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Extreme Engineering

Each episode of Extreme Engineering features a major construction and engineering project. Some projects are completed ones, like the new Hong Kong airport. Other projects are those under construction like the Gotthard Base Tunnel under the Alps. Still other episodes showcase futuristic projects that may never be built, like the Transatlantic Tunnel. Most episodes examine possible disaster scenarios that could threaten the projects.

10 Votes (7.4)

2003 HD 60min TV-G United States English Ended
Documentary
engineering

Credits:

S1E1 - Tokyo's Sky City 2003-04-13

It examines the concept of constructing a giant tower in Japan that wouldnt be a just a building, but a public city in the sky. At the end it talks about what a fire in the building would be like and how the fire department would handle it.

S1E2 - Subways in America 2003-04-15

This episode explores the current New York City subway and the plans for renovation. Also the World Trade Center Station post 9/11 and its hasty repair.

S1E3 - Transatlantic Tunnel 2003-04-16

The concept of building a tunnel across the Atlantic Ocean is talked about. It talks about the problems involved, and how it might someday be possible. At the end it examines the concept of a submarine hitting the tunnel, and how hopefully this wouldnt ruin it.

S1E4 - City in a Pyramid 2003-04-23

This episode features Shimizus Pyramid City, which would include dozens of 100-story skyscrapers with more than a million workers as part of a giant pyramid on the sea to provide more living space in Japan. Concepts such as construction robots, electricity issues, and building materials are examined. The pyramid could withstand a tidal wave, and perhaps protect the city as well.

S1E5 - Bridging the Bering Strait 2003-04-30

Imagine driving across a bridge near the North Pole, or going from New York to London in just an hour through a tunnel under the Atlantic Ocean. These are just some of the awe-inspiring projects of todays builders and engineers. Jaw-dropping computer animation illustrates the largest, most outrageous projects ever conceived. As students learn about stretching the boundaries of modern engineering, they also gain understanding of the technological design process and come to understand how physics and chemistry are utilized to solve modern human engineering challenges.

S1E6 - Tunneling Under the Alps 2003-05-07

A tunnel over 35 miles long is to be dug under the Swiss Alps to redirect Europes traffic. This $7 billion project will take 6 years to complete with man and machine fighting the mountains 24/7.

S1E7 - Building Hong Kong's Airport 2003-05-14

Hong Kong has outgrown its small airport and quickly needed a new one in order to maintain its high traffic flow. The only place to put this new world class airport... 16 miles out in the ocean. This would require 22 miles of new super highway. It was predicted to take decades, but engineers were only given 7 years to build it.

S1E8 - Holland's Barriers to the Sea 2003-05-21

Dutch engineers must overcome rising waters in the North Sea to protect their land.

S1E9 - Boston's Big Dig 2003-05-28

Bostons new transport system, which features a multi-lane underground highway and the worlds widest cable-stayed bridge

S1E10 - Widening the Panama Canal 2003-06-04

A documentary looking at plans to update the Panama Canal. This magnificent waterway cuts through 50 miles of tropical jungle, allowing ships to travel easily from the Atlantic to the Pacific. However, time has passed this engineering marvel by - many modern supercargo ships are three times the size the canal can safely accommodate, so plans are in motion to widen the structure. The project faces all manner of environmental challenges, as well as leaving the canal closed to…

S2E1 - Turning Torso 2004-07-07

The Turning Torso is the worlds largest residential structure, rising 190 meters above Malmö, Sweden.

S2E2 - Venice Flood Gates 2004-07-14

Global warming is causing sea levels around the world to rise and environmental experts believe Venice may well go the same way as Atlantis. The new flood gates should prevent the city’s 45km of canals from cannibalising its ancient architecture.

S2E3 - Container Ships 2004-07-28

Covers the docking of a container ship at Long Beach (California) and the operation of the water front docks, where several thousand containers need to be unloaded and loaded in 48 hours. Also covered is the building of the Adrian Maersk, the worlds largest container ship. While the scale of these gigantic ships has to be seen to be believed, the construction must be precise to millimeters.

S2E4 - Oakland Bay Bridge 2004-08-04

The New Bay Bridge is the biggest construction project in California history. This two-mile, earthquake-proof road will replace the most heavily trafficked bridge in the country-the span linking San Francisco to Oakland and the East Bay.

S2E5 - Iceland Tunnels 2004-09-01

Around 200 miles northeast of the capital, Reykjavik, engineers are hard at work drilling 72km of tunnels deep in the mountains. Three full-face boring machines have been specially shipped from the US to this remote site, 100 miles south of the Arctic Circle. The tunnel’s purpose is to guide water to the valley floor from reservoirs that are also currently under construction. The cascading water will drive six turbines, each with a rated output of 115 megawatts. With a total capacity of 690 megawatts, it will be the biggest hydropower plant in Europe.

S2E6 - Off-shore Oil Platforms 2004-09-25

Engineers redesign oil platforms to withstand the harsh weather conditions in the Gulf of Mexico.

S2E7 - Cooper River Bridge 2004-10-05

Connecting the bustling port city of Charleston and Mount Pleasant in South Carolina, the Cooper River Bridge will be the longest cable-stay bridge in America. The structure stands on one of the most seismic spots on the East Coast, it also faces the frequent threat of 300kmph hurricanes.

S2E8 - Millau Viaduct 2004-11-15

In a remote corner of France, traffic between the south of France and Paris and the north have run into huge bottlenecks. Designers and engineers are working to open the region by building a bridge to leap across the 1.3-mile wide gorge.

S2E9 - Excavators 2004-11-22

In northern Minnesota, the operators of the worlds largest open-pit iron mine commission the construction of a $10 million custom-built super-shovel in the hopes of making excavation more efficient.

S3E2 - The El Cajon Dam 2005-11-10

The dam, which is the largest ongoing construction project in Latin America, is designed to rise 186 meters above the Rio Grande de Santiago river in Mexico. Upon completion, it will provide for two percent of the entire countrys electricity needs.

S3E3 - Hong Kong's Cable Car 2005-12-02

Engineers are building the Ngong Ping 360, the worlds longest detachable cable car system, on Hong Kongs mountainous Lantau Island, spanning the South China Sea.

S3E4 - Woodrow Wilson Bridge 2005-12-09

The 40-year-old Woodrow Wilson Bridge is being replaced by a new span crossing the Potomac River between Maryland and Virginia, just south of Washington, D.C.

S3E5 - Gotthard Tunnel 2006-01-01

The Gotthard Base Tunnel underneath the Swiss Alps will be the worlds longest rail tunnel upon completion in 2015.

S3E6 - Dubai's Ski Resort 2006-01-21

How do you make your mall stand out? By building one of the worlds largest indoor ski resorts--in the deserts of Dubai! Ski Dubai features snow-making machines and slopes ranging in difficulty from easy to "black diamond."

S4E1 - Super Stadium 2006-02-19

The series takes a look at the construction of the new stadium for the NFLs Arizona Cardinals. The state-of-the-art structure is scheduled to be completed in August 2006. It will feature North Americas first slide-out tray field, a "pie-slice" construction method and a unique steel-ribbon outer shell.