The Universe

In THE UNIVERSE, scientists and historians offer an eye-opening look into the cosmos, revealing the secrets of planets, stars, and other cosmic elements. Using high-tech computer graphics along with everyday analogies, this educational series helps viewers of all ages understand complex ideas and gain a better understanding of the world around us. Each episode, focusing on a single planet or entity (like Mars or the sun), uses dramatizations, footage from scientific explorations, real-world activities, graphics, and commentary from teachers and explorers to demonstrate different cosmic phenomena. For example, in the sun episode, the series examines how our home star maintains its energy source for eons; one expert uses a log campfire -- which has to constantly be fed new fuel -- to demonstrate how the sun doesn't get its energy, while another expert uses billiard balls, along with a little help from computer graphics, to demonstrate how nuclear fusion (the way the sun does get its energy) works.