The Man Who Walked Across the World

Today on Far Future Horizons for those of you who have a yearning to explore exotic locales we present the astonishing story of the thirty year odyssey of the greatest explorer of the Islamic World - Ibn Battuta.

In this wonderful three part documentary travelogue, Tim Mackintosh Smith follows in the footsteps of Fourteenth Century Moroccan scholar Ibn Battuta.

In June 1325, when he was twenty one years old, Ibn Battuta set off from his hometown of Tangier on a hajj (pilgrimage) to Mecca, a journey that would take sixteen months. Yet, Ibn Battutah would not see Morocco again for twenty four years.

The full extent of Ibn Battuta’s adventure would involve a seventy five thousand mile trek across the entirety of the known Islamic world and beyond. During the course of which, he visited forty countries and three continents in a thirty year odyssey.

Homo Futurus

Today on Far Future Horizons we present a somewhat controversial documentary concerning the future course of human evolution.

In Search of Myths and Heroes – Arthur the Once and Future King

Today on Far Future Horizons we join acclaimed BBC journalist Michael Wood in the fourth and final installment of his documentary series “In Search of Myths and Heroes” as we go in search of Britain's legendary King Arthur.

In this episode of the series, Wood explores the greatest British myth: the tale of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. Travelling round the Celtic world from Cornwall to Wales, Brittany, Ireland and Scotland, Wood uncovers the extraordinary story of how a shadowy Welsh freedom fighter — a Dark Age Che Guevara — became a medieval superman, and finally the model of a Christian hero.

Exodus Earth ~ Exoplanet

Today on Far Future Horizons we join Dr. Basil Singer in the final installment of the exciting documentary series Exodus Earth. 

Dr. Singer explores the possibility of mounting an interstellar voyage to the exoplanet Gliese 581c and establishing a permanent human colony there in the next century.

What kind of propulsion system would be needed to accomplish such a voyage? Basil must investigate extreme propulsion methods, including solar sails and nuclear bombs. And, what can we say about the mission’s destination? 

Exodus Earth ~ Mercury

Today on Far Future Horizons we join physicist Dr. Basil Singer in exploring the possibility of establishing a human outpost on Mercury, the most extreme planet in the solar system. 

Exodus Earth ~ Mars

Mars is a world that holds a special mystique for humanity. We have been held under its captive spell for over a century. It is the one world where humanity expected to find life and sentience beyond the Earth. And, in the minds of many space visionaries today, Mars is the one world most likely to sever as a secondary planetary abode for terrestrial life and consciousness.

The colonization of Mars has been the topic of both romantic speculation and serious scientific study before the dawn of the Space Age. But, it has only been during the past forty years, beginning with observations of Mariner 9 and culminating with recent space missions of Mars Odyssey, Mars Express and the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, that we can now assess the full resource potential of this world. 

The Minotaur's Island

Today on Far Future Horizons we join historian Bettany Hughes as she follows the footsteps of Arthur Evans, Harriet Boyd, and other famed archaeologists to find startling new insights into the myth of the Minotaur's Island and the Minoan civilization that flourished there.

How did this ancient people live, worship, and prosper? Why did they build such magnificent palaces, complete with hinged doors, flush toilets, and elaborate warrens of rooms? What role did the daring, acrobatic bull-leapers play in society? And did the civilization finally succumb to natural disasters, foreign invaders, or religious strife? Fresh evidence excavated from sites all over Crete offers tantalizing clues to the everyday life, and tragic destiny, of the accomplished artisans and architects who lived at the crossroads of the ancient world.