A Perfect Planet

Editorial

BBC One Oxfordshire HD

Documentaries

Factual: Science & Nature: Nature & Environment

Exploring the great forces of nature that support, drive and enable life on earth.

Our planet is one in a billion. How incredible, awe-inspiring life is driven by its natural forces - and how we can ensure humans become a force for good. With David Attenborough.

Series 1

BBC Two

BBC One London

London

Simulcast of network BBC One in high definition. From 03/11/2010

BBC One HD

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

BBC One East

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

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

BBC One Cambridgeshire

BBC One North 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 West Midlands

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

BBC One South

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

BBC One West

BBC One Oxfordshire

BBC One Yorkshire

BBC One region covering Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire.

BBC One East Midlands

BBC One Channel Islands

BBC One Yorks & Lincs

BBC One Wales

Wales

BBC One Scotland

Scotland

Simulcast of BBC One Wales in high definition. From 29/01/2013

BBC One Wales HD

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 BBC One Northern Ireland in high definition. From 24/10/2012

BBC One Northern Ireland HD

Simulcast of BBC One Scotland in high definition. From 14/01/2013

BBC One Scotland HD

BBC Two England

England

Simulcast of network BBC Two in high definition.

BBC Two HD

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

Simulcast of BBC Two Northern Ireland in high definition

BBC Two Northern Ireland HD

BBC Two Northern Ireland

Simulcast of BBC Two Wales in high definition

BBC Two Wales HD

BBC One North East & Cumbria HD

BBC One South HD

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

BBC One London HD

BBC One Cambridgeshire HD

BBC One East Midlands HD

BBC One West HD

BBC One Yorks & Lincs HD

BBC One Yorkshire HD

BBC One West Midlands HD

BBC One North West HD

BBC One South West HD

BBC One Channel Islands HD

BBC One South East HD

BBC One East HD

David Attenborough

Nick Shoolingin-Jordan

Alastair Fothergill

Keith Scholey

Jenni Collie

Daniel Rasmussen

A Perfect Planet: Series 1: Humans

Humans

BBC One - A Perfect Planet, Series 1, Humans

Humans are changing our planet so rapidly, it’s affecting Earth’s life support systems.

Humans are changing our planet so rapidly, it’s affecting Earth’s life support systems: our weather, our oceans and the living world.

Earth is the only living world we know of, but a new force threatens our perfect planet. That force is us. Humans are changing our planet so rapidly, it’s affecting Earth’s life support systems: our weather, our oceans and the living world. To understand what is going wrong, we must look to the past. 

Earth has been through at least five mass extinction events, most of which have been caused by cataclysmic volcanic eruptions. It’s not the lava or ash that wiped out life, but an invisible gas released by volcanoes: carbon dioxide. 

Through compelling, animal-led stories and expert interviews, we discover how CO2 is destabilising our planet. We meet rescued orphaned elephants in Kenya, victims of ever worsening droughts, and join ocean patrols off the coast of Gabon fighting to save endangered sharks. In the Amazon, we witness wildlife teams saving animals in the shrinking forests, and in San Diego we enter a cryogenic zoo preserving the DNA of endangered species before they become extinct. 

Almost every part of modern life depends on energy created by burning fossil fuels, and this produces CO2 in huge amounts. Humans are now acting like a super-volcano, releasing carbon dioxide at an even greater rate than the prehistoric mega-eruptions that extinguished life in the past. Globally, we now release 100 times more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere than all of Earth's volcanoes combined.

The greatest change to be made is in how we create energy, and the planet is brimming with natural power that can help us do just that. It’s these forces of nature - the wind, the sun, waves and geothermal energy - that hold the key to our future.

A Perfect Planet: Series 1

BBC One

Exploring the great forces of nature that support, drive and enable life on Earth.

Accessibility links

Programme Index

A Perfect Planet

Series 1

Humans

Contributors

Genres

Formats

Brand

Series

BBC One Oxfordshire HD

About BBC One