Wonders of the Solar System

Professor Brian Cox visits some of the most stunning locations on Earth to describe how the laws of nature have carved natural wonders across the solar system. Brian explores the powerhouse of them all, the sun. In India he witnesses a total solar eclipse, and in Norway he watches the battle between the sun's wind and Earth, as the night sky glows with the Northern Lights.

Professor Brian Cox reveals how all the beauty and order we see in our cosmic backyard was carved out of nothing more than a chaotic cloud of gas. Chasing tornados in Oklahoma, Brian explains how the same physics that creates these spinning storms shaped the young solar system, and out of this celestial maelstrom emerged Brian's second wonder - the magnificent rings of Saturn.

Professor Brian Cox reveals how something as flimsy as an envelope of gas - an atmosphere - can create some of the most wondrous sights in the Solar System. He takes a ride in a English Electric Lightning and flies up to the top of Earth's atmosphere, where he sees the darkness of space above and the thin blue line of our atmosphere below.

The worlds that surround our planet are all made of rock, but there the similarity ends. Some have a beating geological heart, others are frozen in time. Brian visits the volcano Mauna Kea on Hawaii, to show how something as basic as a planet's size can make the difference between life and death.

Professor Brian Cox describes how the laws of nature have carved natural wonders across the solar system. Brian descends to the bottom of the Pacific in a submarine to witness the extraordinary life forms that survive in the cold, black waters. All life on Earth needs water so the search for aliens in the solar system has followed the search for water.