Up Close with the Universe on the History channel

Questions about the Universe have consumed humans since the dawn of time. In the 50 years since we made our first tentative explorations of space, our knowledge of the cosmos has increased dramatically, using powerful telescopes, robotic probes, and manned missions. But only recently has computer technology allowed scientists to illustrate in stunning detail these awe-inspiring conclusions.

Watch History begin as The Universe, a groundbreaking series from The History Channel, employs cutting-edge computer-generated imagery to recreate the moment it all began. The series brings distant planets and faraway stars up close allowing viewers to gaze at black holes and comets, and witness the birth and death of galaxies and solar systems in t his riveting new weekly series that premieres with a two hour special 'Beyond the Big Bang' on Wednesday, December 12 at 10:00 PM on the channel.

Rajesh Sheshadri, Senior Vice President, Content and Communications, The History Channel India, said, "The Universe is a premiere series for the channel, enhanced further by Prof Yash Pal's involvement. Together with Nehru Planetarium, we celebrate a stunning visual experience that showcases universe as one has never seen before . The series poses one of history's greatest questions – Where did we come from? – and recreates that amazing moment when everything started."

The three groundbreaking episodes this December include:

The Universe: Beyond the Big Bang – Two hour special
Wednesday, 12th December @ 10 pm

It all began inside a violent, blinding explosion that threw everything into chaos. Ever since, our greatest thinkers have peered into that chaos in search of order, logic and the answers to where we began. As earlier generations learned to decipher the cosmic clues of how we came to be, we stepped from revelation to revelation; epiphany to epiphany. Aristotle told us the world was round. Ptolemy conceived of a system of planets, stars and sun. Copernicus placed the sun at the center of this system; Galileo confirmed it. Newton explained what held it all together. Einstein offered insight into what fueled it. Hubble proposed it started with a "Big Bang."

The Universe: Alien Galaxies
Wednesday, 19th December @ 10 pm

To know our place in the universe take a look far, far away to the realm of Alien Galaxies. Our galaxy is one of hundreds of billions in the universe. The Milky Way consists of more than a billion stars, our sun being only one of them. Take a view of the universe through the Hubble Space telescope and go back almost all the way to the Big Bang. Cutting-edge computer graphics are used to bring the universe down to earth to show what life would be like on other planets, and to imagine what life forms might evolve in alien atmospheres.

The Universe: Spaceship Earth
Wednesday, 26th December @ 10 pm

For over 4.5 billion years, the Earth has survived in one of the most violent "neighborhoods" in the Universe. Repeated catastrophes have brought the evolution - as well as the end - of life over and over again. THE UNIVERSE episode, "Spaceship Earth," will take viewers on a high performance ride through the formation of the third planet from the Sun. Galactic investigators will hunt for answers to some of man's most puzzling questions. How was Earth created? What creatures hold clues to how life began? Where did the planet's water come from? Why does Earth have the best "real estate" for humans in the Universe? And what evil forces threaten its ultimate demise? From its early struggles with asteroids and comets to its current battles against global warming, the creation of Spaceship Earth is one of the most complex and controversial scientific detective stories of all time.

Gear up to watch History Begin!