NOVA: Season 5

Season 5 overview

The season opens with questions of nuclear survival, the overlooked science of plants, and blood-group immunology, then turns to NASA's first era. Death, disease, and the first space race set a serious tone for the early episodes.

Key story beats

  1. Debating Nuclear Survivability — Members of the defense community argue that a nuclear war can be survived, and NOVA investigates the plausibility of their claims.
  2. Inside the Green Machine — NOVA examines the neglected science of botany: how plants respond to light, photosynthesis, root mechanisms, and twining responses.
  3. Blueprints in the Bloodstream — The four human blood groups are revisited, and newer white-cell molecular markers open possibilities for preventing disease.
  4. NASA From Mercury to Apollo — Tracing Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo, NOVA shows how the space race's basic challenges were answered, including rendezvous, docking, life support, and weightlessness.
  5. Visions of Orbital Settlements — Looking beyond Apollo, the program considers man's future role in space, including large orbiting habitats where people live under artificial gravity.
  6. Portrait of the Mbuti — An independent filmmaker who lived with the Mbuti Pygmies wins their trust, producing a rare portrait of an elusive forest people.
  7. Heart Surgery in the Courtroom — A docudrama reconstructs a controversial lawsuit brought against a renowned heart surgeon after a patient's death, raising legal and moral questions for modern medicine.
  8. Science in the Wine Cellar — A science-based revolution transforms winemaking; NOVA traces aging secrets and the prediction of mass-produced high-quality vintages.
  9. Claims of Ancient Astronauts — NOVA investigates claims that Earth was visited by intelligent beings, testing the alleged evidence of the Great Pyramid and the Palenque astronaut carving.
  10. Rise of the Mind Machines — Artificial intelligence research suggests machines may soon outpace their creators, and NOVA measures the implications.
  11. Winning the Kremer Prize — After many failures, a scientist-businessman wins the Kremer Prize by building an airplane that completes a one-mile figure-eight course powered only by the pilot.
  12. One Year on a Beaver Pond — NOVA portrays a year in a beaver pond, from summer's microscopic plants to eagles feeding on deer that collapsed on the winter ice.
  13. Acropolis Marble Under Acid Rain — Heavily polluted Athens air produces acid rain that dissolves classical marble, while rusting iron tiles from past repairs expand and shatter the stone.
  14. Profile Through an Automaker's Films — Using a vast deposit of personal and company films, NOVA profiles the life and times of a pioneering American industrialist and his era.
  15. Laser Light Finds Its Purpose — Once dismissed as a solution looking for a problem, lasers grow into a billion-dollar business used in construction, manufacturing, dentistry, and medicine.

Seasons

Interactive Features

Episode Guide

Content sources

Plot analysis generated from content on Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Related entry on Wikidata (Q3071768), public domain (CC0).