Earth: Power of the Planet

Original version

BBC Two England

BBC Two is a TV channel that started broadcasting on the 20th April 1964.

BBC Two

BBC 2

BBC2

BBC Two (England)

England

BBC One

BBC One is a TV channel that started broadcasting on the 20th April 1964. It replaced BBC Television.

BBC Four

BBC HD

BBC Two Northern Ireland (Analogue)

BBC Two Northern Ireland

Until 03/01/2009 BBC Two Wales (analogue) was known simply as BBC Two Wales. BBC Two Wales (digital) was BBC 2W. From 03/01/2009 BBC Two Wales schedules on both analogue and digital became identical

BBC Two Wales

BBC Two Scotland

BBC Two Wales (Analogue)

BBC One Scotland

Scotland

BBC One North West

The BBC East region started on 1st May 1959 as part of the BBC Television Service, before becoming BBC One East.

BBC One East

BBC One Cambridgeshire

BBC One region covering Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire.

BBC One East Midlands

BBC One West Midlands

BBC One Yorkshire

BBC One Yorks & Lincs

The BBC North East & Cumbria region started in 1959 (tbc) as part of the BBC Television Service, before becoming BBC One North East & Cumbria.

BBC One North East & Cumbria

The BBC South region started on 5th January 1961 as part of the BBC Television Service, before becoming BBC One South.

BBC One South

BBC One Oxfordshire

BBC One Channel Islands

The BBC West region started on 1st September 1957 as part of the BBC Television Service, before becoming BBC One West.

BBC One West

The BBC South West region started on 20th April 1961 as part of the BBC Television Service, before becoming BBC One South West.

BBC One South West

BBC One London

London

Formerly part of a wider BBC One South East region that included London and part of the South region. Separated from BBC One London 2001-09-03 following reorganisation of the South East region.

BBC One South East

BBC Northern Ireland region started on 19th April 1955 as part of the BBC Television Service, before becoming BBC One Northern Ireland.

BBC One Northern Ireland

Simulcast of network BBC Two in high definition.

BBC Two HD

Simulcast of BBC Two Northern Ireland in high definition

BBC Two Northern Ireland HD

Simulcast of BBC Two Wales in high definition

BBC Two Wales HD

BBC Four HD

Earth: The Power of the Planet

Iain Stewart

Annabel Gillings

Jonathan Renouf

Earth: The Power of the Planet: Atmosphere

Documentaries

Atmosphere

BBC Two - Earth: The Power of the Planet, AtmosphereSearch BBC

The history of the atmosphere, starting with the ozone layer's creation.
 

Documentary series. Dr Iain Stewart reveals the natural forces that shaped the earth. He traces the history of the atmosphere, from the ozone layer's creation to its current destruction.

Dr Iain Stewart reveals the crucial natural forces that have shaped the earth's development. A flight in a jet plane, a trip to the Andes and a trip to Shark Bay in Australia are expensive but necessary to discuss atmosphere.

You can't see it, you can't taste it, you can't smell it and you can't touch it, yet without it almost all life on Earth would die instantly. The atmosphere is Earth's protective layer, warding off damaging cosmic rays and providing the life-giving oxygen which people depend on for life. Air is a fluid which shapes our world, from eroding rocks to building sand dunes. It also controls the world's weather and climate: Iain takes a trip to Argentina to one of the stormiest places on Earth, to watch a storm build up through the day.

The Earth's atmosphere is completely different to any other planets, and according to the normal laws of chemistry it shouldn't exist. What is extraordinary about our atmosphere is the way that it was created by life. When the planet was first born its atmosphere was made up of noxious volcanic gases - there was no sign of the oxygen humans depend on today.

Iain visits Shark Bay in Australia, home to some of the most ancient forms of life on the planet: stromatolites. These simple bacteria were responsible for transforming the atmosphere because they were the first organisms on the planet to photosynthesise, and in doing so pump oxygen into the air. It led to a revolution. An ozone layer formed which protected the planet from UV rays. Most crucially of all, it enabled the development of a new type of life, something that could burn oxygen to sustain a far more high-energy lifestyle.

BBC Two is a lively channel of depth and substance, carrying a range of knowledge-building programming complemented by great drama, comedy and arts.

Factual: Science & Nature

Documentary series looking at geology of the planet Earth.

Accessibility links

Programme Index

Earth: The Power of the Planet

Atmosphere

Contributors

Genres

Formats

Series

BBC Two England

About BBC Two