NOVA
Season 40 Episode 3 - Mystery of Easter Island
A remote, bleak speck of rock in the middle of the Pacific, Easter Island, or Rapa Nui, has mystified the world ever since the first Europeans arrived in 1722. How and why did the ancient islanders build and move nearly 900 giant statues or moai, weighing up to 86 tons? And how did they transform a presumed paradise into a treeless wasteland, bringing ruin upon their island and themselves? NOVA explores controversial recent claims that challenge decades of previous thinking about the islanders, who have been accused of everything from ecocide to cannibalism. Among the radical new theories is that the islanders used ropes to "walk" the statues upright, like moving a fridge. With the help of an accurate 15-ton replica statue, a NOVA team sets out to test this high-risk, seemingly unlikely theory—serving up plenty of action and surprises in this fresh investigation of one of the ancient world's most intriguing enigmas.
Episodes in Season 40
Secrets of the Viking Sword
55 min
Forensics on Trial
55 min
Mystery of Easter Island
55 min
Ultimate Mars Challenge
55 min
Inside the Megastorm
55 min
Doomsday Volcanoes
55 min
Decoding Neanderthals
55 min
Rise of the Drones
55 min
Who Killed Lindbergh's Baby?
55 min
Building Pharaoh's Chariot
55 min
Earth From Space
55 min
Mind of a Rampage Killer
55 min
Meteor Strike
55 min
Ancient Computer
55 min
Australia's First 4 Billion Years: Awakening
55 min
Australia's First 4 Billion Years: Life Explodes
55 min
Australia's First 4 Billion Years: Monsters
55 min
Australia's First 4 Billion Years: Strange Creatures
55 min
Manhunt - Boston Bombers
55 min
Oklahoma's Deadliest Tornadoes
55 min
