The human species will have to populate a new planet within 100 years if it is to survive, Professor Stephen Hawking believes. With climate change, overdue asteroid strikes, epidemics and population growth, our own planet is increasingly precarious, the renowned physicist argues in Expedition New Earth, a major new BBC2 series.
The programmes form the centrepiece of Tomorrow’s World, a nationwide Science initiative launched by the BBC, which revives the brand name of the weekly series which gave viewers their first glimpse of inventions like the cash dispenser and compact disc.
In Expedition New Earth, Prof Hawking enlists engineering expert Prof Danielle George and his own former student, Christophe Galfard, to find out if and how humans can reach for the stars and move to different planets.
Prof Hawking said:
“I have no doubt that we will find ways of crossing immense distances of space in just a few years. The technology is within our grasp.”
The Professor’s team travel from the Atacama desert in South America to the North Pole, analysing the latest advances in astronomy, biology and rocket technology, to prove that deep space exploration, isn’t just a Hollywood fantasy.
Greatest invention vote
The Tomorrow’s World season also asks viewers whether concrete is Britain’s greatest gift to the world. Concrete is one of seven innovations which the public will vote on to decide Britain’s Greatest Invention.
Antibiotics, the fridge, the jet engine, the mobile phone, the steam engine and television will compete with concrete for the accolade, with celebrities championing one item each during a 90-minute BBC2 special.
Dr Hannah Fry will lead the search to find Britain’s Greatest Invention (BBC)
The Science Museum Group and Wellcome are partners in the season, which Tony Hall, BBC Director-General, said had “a very bold ambition – to equip all of us with the knowledge and understanding we need to make sense of our lives and the future.”
No Tomorrow’s World on TV
Mr Hall said that rather than revive Tomorrow’s World as a television programme, it would be “reborn for the 21st century as something bigger” – a digital hub bringing scientific institutions together with a mission to “get everybody interested in science.”
Prof Brian Cox, the BBC presenter, said the initiative, which includes a Horizon special, 10 Things You Need To Know About The Future, would challenge a “current lack of trust in science and reason and deep unease about the future of technology.”
He said:
“Recent events have made more vivid that the West faces a deep crisis of confidence and a retreat into destructive relativism, with the concept that all ideas are equal and free from challenge by facts.”