I remember that episode, it was instrumental in rekindling my interest in space exploration at the age of 18

Overall, a great 2nd episode with Dr Carolyn Porco discussing the wonders of the solar system in the Saturnian system: Saturn’s rings and the tiger stripes + geyser-like fountains on Enceladus, Saturn’s sixth largest moon…
---O---

Next month, the series will be available on DVD: http://www.bbcshop.com/Science+Nature/Wond...invt/bbcdvd3191

Available for purchase, but delivery date not till Dec 4th. Also just in Region 2 format, apparently.

Finally I've seen first two episodes. Very nice document, but not flawless. For example, used images are often unnecessarily pixelate (why? For more realistic look?). And Enceladus has four hundred kilometers across? Since when?

Im surprised you noticed that, most images weren't on screen long enough to tell what we were looking at.

The release date is 12th April (12/04/10) - it's a UK site, remember.

(I can't help you with the region format though, alas)

I've just watched the third one, my favourite so far, on atmospheres. It ends with 'Somewhere over the rainbow', which for some reason reminded me of Kubrick's inspired choice of 'The Blue Danube' for 2001. Must be the time of night.

...well, well! I stand happily corrected.

The format might not be an insurmountable obstacle, though; gonna explore some options. Here in LA they may sell Region 2 compatible players somewhere, and since Region 2 also includes Japan it might be worth investing in one to use for some of my wife's movies.

Many DVD players can be easily hacked to become "region-free." On my inexpensive Philips model it was done using nothing more than the number pad on the remote control. Just Google your brand and model number + region +hack.

Another great episode - and great work by Ralph there - I'm not sure where that analogue was but it really was a superb one for the Huygens landing site.

Indeed, good coverage of the January 2005 Huygens probe landing with the parachute shadow visible on Titan's surface...
Interesting bit with the two-seater BAC Lightning T-5 jet with a climb rate of 50000 ft per minute

I saw the Lightning take off at a few airshows, almost before the end of the runway it went into about an 85 degree climb, and was gone......

I'm glad I got to see one at Fairford in the very early 90's ( got to see a Vulcan before they were retired as well )

Follow the Tweets from the prof here!

http://twitter.com/profBriancox

Brian (not of the Cox variety)

Another plus is that should they want to illustrate something with an unusually high albedo, they won't need to jet off to another exotic location - just zoom in on his teeth

Just watched Prof Cox on the BBC's Jonathan Ross show!
Absolutely hilarious!
Warning, does contain some adult humour.
UK folks can catch it on iPlayer (or YouTube will have it
real soon!)
Brian

Matanuska glacier (and river), a little north of Anchorage. I had to split from the DPS conference
in Puerto Rico a day early to get to the shoot. mere 48 hours from snorkelling among angelfish
to wobbling around on crampons on the glacier - some pics are on my web page. I was
supposed to get a ride over the glacier in a chopper but they descoped that, bastards.

Re: comments on Horizon etc. - I havent seen many recent ones, but certainly the old ones
(I vivdly remember the V2 at Neptune with Larry Soderblom setting off a fire extinguisher
to 'simulate' the Triton plumes being influential in my formative years) were great.

Often co-produced with WGBH Boston as Nova, I've seen (purely out of vanity) some shows as
both Nova and Horizon, such as the great 'A Place Like Home' post-Huygens Titan episode -
the Nova version seemed a bit dumbed down. Can't speak to more recent Horizon vs Equinox etc., though.

Many of the British producers I've met on shoots have actually had science backgrounds (indeed
one had even done the same Aerospace Systems degree I did at Southampton), so they're not
all 'meedja' types....