Mega Disasters is an American documentary television series produced for The History Channel by Creative Differences that explores potential catastrophic threats to individual cities, countries and the entire globe.
The two mega disasters of the 2004 tsunami and Hurricane Katrina in 2005 inspired the series and provided a reference point for many of the episodes.
The series premiered in the USA on The History Channel on 23 May, 2006. There are three seasons to date.
Mega Disasters premiered in South Africa on DStv's The History Channel on Thursday 24 August 2006, at 20h30.
Season 2 premiered on History on Monday 16 June 2008, at 20h30. There are 13 hour-long episodes in the second season.
Season 2 Repeats
Tuesdays: 08h30, 14h30
Synopsis
Massive natural disasters have shaped the planet on which we live for millions of years, and the only thing we know for sure is that the future holds more.
Earthquakes have triggered massive tsunamis and released methane gas that killed most of the life in the ocean. Asteroids have laid waste to nearly all the life on Earth. Volcanoes have blocked the sun's rays for months.
How would today's world hold up to such fury?
As the devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina and the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami have dramatically demonstrated, we are all vulnerable to unexpected disasters, both natural and man-made.
Combining science and history, Mega Disasters visits the sites of previous disasters, then recreates them in modern times and locations, using state-of-the-art computer animation.
Whether it's the city of Memphis crashing into the Mississippi River during an earthquake or a mile-wide asteroid destroying Los Angeles, each week is a hair-raising look at just how vulnerable our complex society really is to the power of Mother Nature.
Each episode follows a general pattern:
1) introduction teasing the catastrophic outcome of the threat,
2) background on the science and scientists warning of the threat,
3) presentation of similar previous disasters,
4) recap of the evidence, and finally,
5) a realistic scenario using computer models and special effects to flesh out the details.