In an American desert town circa 1955, the itinerary of a Junior Stargazer/Space Cadet convention is spectacularly disrupted by world-changing events.
A radio astronomer receives the first extraterrestrial radio signal ever picked up on Earth. As the world powers scramble to decipher the message and decide upon a course of action, she must make some difficult decisions between her beliefs, the truth, and reality.
A true historical drama about King Sejong, the greatest ruler in Joseon history who sought to enhance national prosperity and military power through astronomy, and Jang Yeong-sil, the most remarkable scientist.
In Chile's Atacama Desert, astronomers peer deep into the cosmos in search for answers concerning the origins of life. Nearby, a group of women sift through the sand searching for body parts of loved ones, dumped unceremoniously by Pinochet's regime.
Photo sequence of the rare transit of Venus over the face of the Sun, one of the first chronophotographic sequences. In 1873, P.J.C. Janssen, or Pierre Jules César Janssen, invented the Photographic Revolver, which captured a series of images in a row. The device, automatic, produced images in a row without human intervention, being used to serve as photographic evidence of the passage of Venus before the Sun, in 1874.
Stunning slow-motion and timelapse cinematography of the landscapes, people and wildlife of the American South West.
Alice is an insecure Leo girl who thinks the stars have made a mistake with her, until one day she receives a blank book with only instructions that promise that any astrological prediction written on those pages will come true. With the power to influence everyone with the predictions she now has access to, Alice becomes an online phenomenon, but also turns the world around her upside down.
In this film, Méliès concocts a combination fairy- and morality tale about the foolishness of trying to look too deeply into the workings of an unstable and inscrutable universe. At a medieval school, an old astronomer begins to teach a class of young men, all armed with telescopes, about the art of scrutinising an imminent eclipse. When a mechanical clock strikes twelve, all the young men rush to the windows and fix their telescopes on the heavens.
The people of the planet Aeon, blessed with six suns, have never experienced night. When an archeological excavation uncovers evidence of an ancient catastrophe, all signs point towards the impending darkness of the very first Nightfall. Panic erupts as the suns slowly disappear one by one. Science struggles against superstition as the people race to comprehend the approaching Nightfall... the end of the world as they know it. Based on Isaac Asimov's classic story "Nightfall," voted "The Greatest Science-Fiction Story OF All Time."
This autobiographical story about a love affair between two men was filmed on location in inner-city Auckland. Richard an astronomy-obsessed worrier spends his time fantasising about outerspace and the cosmos, an activity which antagonises friends and family. Then one day he meets Johnny, a handsome Italian man, with an enormous appetite for life, whose idea of a holiday involves breaking into the nearest small holiday home. He offers him love and an escape from the monotony of work. This short New Zealand film is a joyous celebration of the love between two eccentrics. It is also a refreshingly matter-of-fact and comic treatment of a romance between two men who both have their sights aimed firmly amongst the stars. Released on the compiliations: Boys on Film Volume 3 (1994)
How's it all gonna end? This experience takes us on a journey to the end of time, trillions of years into the future, to discover what the fate of our planet and our universe may ultimately be. We start in 2019 and travel exponentially through time, witnessing the future of Earth, the death of the sun, the end of all stars, proton decay, zombie galaxies, possible future civilizations, exploding black holes, the effects of dark energy, alternate universes, the final fate of the cosmos - to name a few.
The year is 1985. Oliver, a boy with an overflowing imagination, moves with his family to the southernmost corner of Europe, just as Halley's Comet is about to pass by. These events will mark a before and after in the emotional life of Óliver, who will look to the stars for the solution to his problems in the new school, in the neighborhood and at home. To make matters worse, his grandfather, nicknamed "el majara" is encouraged to help him interpret the comet's message and take a step forward in his new Universe.
Poland's submission for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 1973
In a mountainous region in an Asian backwater banana republic, it is said that the descendents of all those buried in its earth will be blessed with fantastic fortune and good health. However, if a special ceremony is not performed on the grounds, then the luck will only last for 24 years. A trio of Chinese Americans decide to venture into these mountains hoping to change their luck; Anna Wong (Moon Lee) is an executive facing a corporate meltdown, Wisely (Chin Ka-Lok) is dying of brain cancer, and UCLA Prof. Chang (Tsui Siu-Ming) is an expert in feng shui. Tin can potentate General Nguen (Yuen Wah) also has designs on the grounds -- hoping to turn his third world, fourth rate country into a superpower. Along the way, the three heroes fall in with a group of local rebels, including the high-kicking Nguen Van Vong (Sibelle Hu).
A college football star falls for his mousy French tutor.
No one seems to understand Nakami. His nights are restless, his days sleepy, and his time at school is isolating. Yet all that seems to change when he encounters his carefree classmate, Magari, dozing off in their high school’s abandoned observatory. Not only is Magari friendly, she’s also a closet insomniac. Together they find solidarity in their shared condition, using the observatory to nap as needed. When their unsanctioned use of the space is discovered, the only way to save their refuge is to revive the school’s long defunct astronomy club. As they work together and get to know each other, their bond grows ever stronger, but hidden truths threaten to cut their budding friendship shot.
Three billion miles away a grand-piano-sized spacecraft is speeding through the outer solar system at nearly 1,000 miles per minute. After nearly a decade in space, the New Horizons space probe will have just 86 seconds to complete its primary mission: Discover the planet Pluto. This time-sensitive special will showcase the first quality pictures of Pluto that the probe will capture.
Billions of years ago, Venus may have harbored life-giving habitats similar to those on the early Earth. Today, Earth's twin is a planet knocked upside down and turned inside out. Its burned-out surface is a global fossil of volcanic destruction, shrouded in a dense, toxic atmosphere. Scientists are now unveiling daring new strategies to search for clues from a time when the planet was alive.
The Great Year is a compelling documentary that explores the possibility that the fall of ancient civilizations around the globe, and the rise of modern civilization, might be related to our Sun’s motion around a companion star. The film examines evidence that ancient civilizations may have known of this celestial cycle and that our Sun may indeed display the characteristics of binary motion. Just as the Earth’s spin on its axis causes day and night and our planet’s annual orbit around the Sun is responsible for the ongoing cycle of the seasons, what if there is some greater celestial cycle, lasting thousands of years, slowly influencing the rise and fall of civilization across the globe? Where is the evidence? What could be the cause?
Blue Peter presenters Helen Skelton and Barney Harwood want to learn more about the solar system so they challenge scientists Helen Czerski and Jem Stansfield to find out more. They look at how to make telescopes and rockets, and use a toilet roll to measure the distances between planets.