How the Earth Was Made

Last updated

How the Earth Was Made
Htewm.jpg
Title screen
Genre Documentary
Narrated byCorey Johnson
Jonathan Keeble
Composer Tim Garland
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons2
No. of episodes26 + 1 pilot
Production
Executive producersStuart Carter
Stephen Marsh
Susan Werbe
Running time45 minutes
Production company Pioneer Productions
Original release
Network History
ReleaseFebruary 10, 2009 (2009-02-10) –
March 2, 2010 (2010-03-02)

How the Earth Was Made is a documentary television series produced by Pioneer Productions for the History channel. It began as a two-hour special exploring the geological history of Earth, airing on December 16, 2007. Focusing on different geologic features of the Earth, the series premiered on February 10, 2009, and the 13-episode first season concluded on May 5, 2009. The second season premiered on November 24, 2009, and concluded on March 2, 2010.

Contents

Overview

How the Earth Was Made premiered as a 90-minute documentary special, narrated by Edward Herrmann, that aired on The History Channel on December 16, 2007, and focused on the geological history of Earth. The History Channel released the original documentary film to Region 1 DVD through Warner Home Video on April 15, 2008, and to Blu-ray through A&E Home Video on May 26, 2009. [1] [2]

The television series premiered on February 10, 2009. Each 45-minute episode focuses on different geologic features and processes of the Earth. The first season, spanning 13 episodes, concluded on May 5, 2009. The second season premiered on November 24, 2009. [3] [4] The first season of the television series was released as a four-volume Region 1 DVD box set on August 25, 2009. [5] [6] The second season was scheduled to be released on June 29, 2010. [7] The Region 4, four-volume DVD set of season one was released by ABC DVD on August 1, 2010 [8] and season two was released on November 1, 2010. [9]

Reception

The editor of the special, Huw Jenkins [10] (although credited as Huw Jenkin), was awarded a 2008 News and Documentary Emmy Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement in a Craft: Editing, in a three-way tie. [11]

In its first season, the television series averaged 1.4 million viewers. [12]

International broadcast

In Australia, the pilot along with both seasons were all broadcast on Pay television through History. For free-to-air viewers, season one also aired on ABC1 each Thursday at 11am from July 22, 2010. [13]

Episodes

Pilot (2007)

TitleOriginal air date
"How the Earth Was Made" [14] [15] [16] December 16, 2007 (2007-12-16)
This 90-minute documentary explains the geological and biological history of Earth, from its formation 4.5 billion years ago to the present day. Explained are the very beginnings of the Earth; the formation of the crust and atmosphere; the origins of water; when life began in the oceans and moved to the land; the Carboniferous period and how it ended; when dinosaurs ruled the land and the arrival of mammals; and the numerous ice ages. The documentary also explains plate tectonics and ends with the foreseeable next stages of our planet until its final stagnation about 2 billion years in the future.

Season 1 (2009)

No. in
series		No. in
season		TitleOriginal air date
11"San Andreas Fault"February 10, 2009 (2009-02-10)
A look at how geologists are keeping an eye on California's 800 mile-long San Andreas Fault which many believe is overdue for a major earthquake in the region that could destroy some of the most valuable real-estate in the world.
22"The Deepest Place on Earth"February 17, 2009 (2009-02-17)
A look at Challenger Deep, the deepest part of the Mariana Trench, where only a few scientists have been able to explore this amazing rift caused by the subduction of the Pacific Plate under the Mariana Plate.
33"Krakatoa"February 24, 2009 (2009-02-24)
A look at the geologic history of the Krakatoa volcano in Indonesia, the 1883 eruption which spawned a tsunami that took tens of thousands of lives, and how another, possibly more powerful eruption, could happen again.
44"Loch Ness"March 3, 2009 (2009-03-03)
A look at the geologic history of Scotland and how Loch Ness was carved out by the movement of ancient glaciers.
55"New York"March 10, 2009 (2009-03-10)
A look at the geologic history of the land modern day New York City sits atop; how Ice Age glaciers carved the rock beneath the metropolis, and its connection to land on the east coast of Africa.
66"Driest Place on Earth"March 17, 2009 (2009-03-17)
A look at the driest place on Earth, the Atacama Desert in South America which is 50 times drier than Death Valley; and how even in such a barren place, bacteria can still thrive.
77"Great Lakes"March 24, 2009 (2009-03-24)
A look at the Great Lakes of North America – the largest expanse of freshwater on Earth, and how findings gathered from a fossilized coral reef and the salt mines below the lakes are providing geologists with evidence that the region was once an ancient seabed.
88"Yellowstone"March 31, 2009 (2009-03-31)
A look at Yellowstone National Park and the caldera super volcano beneath it that is pushing up the land and long overdue for what could be a titanic eruption.
99"Tsunami"April 7, 2009 (2009-04-07)
A look at how tsunamis are created, and the possible consequences if a landslide generated megatsunami were to strike the east coast of the United States and countries that face the Atlantic.
1010"Asteroids"April 14, 2009 (2009-04-14)
A look at how asteroids played a role in the formation of the Earth; a study of how the Barringer Meteor Crater in Arizona was formed, and why little evidence remains of the meteor itself that created it.
1111"Iceland Volcano"April 21, 2009 (2009-04-21)
A look at the geologic history of Iceland and how the forces of fire and ice – volcanoes and glaciers – played a role together in the island's formation.
1212"Hawaii"April 28, 2009 (2009-04-28)
A look at the geologic puzzle of how the isolated Hawaiian Islands chain was formed and predictions about their future.
1313"The Alps"May 5, 2009 (2009-05-05)
A look at the Alps mountain range in Europe; how geologic uplifting caused by the collision of the African and Eurasian plates brought such peaks as the Matterhorn and Eiger to their current height, and the marine fossil evidence found there that shows the land was once below sea level.

Season 2 (2009–10)

No. in
series		No. in
season		TitleOriginal air date
141"The Grand Canyon"November 24, 2009 (2009-11-24)
A look at how the Grand Canyon in Arizona was believed to have been formed by the slow draining of an ancient lake which formed the Colorado River and carved the canyon out over millions of years.
152"Vesuvius"December 1, 2009 (2009-12-01)
A look at the geologic history of Mount Vesuvius which destroyed the ancient city of Pompeii; how geologists are collecting evidence that the volcano is stirring again; and how another eruption could spell disaster for the unprepared heavily-populated city of Naples.
163"Birth of the Earth"December 8, 2009 (2009-12-08)
A trip four billion years back in time to show the formation of planet Earth; to how molten material came together and solidified into rock; how the world survived a collision with a Mars-sized planet; how water arrived and formed the oceans, and when the first lifeforms appeared.
174"Sahara"December 15, 2009 (2009-12-15)
A look at the Sahara, the largest desert on Earth, and how scientists have uncovered fossilized evidence of whales, fresh water shells and ancient human settlements – clues that this searing wasteland was once a fertile land with a great sea.
185"Yosemite"December 22, 2009 (2009-12-22)
A look at how the geographically diverse Yosemite Valley was formed, and the debate whether it was carved by crushing ice age glaciers or a volcanic ripping of the Earth.
196"The Rockies"December 22, 2009 (2009-12-22)
A look at the mighty Rocky Mountains; how they are being formed by geologic uplifting from the collision of the Pacific Plate and the North American Continent, and the evidence that these geologically young mountains are still growing.
207"Ring of Fire"January 12, 2010 (2010-01-12)
A look at the Pacific Ring of Fire – the largest region of volcanic activity on Earth, that stretches around the Pacific Ocean from New Zealand, to Japan, to the Aleutians and down through the Andes mountain range of South America.
218"Everest"January 19, 2010 (2010-01-19)
A look at the geologic history of Mount Everest, the tallest peak in the world, and how the Himalayas mountain range was really once an ancient seabed, pushed up to the roof of the world by tectonic smashing of the Indian plate into the Asian continent.
229"Death Valley"January 26, 2010 (2010-01-26)
A look at the geologic treasure trove of Death Valley; how one of the hottest places on Earth holds evidence for the coldest times on our planet; and how the valley, already well below sea level, is still sinking lower into the Earth.
2310"Mt. St. Helens"February 2, 2010 (2010-02-02)
A look at the creation of the Mount St. Helens volcano in Washington state; its history of violent eruptions and the evidence another massive eruption could occur again in the near future.
2411"Earth's Deadliest Eruption"February 9, 2010 (2010-02-09)
A look back 250 million years ago when a massive volcanic eruption, (in what is now Siberia), spewed lava one mile thick over an area the size of Texas; caused intense climatic change that killed 95% of the life on the planet and paved the way for the next dominant species – the dinosaurs.
2512"America's Ice Age"February 16, 2010 (2010-02-16)
A look at past Ice Age eras that Earth has experienced throughout its existence; how the slightest changes in the planet's orbit and angle of rotation can bring them about; how long they can last, and when the Earth will endure another.
2613"America's Gold"March 2, 2010 (2010-03-02)
A look at how gold, a scarce element left behind by the explosions of supernovas, was collected by the forming Earth and how its geologic processes concentrated it in various places throughout the globe.

Related Research Articles

Monk is an American comedy-drama detective television series that originally ran on the USA Network from July 12, 2002, to December 4, 2009, with 125 episodes broadcast over eight seasons. The series follows Adrian Monk, a private detective with obsessive–compulsive disorder and multiple phobias, and his assistants Sharona Fleming and Natalie Teeger. Monk works with the San Francisco Police Department in solving unconventional cases while investigating his wife's unsolved murder. The show also incorporates elements of comedy and drama through exploring the main characters' personal lives and struggles.

<i>Ghost Whisperer</i> American supernatural drama TV series (2005–2010)

Ghost Whisperer is an American supernatural television series, which ran on CBS from September 23, 2005, to May 21, 2010.

<i>Planet Earth</i> (2006 TV series) 2006 British nature documentary television series

Planet Earth is a 2006 British television series produced by the BBC Natural History Unit. Five years in the making, it was the most expensive nature documentary series ever commissioned by the BBC and also the first to be filmed in high definition. The series received multiple awards, including four Emmy Awards, a Peabody Award, and an award from the Royal Television Society.

<i>The Chasers War on Everything</i> Australian television satirical comedy series

The Chaser's War on Everything is an Australian television satirical comedy series broadcast on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) television station ABC1. It has won an Australian Film Institute Award for Best Television Comedy Series. The cast perform sketches mocking social and political issues, and often feature comedic publicity stunts. The series is produced by The Chaser, an Australian satirical group consisting of Chris Taylor, Julian Morrow, Craig Reucassel, Andrew Hansen, and Chas Licciardello. Fellow Chaser members Dominic Knight and Charles Firth are not part of the regular on-screen cast. However, Knight is a writer, and Firth compiled roving reports for the show from the United States, until he left the group to start a satirical newspaper in mid-2007.

<i>The Simpsons</i> season 19 Season of television series

The nineteenth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons originally aired on the Fox network between September 23, 2007, and May 18, 2008. It was the final complete season to be broadcast in 4:3 and in standard definition, although the first half of season 20 would also retain this standard.

<i>Wild Caribbean</i> British TV series or programme

Wild Caribbean is a four-part BBC nature documentary series exploring the natural and cultural history of the Caribbean Islands and Sea. It was first transmitted in the UK on BBC Two in January 2007. The series was produced by the BBC Natural History Unit and narrated by actor Steve Toussaint. This series also aired in Australia on ABC1 each Sunday at 7:30pm from 15 February 2009.

<i>Wild China</i> TV series or program

Wild China is a six-part nature documentary series on the natural history of China, co-produced by the BBC Natural History Unit and China Central Television (CCTV) and filmed in high-definition (HD). It was screened in the UK on BBC Two from 11 May to 5 June 2008. The English narration was provided by Bernard Hill and the series produced by Phil Chapman for the BBC and Gao Xiaoping for CCTV. The Chinese version was broadcast under the title Beautiful China. In Canada, it was broadcast on CBC as part of the series The Nature of Things narrated by David Suzuki. Wild China was broadcast in Australia on ABC1 and ABC HD each Sunday at 7:30pm from 18 May 2008.

<i>Life After People</i> 2008 American apocalyptic television series

Life After People is a television series on which scientists, mechanical engineers, and other experts speculate about what might become of planet Earth if humanity suddenly disappeared. The featured experts also talk about the impact of human absence on the environment and the vestiges of civilization thus left behind. The series was preceded by a two-hour special that aired on January 21, 2008, on the History Channel which served as a de facto pilot for the series that premiered April 21, 2009. The documentary and subsequent series were both narrated by James Lurie.

<i>Lawrence Leungs Choose Your Own Adventure</i> Australian TV series or program

Lawrence Leung's Choose Your Own Adventure is a six-part Australian television comedy series, starring and primarily written by Melbourne comedian Lawrence Leung and produced by Chaser Broadcasting. The series was filmed over nine weeks from May 2008 in Sydney, Melbourne and Los Angeles, it depicts Leung setting out to achieve the dreams he had as a ten-year-old boy living in the 1980s. It premiered at 9:30 pm on 25 March 2009 on ABC1. The series aired in syndication in the United States under the title The Lost Adventures of Lawrence Leung on Vibrant TV Network.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lawrence Leung</span> Australian comedian

Lawrence Leung is an Australian comedian, writer, director and actor from Melbourne. He is best known for his television series Lawrence Leung's Choose Your Own Adventure based his one-man shows on stories about his obsessions, such as breakdancing, ghosts, the Rubik's Cube, and his family.

<i>When We Left Earth: The NASA Missions</i> Documentary miniseries

When We Left Earth: The NASA Missions is a 2008 Discovery Channel HD documentary miniseries consisting of six episodes documenting American human spaceflight from the first Mercury flights and the Gemini program, to the Apollo program and its Moon missions and landings, to the Space Shuttle missions and the construction of the International Space Station.

<i>Life</i> (2009 TV series) British nature documentary series

Life is a British nature documentary series created and produced by the BBC in association with The Open University. It was first broadcast as part of the BBC's Darwin Season on BBC One and BBC HD from October to December 2009. The series takes a global view of the specialised strategies and extreme behaviour that living things have developed in order to survive; what Charles Darwin termed "the struggle for existence". Four years in the making, the series was shot entirely in high definition.

<i>Natures Great Events</i> BBC wildlife documentary television series

Nature's Great Events is a wildlife documentary series made for BBC television, first shown in the UK on BBC One and BBC HD in February 2009. The series looks at how seasonal changes powered by the sun cause shifting weather patterns and ocean currents, which in turn create the conditions for some of the planet's most spectacular wildlife events. Each episode focuses on the challenges and opportunities these changes present to a few key species.

<i>Family Guy</i> season 5 Season of television series

The fifth season of Family Guy first aired on the Fox network in eighteen episodes from September 10, 2006 to May 20, 2007 before being released as two DVD box sets and in syndication. It premiered with the episode "Stewie Loves Lois" and finished with "Meet the Quagmires". The series follows the dysfunctional Griffin family—father Peter, mother Lois, daughter Meg, son Chris, baby Stewie and Brian, the family pet, who reside in their hometown of Quahog, a fictional city in the U.S. state of Rhode Island. The executive producers for the fifth season were David Goodman, Chris Sheridan, Danny Smith and series creator Seth MacFarlane. Sheridan and Goodman served as showrunners for the fifth season.

<i>The Incredible Human Journey</i> British science documentary television series

The Incredible Human Journey is a five-episode, 300-minute, science documentary film presented by Alice Roberts, based on her book by the same name. The film was first broadcast on BBC television in May and June 2009 in the UK. It explains the evidence for the theory of early human migrations out of Africa and subsequently around the world, supporting the Out of Africa Theory. This theory claims that all modern humans are descended from anatomically modern African Homo sapiens rather than from the more archaic European and Middle Eastern Homo neanderthalensis or the indigenous Chinese Homo pekinensis.

<i>Michael McIntyres Comedy Roadshow</i> British stand-up comedy TV series

Michael McIntyre's Comedy Roadshow is a British stand-up comedy television series hosted by comedian Michael McIntyre from different venues around the United Kingdom and Ireland. The first series was broadcast with six episodes in 2009. Each episode features a routine from McIntyre, followed by three other comedians before the headline act. A second six-episode series in the same format followed in 2010.

<i>Wonders of the Solar System</i> 2010 British television series

Wonders of the Solar System is a 2010 television series co-produced by the BBC and Science Channel, and hosted by physicist Brian Cox. Wonders of the Solar System was first broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC Two on 7 March 2010. The series comprises five episodes, each of which focuses on an aspect of the Solar System and features a 'wonder' relevant to the theme. The series was described as one of the most successful to appear on BBC Two in recent years. An accompanying book with the same name was also published.

<i>Wonders of the Universe</i> 2011 British television series

Wonders of the Universe is a 2011 television series produced by the BBC, Discovery Channel, and Science Channel, hosted by physicist Professor Brian Cox. Wonders of the Universe was first broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC Two from 6 March 2011. The series comprises four episodes, each of which focuses on an aspect of the universe and features a 'wonder' relevant to the theme. It follows on from Cox's 2010 series for the BBC, Wonders of the Solar System. An accompanying book with the same title was also published.

<i>The Hunt</i> (2015 TV series) British TV series or programme

The Hunt is a 2015 British nature documentary series made for BBC Television, first shown in the UK on BBC One and BBC One HD on 1 November 2015. The series is narrated by David Attenborough.

<i>Planet Earth II</i> 2016 British nature documentary television series

Planet Earth II is a 2016 British nature documentary series produced by the BBC as a sequel to Planet Earth, which was broadcast in 2006. The series is presented and narrated by Sir David Attenborough with the main theme music composed by Hans Zimmer.

References

  1. ↑ "How the Earth Was Made DVD". The History Channel . Retrieved November 16, 2009.
  2. ↑ "How the Earth Was Made [Blu-ray] (2007)". Amazon. May 26, 2009. Retrieved November 16, 2009.
  3. ↑ Reynolds, Mike (May 14, 2009). "Upfronts 2009: History Unveils Expansive Slate". Multichannel News . Retrieved November 9, 2009.
  4. ↑ "How the Earth Was Made". History. Archived from the original on October 28, 2009. Retrieved November 16, 2009.
  5. ↑ "How the Earth Was Made: The Complete Season 1 DVD Set". History. Retrieved November 16, 2009.
  6. ↑ "How the Earth Was Made: The Series". Amazon. August 25, 2009. Retrieved November 16, 2009.
  7. ↑ "How the Earth Was Made: Complete Season 2". Amazon. Retrieved June 22, 2010.
  8. ↑ "ABC Shop: How the Earth Was Made DVD (season one)". ABC Shop Online. Archived from the original on September 25, 2011. Retrieved September 28, 2010.
  9. ↑ "ABC Shop: How the Earth Was Made DVD (season two)". ABC Shop Online. Archived from the original on July 16, 2012. Retrieved December 6, 2010.
  10. ↑ Jenkins, Huw. "HewJenkins.com – About Me". Archived from the original on January 26, 2013. Retrieved December 7, 2009.
  11. ↑ "29th Annual News & Documentary Emmy Awards" (Press release). National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. September 22, 2008. Archived from the original on September 23, 2010. Retrieved November 9, 2009.
  12. ↑ "Reality shows with a shot at Emmy – Entertainment News, Road to the Emmys: Reality & Nonfiction, Media". Variety. June 8, 2009. Retrieved April 12, 2010.
  13. ↑ "ABC1 Programming Airdate: How The Earth Was Made (episode one)". ABC Television Publicity. Retrieved September 28, 2010.
  14. ↑ Chinn, Peter (December 16, 2007). "How the Earth Was Made". IMDb . Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  15. ↑ "How the Earth Changed History". IMDb . January 19, 2010. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  16. ↑ "How the Earth Made Man". IMDb . October 1, 2012. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
General
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.