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NOVA | February 2025

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NOVA | February 2025
Programming

Explore the science behind the headlines in PBS's premier science series. With compelling stories and spectacular visuals, NOVA programs demystify science and technology for viewers of all ages and spotlight people involved in scientific pursuits.

NOVA #5203
Dino Birds
Wednesday, February 5, 8pm

Contrary to popular belief, dinosaurs never went extinct. They’re still alive and flying among us – in the form of birds! Birds are the only dinosaurs that survived the cataclysmic mass extinction event caused by an asteroid the size of Mount Everest crashing into Earth about 66 million years ago. The big question is: How? How did birds manage to not only live through the apocalypse that wiped out all the other dinosaurs, but also evolve to populate every corner of our planet? Now, rare fossil discoveries are revealing the secrets of bird evolution going back more than 100 million years, telling the story of how some resilient feathered dinosaurs persevered and transformed into the vast array of colorful bird species that fills our skies today.

  • WTVP-HD 47.1 - Wed, 02/05/2025 @ 8:00 PM
  • WTVP-HD 47.1 - Thu, 02/06/2025 @ 12:00 AM
  • WTVP-HD 47.1 - Thu, 02/06/2025 @ 12:00 PM
  • WTVP-HD 47.1 - Fri, 02/07/2025 @ 4:00 AM
  • WTVP-WORLD 47.3 - Tue, 02/11/2025 @ 6:00 PM
  • WTVP-WORLD 47.3 - Tue, 02/11/2025 @ 11:00 PM
  • WTVP-WORLD 47.3 - Wed, 02/12/2025 @ 7:00 AM
WTVP SpotsNOVA #5203 | Dino Birds | Trailer
0:30
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Expires: 2028-01-05

Fossils reveal how birds survived the killer asteroid and became today's only living dinosaurs.

Archaeologists in a tunnel - Egypt’s Tombs of Amun

NOVA #5204
Egypt’s Tombs of Amun
Wednesday, February 12, 8pm

An archaeological detective story opens a door into an extraordinary moment in the story of Ancient Egypt, as the discovery of a long-lost cemetery not far from King Tut’s tomb shines a light on an often-overlooked Egyptian kingdom. About 2,700 years ago, kings from Nubia – present day Sudan – conquered Egypt, and during their reigns, shifted the status of Egyptian women. Archaeologists and historians reveal how the ascent of The God’s Wife of Amun lifted some women to the highest echelons of religious, political, and financial power in the ancient Egyptian empire.

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  • WTVP-HD 47.1 - Fri, 02/14/2025 @ 4:00 AM
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  • WTVP-WORLD 47.3 - Tue, 02/18/2025 @ 11:00 PM
  • WTVP-WORLD 47.3 - Wed, 02/19/2025 @ 7:00 AM

NOVA #5205
Pompeii’s Secret Underworld
Wednesday, February 19, 8pm

For over two centuries, archaeologists have hailed Pompeii as a sophisticated city at the heart of an advanced ancient civilization. But a series of new excavations is painting a much more complex picture of the city tragically buried by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in the year 79. New archaeological finds – including 2,000-year-old lines of graffiti, human remains, and artifacts from ancient homes and businesses – are revealing a city of both staggering wealth and poverty, dependent on slavery, and riven by political rivalries, violence, and riots. Even before Vesuvius rumbled, the jewel of the ancient Roman Empire hid a very dark side.

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Casts of Pompeii's victim's - Pompeii’s Secret Underworld
The massive container ship, the Dali, after lost control and plowed into the landmark Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore.

NOVA #5206
Baltimore Bridge Collapse
Wednesday, February 26, 8pm

On March 26, 2024 the world collectively gasped as a massive container ship, the Dali, lost control and plowed into the landmark Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore. The busy four-lane bridge suffered a catastrophic collapse and crashed into the Patapsco River. Six highway workers were killed, and the Port of Baltimore – a crucial link in the global shipping chain on the Eastern Seaboard of the United States – was blocked by thousands of tons of twisted steel and concrete. How did a modern ship lose all power and propulsion? And why did the bridge fail so catastrophically? Follow the high-stakes rescue and recovery, efforts to reopen the port, and investigations into what went wrong and how many other crucial bridges are at risk.

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  • WTVP-HD 47.1 - Thu, 02/27/2025 @ 12:00 AM
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  • WTVP-HD 47.1 - Fri, 02/28/2025 @ 4:00 AM