Miracle Planet
Encyclopedia
Miracle Planet is a six-part documentary
series, co-produced by Japan's NHK
and the National Film Board of Canada
(NFB), narrated by Christopher Plummer
(Seiko Nakajo in the original Japanese), which tells the 4.6-billion-year-old story of how life has evolved from its humble beginnings to the diversity of living creatures
today.
Filmed around the world and based upon the most recent scientific findings, Miracle Planet combines location footage and interviews with leading scientists, along with computer animation
, to depict the cataclysmic events that have shaped our planet and all of the life-forms within it.
The five standard episodes depict the evolution
of life on Earth in perspective with our place in the universe
- from the simplest microbes to the complexity and diversity that is found on the planet today. The entire 5-hour series Miracle Planet aired on Discovery Channel
in Canada
on April 22, 2005 as an Earth Day
special. The music was composed by Hironori Doi, and orchestrated by Wataru Hokoyama.
. It discusses the beginning of life on earth, mentioning panspermia as a possible candidate. It then simulates a collision with an asteroid 500 km wide, similar to those that formed the protoplanets.
events in the Mid-precambrian
period, and the effect they had on life. It simulates a similar occurrence in the modern day.
and Carboniferous
.
to Tertiary
periods, showing numerous extinctions, including the Siberian Traps
event 200 mya and the K-T asteroid impact. It also shows the rise of new forms of life after each event.
s succeeded over Neanderthals.
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
series, co-produced by Japan's NHK
NHK
NHK is Japan's national public broadcasting organization. NHK, which has always identified itself to its audiences by the English pronunciation of its initials, is a publicly owned corporation funded by viewers' payments of a television license fee....
and the National Film Board of Canada
National Film Board of Canada
The National Film Board of Canada is Canada's twelve-time Academy Award-winning public film producer and distributor. An agency of the Government of Canada, the NFB produces and distributes documentary, animation, alternative drama and digital media productions...
(NFB), narrated by Christopher Plummer
Christopher Plummer
Arthur Christopher Orne Plummer, CC is a Canadian theatre, film and television actor. He made his film debut in 1957's Stage Struck, and notable early film performances include Night of the Generals, The Return of the Pink Panther and The Man Who Would Be King.In a career that spans over five...
(Seiko Nakajo in the original Japanese), which tells the 4.6-billion-year-old story of how life has evolved from its humble beginnings to the diversity of living creatures
Animal
Animals are a major group of multicellular, eukaryotic organisms of the kingdom Animalia or Metazoa. Their body plan eventually becomes fixed as they develop, although some undergo a process of metamorphosis later on in their life. Most animals are motile, meaning they can move spontaneously and...
today.
Filmed around the world and based upon the most recent scientific findings, Miracle Planet combines location footage and interviews with leading scientists, along with computer animation
Computer animation
Computer animation is the process used for generating animated images by using computer graphics. The more general term computer generated imagery encompasses both static scenes and dynamic images, while computer animation only refers to moving images....
, to depict the cataclysmic events that have shaped our planet and all of the life-forms within it.
The five standard episodes depict the evolution
Evolution
Evolution is any change across successive generations in the heritable characteristics of biological populations. Evolutionary processes give rise to diversity at every level of biological organisation, including species, individual organisms and molecules such as DNA and proteins.Life on Earth...
of life on Earth in perspective with our place in the universe
Universe
The Universe is commonly defined as the totality of everything that exists, including all matter and energy, the planets, stars, galaxies, and the contents of intergalactic space. Definitions and usage vary and similar terms include the cosmos, the world and nature...
- from the simplest microbes to the complexity and diversity that is found on the planet today. The entire 5-hour series Miracle Planet aired on Discovery Channel
Discovery Channel
Discovery Channel is an American satellite and cable specialty channel , founded by John Hendricks and distributed by Discovery Communications. It is a publicly traded company run by CEO David Zaslav...
in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
on April 22, 2005 as an Earth Day
Earth Day
Earth Day is a day that is intended to inspire awareness and appreciation for the Earth's natural environment. The name and concept of Earth Day was allegedly pioneered by John McConnell in 1969 at a UNESCO Conference in San Francisco. The first Proclamation of Earth Day was by San Francisco, the...
special. The music was composed by Hironori Doi, and orchestrated by Wataru Hokoyama.
The Violent Past
This episode chronicles the early stages of the Earth's history, from formation to the mid-PrecambrianPrecambrian
The Precambrian is the name which describes the large span of time in Earth's history before the current Phanerozoic Eon, and is a Supereon divided into several eons of the geologic time scale...
. It discusses the beginning of life on earth, mentioning panspermia as a possible candidate. It then simulates a collision with an asteroid 500 km wide, similar to those that formed the protoplanets.
Snowball Earth
This episode mainly focuses on the two Snowball EarthSnowball Earth
The Snowball Earth hypothesis posits that the Earth's surface became entirely or nearly entirely frozen at least once, some time earlier than 650 Ma . Proponents of the hypothesis argue that it best explains sedimentary deposits generally regarded as of glacial origin at tropical...
events in the Mid-precambrian
Precambrian
The Precambrian is the name which describes the large span of time in Earth's history before the current Phanerozoic Eon, and is a Supereon divided into several eons of the geologic time scale...
period, and the effect they had on life. It simulates a similar occurrence in the modern day.
New Frontiers
This episode follows our ancestors from the shallow saltwater seas to the freshwater rivers, then discusses the colonization of land. Mainly DevonianDevonian
The Devonian is a geologic period and system of the Paleozoic Era spanning from the end of the Silurian Period, about 416.0 ± 2.8 Mya , to the beginning of the Carboniferous Period, about 359.2 ± 2.5 Mya...
and Carboniferous
Carboniferous
The Carboniferous is a geologic period and system that extends from the end of the Devonian Period, about 359.2 ± 2.5 Mya , to the beginning of the Permian Period, about 299.0 ± 0.8 Mya . The name is derived from the Latin word for coal, carbo. Carboniferous means "coal-bearing"...
.
Extinction and Rebirth
This episode centres on the PermianPermian
The PermianThe term "Permian" was introduced into geology in 1841 by Sir Sir R. I. Murchison, president of the Geological Society of London, who identified typical strata in extensive Russian explorations undertaken with Edouard de Verneuil; Murchison asserted in 1841 that he named his "Permian...
to Tertiary
Tertiary
The Tertiary is a deprecated term for a geologic period 65 million to 2.6 million years ago. The Tertiary covered the time span between the superseded Secondary period and the Quaternary...
periods, showing numerous extinctions, including the Siberian Traps
Siberian Traps
The Siberian Traps form a large region of volcanic rock, known as a large igneous province, in the Russian region of Siberia. The massive eruptive event which formed the traps, one of the largest known volcanic events of the last 500 million years of Earth's geological history, continued for...
event 200 mya and the K-T asteroid impact. It also shows the rise of new forms of life after each event.
Survival of the Fittest
This episode chronicles primates that would evolve to become humans and why the Cro-MagnonCro-Magnon
The Cro-Magnon were the first early modern humans of the European Upper Paleolithic. The earliest known remains of Cro-Magnon-like humans are radiometrically dated to 35,000 years before present....
s succeeded over Neanderthals.