How the Earth Made Man

It is mystery 4.5 billion years in the making: how has our planet transformed, and why? New clues are being discovered not in volcanoes or canyons, but inside each of us. From a case of hiccups to the sensation of deja vu to how we throw a football, quirks of the human body and mind all trace back to enormous transformations on Earth, millions and even billions of years in the past. Inside us are the keys to asteroid impacts, global mass extinctions, and shifting continents...ultimately revealing the epic story of Earth's past - and our own.

Related Links
Earth: Making of a Planet
How Earth Made Us

Snowball Earth (BBC Horizon)

There is a controversial theory that for millions of years the Earth was entirely smothered in ice, up to one kilometre thick. The temperature hovers around -40ºC everywhere, even in the tropics and the equator. If it did, then virtually nothing could survive this ferocious climate. There are some tantalising geological clues that show this theory may be true but the problem is, the clues and the Snowball Earth theory defy the laws of nature. For over fifty years a group of scientists has been trying to prove this incredible period of Earth history. Struggling against scepticism and disbelief, now finally the many mysteries have been solved and the scientific community is slowly coming around to the extraordinary idea not just of the dramatic freeze, but of an equally dramatic thaw. Scientists across the world are starting to believe that in the past the Earth froze over completely for ten million years... then warmed up rapidly about 600 million years ago. Almost all life was wiped out. But out of the freeze emerged the first complex creatures on Earth. Scientists now believe that the so-called Snowball Earth theory could hold the key to the evolution of complex life on this planet.

Related Links:
How the Earth Was Made
Earth Story

Amazing Earth (1998 Film)

Amazing Earth is a 1998 documentary narrated by Patrick Stewart, showcasing the most catastrophic events that alter the planet’s appearance in its 4.6 billion year history. From the heights of Mount Everest, through the molten lava fields of Hawaii, to the very core of our planet, Amazing Earth shows the geologic forces that have changed the face of our world and will ultimately change its face again. With state-of-the-art effects and the latest scientific information, the film tells the story of striking meteorites, gigantic eruptions, the movement of continents and an unending string of geologic events that have shaped the face of the Earth.

Related Links:
Earth Story
How the Earth Was Made