIR SCHEDULED
SIX-AND-A-HALF-HOUR
SPACEWALK TO REPLACE
A FAILED POWER REGULATOR
ON THE EXTERIOR OF THE
INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION.
OKAY, GUYS.
WE'RE WORKING, RIGHT NOW,
FOR TIM KOPRA OFF PAGE 13
OF THE CUFF CHECKLIST.
FOUR AND A HALF
HOURS INTO THE MISSION,
KOPRA GETS
AN UNPLEASANT SURPRISE.
KOPRA ALERTS MISSION CONTROL
TO THIS LIFE-THREATENING
SITUATION.
OKAY, TIM, WE'RE GONNA
HAVE YOU HOLD RIGHT THERE.
JUST LET US TALK SOME STUFF
OUT HERE FOR A SECOND.
MISSION CONTROL
COMES UP WITH AN IDEA.
THEY SAY, "WELL, SINCE YOU GUYS
HAVE BEEN OUT THERE FOR 4 HOURS
AND YOU'RE MOVING THIS
HEAVY EQUIPMENT AROUND,
MAYBE IT'S SWEAT."
WHEN YOU'RE IN THE SPACE SUIT,
YOU'RE WORKING,
PHYSICALLY, VERY HARD.
AND SO YOU CAN GENERATE
A LOT OF HEAT VERY QUICKLY.
IF THERE'S ANY WAY TO GET
A TEMPERATURE OF THE WATER...
I DON'T KNOW IF YOU CAN MOVE
IT AROUND AND GET TO THAT.
OR TO TRY TO DRINK IT
AND NOTE THE TASTE.
MISSION CONTROL ORDERS
HIM TO TASTE IT.
KOPRA TRIES TO SAMPLE
THE FLOATING GLOBULE.
IF IT'S WARM AND SALTY,
IT COULD BE SWEAT.
IF IT'S COLD, THAT'S A PROBLEM.
THE WATER IS COLD.
THAT MEANS IT'S COMING FROM
THE SUIT'S COOLING SYSTEM.
AND THERE'S MORE
THAN ENOUGH WATER
IN THE COOLING SYSTEM
TO DROWN AN ASTRONAUT.
THE HELMET IS
HOOKED UP TO THE COOLING PACK.
A LEAK HERE COULD BE DEADLY.
YOU'RE ONE FAILURE
AWAY FROM A FATALITY.
KOPRA'S PARTNER,
TIM PEAKE, ARRIVES TO HELP.
BUT THE WATER
CONTINUES TO SPREAD.
THE SPACE SUIT THAT'S DESIGNED
TO PROTECT THE ASTRONAUTS
IS NOW TURNING INTO A DEATH TRAP
BECAUSE KOPRA LITERALLY COULD
DROWN IN HIS OWN COOLANT.
MISSION CONTROL HAS NO CHOICE.
THEY HAVE TO GET KOPRA BACK
INSIDE THE SPACE STATION.
THERE'S NO ALTERNATIVE.
THEY HAVE TO PULL
THE PLUG ON THE SPACEWALK.
GUYS, YOU CAN START OPENING
YOUR CUFF CHECKLIST
TO PAGE SEVEN.
WE ARE IN A TERMINATE CASE.
WHEN KOPRA FINALLY
GETS THROUGH THE AIRLOCK,
HIS COLLEAGUES REMOVE
HIS HELMET IN MINUTES.
THEY PEEL OFF KOPRA'S MASK.
AND IT'S FILLED WITH WATER.
AS THE CREW EXAMINES
KOPRA'S SUIT,
A SHOCKING REALIZATION
HITS THEM.
THE SPACE SUIT THAT LEAKED
FOR LUCA PARMITANO
IS THE EXACT SAME SPACE SUIT
THAT LEAKED FOR TIM KOPRA.
WHY WOULD THE SPACE SUIT
THAT LEAKED IN 2013
LEAK AGAIN IN 2016
AFTER IT HAD BEEN
FULLY INSPECTED?
NASA ENGINEERS CHECK
THE SUIT TO MAKE SURE
THAT THE COOLANT SYSTEM
HASN'T BLOCKED AGAIN.
THEY DISMANTLE THE SUIT.
THEY TAKE IT APART.
AND THERE IS NO BLOCKAGE.
THERE MUST BE
SOMETHING ELSE GOING ON.
IS THIS A CURSED SPACE SUIT?
THERE IS NO SCIENTIFIC BASIS
FOR THE IDEA OF A CURSED SUIT.
BUT NASA ENGINEERS
HAVE YET TO WORK OUT
WHY THIS ONE ALMOST
KILLED TWO MEN.
CAN A SPACE SUIT BE CURSED?
NO. THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE.
WOULD I WANT TO GO INTO SPACE
IN THIS PARTICULAR SPACE SUIT?
I THINK NOT.
THE SUIT WAS RETURNED
TO EARTH IN MAY 2016.
IT IS CURRENTLY
UNDER INVESTIGATION BY NASA.
Subtitles Diego Moraes
www.oakisland.tk