National Geographic Channel Specials Season 1

A simple thought took photojournalist Roger Horrocks halfway around the world to Costa Rica on a mission to find Chito, a man many referred to as the “crocodile shaman.” Many years ago, Chito nursed an injured crocodile, which he calls Pocho, back to health. Since then, the two formed an unthinkable bond. Touching the Dragon examines this astonishing relationship between the earth's most ancient predator and a unique man, one that defies the boundaries of the natural world.

EXTREME is a visually stunning 45-minute journey into the soul of adventure featuring a cast of world champion athletes. Combining incredible extreme sport action with narration from the athletes and an eclectic, contemporary soundtrack, EXTREME explores the paradox of human nature: facing fear from the edge of life. The film takes viewers to the edge of outdoor adventure sports like never before; skiing and snowboarding perilous untouched mountain peaks; climbing vertical frozen waterfalls and red-rock spires; surfing some of the largest waves ever surfed and windsurfing gale force winds. This mesmerizing film is now available for the first time on DVD and in spectacular Blu-ray high definition.

The world’s eminent blue whale scientists embark on a revolutionary mission. Supported by the National Geographic Society, the world’s eminent blue whale scientists embark on a revolutionary mission: they’ll find, identify and tag California blue whales, use the DNA samples to confirm the sex of individual whales, then rejoin the massive creatures’ stunning migration when they collect at a chimera known as the Costa Rica Dome. These experts have observed, firsthand, courtship behavior among the whales at the moving mass of krill and currents 500 miles off the coast of Costa Rica.

The Serengeti, in northern Tanzania, teems with big predators. But none compare to the lion. The Serengeti sustains one of the biggest lion populations in Africa: approximately 3,500 lions in 300 prides. But this pride, residing in the central Serengeti, is an exception. 22 lions in all: they are a Super Pride. Few lion prides reach Super Pride status. This phenomenon requires the right conditions. Plentiful prey and strong pride males are key to its success. But keeping cubs alive to maturity is the Super Pride's ultimate goal. Sometimes the greatest threats to a lion cub's life come from other lions.

At 165 pounds, and allegedly made from the skins of 160 donkeys, the Codex Gigas is the world's largest and most mysterious medieval manuscript. Filled with satanic images and demonic spells, according to legend, the cursed text sprang from a doomed monk's pact with the Devil. Now, Nat Geo follows a team of scientists as they embark on an unprecedented quest to unravel the secrets behind the book's darkened pages. Using ultra-violet fluorescence imaging, handwriting analysis and a re-creation of the text, forensic document experts attempt to uncover the cryptic truth behind this ancient Devil's Bible.

We Built The Titanic is a five-part series which follows a charismatic team of experts as they recreate sections of history's most famous ship. Using 100 year-old methods they uncover the lives of those who built before them and reveal secrets about a ship that was once thought to be unsinkable.

We Built The Titanic is a five-part series which follows a charismatic team of experts as they recreate sections of history's most famous ship. Using 100 year-old methods they uncover the lives of those who built before them and reveal secrets about a ship that was once thought to be unsinkable.

We Built The Titanic is a five-part series which follows a charismatic team of experts as they recreate sections of history's most famous ship. Using 100 year-old methods they uncover the lives of those who built before them and reveal secrets about a ship that was once thought to be unsinkable.

Hitler's Hidden City is a subterranean adventure under the streets of Berlin, following the work of a team of German archaeologists and historian exposing and exploring the last remaining structures of the Third Reich. We gain rare access to an underground city ordered and -- in part -- designed by Hitler himself, part of a vast network of over 1000 bunkers and many miles of tunnels, much of which has remained sealed since the war. Eyewitnesses and historians add colorful stories to cutting edge CGI that bring to life this network of bunkers, how they were built and how they were used in the dark days of the downfall of Berlin.

Most cops patrol the streets in a regular squad car, but for some, keeping the peace requires a rather different beast. Street Racing: Zero Tolerance follows the high-octane home of a seriously high-stakes street racing sub-culture in Kent, Washington State, where you’re more likely to find the police force in a modified Dodge Challenger than a Black Maria. With illegal night-time races on the streets of this town reaching speeds of over 120mph, an elite task force of law enforcement officers is used to stop the would-be Lewis Hamiltons in their tracks – whatever it takes. It’s the ultimate game of cat and mouse, where one false turn could lead to tragedy. Fasten your seatbelts...

Follow the young drivers and mechanics of Custom Performance Racing as they try to turn their struggling start-up custom shop into a success and make it in the world of legit drag racing.

This one hour program tells the story of a team of scientists who believe and intend to prove that the world's largest environmental disaster, the asteroid, is entirely possible. It shot from a hot white sky with absolutely no warning. On Friday, June 14, 2002, an asteroid the size of a football field made one of the closest ever recorded approaches to Earth. Traveling at more than 10km/second, it brushed past Earth completely unseen, at a distance of 120,000km, less than a third of the distance to the Moon. Had it hit the Earth it could have devastation on a scale similar to that of the asteroid impact in Tunguska, Siberia in 1908, when 2000 square km of forest were flattened in a matter of seconds. Had that chunk of space debris hit Moscow or Hong Kong instead, the loss of life would have been staggering. This one hour program tells the story of a multi-national team of scientists who believe and intend to prove that the world's largest environmental disaster is entirely possible.

Hubble Space Telescope is awaiting one final shuttle servicing mission, but why is a telescope worth the risk? Hubble has made numerous discoveries, such as the birth of stars, the death of stars, the existence of black holes, the violence of a comet crash, charting Dark Matter clouds, and discovering 2/3rds of the Universe itself, in the form of mysterious Dark Energy. One day, the Hubble mission will end, and Hubble will burn up in the atmosphere. But a new telescope, the James Webb, will take its place among the stars.

On a single day on a single street, with the DNA of just a couple of hundred random people, National Geographic Channel sets out to trace the ancestral footsteps of all humanity. Narrated by Kevin Bacon, The Human Family Tree travels to one of the most diverse corners of the world -- Queens, N.Y. -- to demonstrate how we all share common ancestors who embarked on very different journeys. Regardless of race, nationality or religion, all of us can trace our ancient origin back to the cradle of humanity, East Africa. What did our collective journey look like, and where did it take your specific ancestors? At what point in our past did we first cross paths with the supposed strangers living in our neighborhood? Now, in The Human Family Tree, the people of this quintessential American melting pot find out that their connections go much deeper than a common ZIP code.

Hidden away in the shadow of the Himalayas, roam the last great herds of India’s giant grazers; one-horned rhinoceroses, wild buffalo and Asian elephants. Through the eyes of a newborn elephant calf, visit a land of unexpected contrasts and else variety.

When five lion prides compete for scarce food, only the most cunning and capable will survive. In this remote African national park, nature is unforgiving to both predator and prey.

Voices of 9/11 focuses on the audio calls received by New York City's 9-1-1 operators and dispatchers. Personal testimony and interviews tell the story of how these men and women did their jobs with a combination of training, instinct and grace, while contending with the conflicting accounts provided by well-meaning eyewitnesses and the frantic calls of those trapped in the Towers.

Move over vampires, zombies are the newest pop culture phenomenon. Enter Haiti's mysterious world of voodoo magic where zombies have their roots, and uncover evidence of real-life zombification.

In conjunction with the July cover story of National Geographic Magazine, get a comprehensive look at Angkor and the new evidence: remains of outlying settlements, at least 74 additional temples and a vital, complex water system.

Despite being one of the world’s best-loved aquatic animals, very little is known for certain about the behaviour and biology of the Humpback whale. This special attempt to uncover the mysteries of the mammoth mammal. Cameras follow a team of researchers in Hawaii as they analyse the humpbacks’ haunting songs, dissecting their structure and discussing the theories behind their meaning. Plus, stunning, high-definition underwater photography takes you right into the whales’ world, providing a unique insight into the natural habitat and behaviour of this most elusive of creatures.

The world watched in horror on March 11, 2011, as the fourth largest earthquake ever recorded crippled Japan and triggered a massive tsunami that swallowed entire communities, leaving an unprecedented catastrophe in its wake. All the while, amateur videographers, news crews, tourists and countless others were recording the sights and sounds of the unfolding chaos. From the producers of the critically acclaimed special Witness Katrina, NGC presents a powerful look at Japan's disaster.

Just prior to the end of WWII, the German military secretly undertook a massive push to design miracle weapons - colossal tanks, the world's first guided missiles and long-range bombers that could attack New York. Now, nearly 60 years later, a team of experts examine the original blueprints to determine if these so-called Wunderwaffen, or "wonder weapons," could have changed the outcome of the war. Read more: http://channel.nationalgeographic.

NGC delves into the tumultuous history of the atom bomb - filled with deception, twists and danger that even Hollywood couldn't make up. Culling from rarely seen archival footage and interviews with leading experts, we'll see how Soviet spies gathered top-secret information during WWII. Learn why China shared its nuclear weapons technology with other countries. Find out how Israel's nuclear weapons program was exposed by a disgruntled worker who leaked information before being kidnapped.

Follow a pride of lions from Africa in Tanzania.

Dare to confront one of the sea's most deadly monsters - the tsunami. Its freak waves can race undetected across an ocean at 600 miles per hour, crashing ashore like a bomb...and pushing massive walls of water that swallow cities whole. In the past century, tsunamis (literally "harbor waves") have taken the lives of 50,000 people - with almost no warning. And scientists tell us that another destructive tsunami - perhaps Pacific-wide - could strike at any time. Now, National Geographic Video lets you encounter these killers up close through heart-stopping footage and survivors' stories. You'll witness unimaginable devastation in Hawaii, California, and Japan...travel the Pacific Rim to track the underwater earthquakes that spawn tsunamis...and watch as residents of this seismically volatile region brace for the next KILLER WAVE.

National Geographic takes you on an exclusive tour inside Air Force One, part luxury hotel, part super-secret military command post. From its beginnings with President Roosevelt making a secret wartime flight in 1943, to the historic flight that returned President Kennedy's body to Washington after his assassination, to the closing months of the Clinton administration. Air Force One takes you through the history of the world's most powerful plane. Features exclusive interviews with President George W. Bush and former Presidents Bill Clinton, George H. W. Bush, and Jimmy Carter.

Americans on Everest documents the journey undertaken by a small band of climbers in 1963 that marked the first time Americans successfully reached the summit of the world's tallest mountain. The film captures the incredible view from the top of Mount Everest.

The National Geographic Society has been part of an international effort, in collaboration with the Maecenas Foundation for Ancient Art and the Waitt Institute for Historical Discovery, to authenticate, conserve, and translate a 66-page codex, which contains a text called James (also known as First Apocalypse of James), the Letter of Peter to Philip, a fragment of a text that scholars are provisionally calling Book of Allogenes, and the only known surviving copy of the Gospel of Judas. The Gospel of Judas gives a different view of the relationship between Jesus and Judas, offering new insights into the disciple who betrayed Jesus. Unlike the accounts in the canonical Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, in which Judas is portrayed as a reviled traitor, this newly discovered Gospel portrays Judas as acting at Jesus' request when he hands Jesus over to the authorities.