Focal Point
Focal Point: Season 2

Air Date

November 14, 2021

Episodes

15 episodes

Focal Point

Season 2

Episodes

1. How Smog Almost Killed NYC

November 14, 2021
6 min

Pollution levels around the world today seem astronomical, but in New York City, they used to be deadly. How did this happen and when did it change?

2. Chernobyl's Radiation Shield

November 14, 2021
6 min

The damaged Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant still holds 200 tons of nuclear fuel, and if it were to leak into the atmosphere, the consequences would be catastrophic. So the world came together to find a way to seal the radiation.

3. Engineering the Perfect Apple

November 14, 2021
4 min

It took over 30 years to create the perfect apple. Find out how scientists designed the Honeycrisp to be the best.

4. Closer to Colonizing Space

November 14, 2021
7 min

After years of trial and error, NASA figured out how to successfully grow salad in space. So, what does this breakthrough mean? Are we one step closer to colonizing other planets?

5. Revolutionizing Heart Surgery

November 14, 2021
5 min

Virtual reality technology is now being applied to medical training. Doctors can teleport inside the human heart and practice surgery over and over again, and this training could revolutionize the future of health care.

6. Declassified Nuclear Films

November 14, 2021
5 min

The US detonated over 200 nuclear weapons to gather scientific data about their potential. That data was gospel for years, until a weapons physicist decades later found out the figures were off by huge margins.

7. Hyperloop Pod

November 14, 2021
8 min

College students built a hyperloop pod that could revolutionize the way we travel. And while some people think the concept is mostly just hype, others think it's genius.

8. US Nuclear Missiles

November 14, 2021
4 min

Forget the big red button, this is how we would actually conduct nuclear war. Missiles are still controlled by floppy disks.

9. Einstein's Brain Was Stolen

November 14, 2021
3 min

Over 60 years ago, Albert Einstein's brain was stolen, dissected and sent in pieces all around the world. Who was behind this theft for science?

10. NASA Mission & Cold War Planes

November 14, 2021
4 min

Greenland loses close to 100 million Olympic-size swimming pools of water per year. We know that statistic thanks to this critical NASA mission.

11. Scientists, Waves & Surfers

November 14, 2021
4 min

Can you catch a wave and collect data at the same time? Find out how these scientists are transforming ocean research and surfers are using Smartfins to help scientists gather data.

12. Live on One of These Moons

November 14, 2021
5 min

Looking for a new home beyond Earth? Icy moons could be a hot contender.

13. AI Is Monitoring You Right Now

November 14, 2021
5 min

There's wisdom in crowds, and scientists are applying artificial intelligence and machine learning to better predict global crises and outbreaks.

14. How NASA Visualizes Galaxies

November 14, 2021
7 min

We go inside NASA's art department, where galaxies, star systems and black holes are visualized.

15. NASA Engineers Use Origami

November 14, 2021
4 min

NASA is using origami to build a giant star blocker, in hopes of imaging distant worlds.

No cast information available