Documentary AreaSimply the best Documentaries

Did Marco Polo, the most illustrious traveller in history, ever go to China? To this day doubt lingers, among some scholars, as to whether the Venetian’s book is a personal account of China’s 13th-century Middle Kingdom and its marvels. Scientists, western scholars and Chinese historians have uncovered striking new evidence that the son of Venetian merchants actually had been to China. Explore the mysteries of the historical figure in this featured documentary.

A film that will not only delight and entertain the aviation enthusiast but also educate and inspired renewed interest in aviation by the traveling public, the media and young people who may ultimately aspire to a career in aviation. It dramatized the design challenged, the financial risks and the many lessons learned from a century of aviation trial and error, bringing us to the dawn of a new era of revolutionary aircraft, the 787 Dreamliner and the A380". The film will focus on the 787 to facilitate audience understanding of the dynamic design differences between the two latest aircraft technologies. Search aviation history for the ultimate flying experience with some of today's greatest pilots. See how the airplanes of the 20th century helped influence the radical new design of 21st century aircraft. See how high tech manufacturers around the world use modern technology to coordinate the design and construction of new aircraft. Fly in the cockpit with chief test pilot, Mike Carriker, as he takes the new 787 Dreamliner on its first test flight.

Discover a land as exotic as it is extraordinary. Arabia offers an in-depth understanding of one of the most fascinating lifestyles and cultures. Cross the dunes with a caravan of camels, dive in the treasure-filled Red Sea, explore the ruins of the lost city of Petra, and relive the golden age of Islamic inventions. A precious land imprinted with myths and mysteries.

Visit the ghostly villages surrounding Chernobyl (abandoned by humans after the 1986 nuclear disaster), travel to remote islands off the coast of Maine to search for abandoned towns that have vanished from view in only a few decades, then head beneath the streets of New York to see how subway tunnels may become watery canals. A visual journey, LIFE AFTER PEOPLE is a thought provoking adventure that combines movie-quality visual effects with insights from experts in the fields of engineering, botany, ecology, biology, geology, climatology, and archaeology to demonstrate how the very landscape of our planet will change in our absence.

Many argue that flying saucers and other extra-terrestrial space ships continuously visit the earth. If that were true, what kinds of technologies would such alien spacecraft require? And do eyewitness reports of UFO sightings jibe with modern theories of how interstellar travel might be possible? Authors, astronomers and theoretical physicists weigh in with the blueprints for inertia-canceling devices, nuclear-powered craft, antimatter propulsion systems and even warp drives. Based on Einstein's theories and countless scientific studies, we'll find out how these visitors might bridge the vast distances between the stars. And if they could survive such hazardous journeys, are they flesh and blood or intelligent machines?

In this second episode we travel from January to the March equinox. Kate Humble gets closer to the Sun than she has ever been before, whilst Helen Czerski visits a place that gets some of the biggest and fastest snowstorms on Earth.