Elements

NARRATOR: OUR WORLD IS BEAUTIFUL TO BEHOLD.

IT'S EVEN MORE BEAUTIFUL TO UNDERSTAND.

FORCES OF UNIMAGINABLE POWER HAVE FORGED OUR PRECIOUS PLANET.

[MAN SPEAKING NATIVE LANGUAGE] NARRATOR: THEY HAVE CREATED LANDSCAPES OF ENDLESS VARIETY AND WONDER.

THE FORCES OF NATURE MAKE EARTH A VOLATILE HOME.

[SPEAKING NATIVE LANGUAGE] NARRATOR: YET THE VERY STUFF OF OUR RAGING PLANET ALSO CREATED ITS GREATEST WONDER: LIFE.

HOW COULD SOMETHING SO COMPLEX EMERGE FROM A BARREN ROCK?

NARRATOR: TO UNDERSTAND HOW LIFE AROSE FROM EARTH BILLIONS OF YEARS AGO, WE HAVE TO START BY UNDERSTANDING WHAT OUR PLANET IS MADE OF, ITS RAW INGREDIENTS.

THIS VOLCANO IN INDONESIA IS ONE OF THE FEW PLACES WHERE YOU CAN SEE ONE OF THOSE INGREDIENTS BOIL TO THE SURFACE.

THE SUBSTANCE THAT BUBBLES OUT OF THE VOLCANO'S CRATER IS SO PURE, IT'S PRECIOUS; PRECIOUS ENOUGH FOR PEOPLE TO RISK THEIR LIVES TO GET THEIR HANDS ON IT.

BOODY AND HIS SON BAGGIO HAVE A JOB THAT BRINGS THEM FACE TO FACE WITH THE RAW INGREDIENTS OF THE EARTH.

[WOMAN SPEAKING NATIVE LANGUAGE] [SINGING IN NATIVE LANGUAGE] NARRATOR: THE CRATER OF THIS VOLCANO IS A MINE.

THE PRODUCT IS SULPHUR, ONE OF 92 CHEMICAL ELEMENTS THAT ARE THE BUILDING BLOCKS OF OUR PLANET.

IT'S RARE TO FIND ELEMENTS IN THEIR PURE FORM LIKE THIS BECAUSE THEY TEND TO REACT AND COMBINE WITH OTHERS.

THIS ELEMENTAL SULPHUR IS NO DIFFERENT; IT WANTS TO COMBINE WITH OXYGEN, IT WANTS TO BURN TO BECOME SULPHUR DIOXIDE.

THAT IMPURE COMBINATION CREATES CHOKING FUMES, MAKING THIS SULPHUR WORTHLESS.

IT NEEDS TO BE KEPT PURE SO THAT IT CAN BE SOLD ON TO INDUSTRY TO BECOME AN INGREDIENT IN THE MANMADE WORLD.

BUT THESE MEN AREN'T MINERS.

THEIR JOB IS TO STOP THE SULPHUR FROM BURNING AND TURNING INTO USELESS CLOUDS OF GAS.

THEY ARE FIRE FIGHTERS.

AND IT'S AT NIGHT THAT THEY CAN GET DOWN TO WORK.

THAT'S WHEN THE FLAMES OF THE BURNING SULPHUR REVEAL THEMSELVES.

WHEN IT IGNITES AND REACTS WITH OXYGEN, SULPHUR EMITS A BLUE FLAME.

IF THEY SET ALIGHT OTHER PARTS OF THE MINE, THE BLUE FIRES CAN RAPIDLY SPIRAL OUT OF CONTROL.

[SPEAKING NATIVE LANGUAGE] [MAN SPEAKING NATIVE LANGUAGE] NARRATOR: THE NOXIOUS SULPHUROUS GASES WANT TO REACT WITH US, TOO.

[MAN SPEAKING NATIVE LANGUAGE] NARRATOR: ON CONTACT WITH WATER IN THE EYES AND MOUTH, GAS FROM THE BLUE FLAMES INSTANTLY TURNS INTO SULPHURIC ACID, MAKING THIS ONE OF THE MOST HAZARDOUS PLACES TO WORK ON EARTH.

[MAN SPEAKING NATIVE LANGUAGE] NARRATOR: IN THE FUMES AND THE SEARING HEAT, BAGGIO AND BOODY ARE STRUGGLING TO KEEP THE FIRE UNDER CONTROL.

EACH PASSING MOMENT MEANS MORE PURE SULPHUR IS GOING TO WASTE.

[BAGGIO AND BOODY SPEAKING NATIVE LANGUAGE] [BOODY SPEAKING NATIVE LANGUAGE] NARRATOR: THE FIRE OF THE KAWAH IJEN VOLCANO HAS BEEN TAMED FOR ANOTHER NIGHT.

ELEMENTAL SULPHUR FROM THE VOLCANO IS VALUABLE BECAUSE IT'S NEEDED IN EVERYTHING FROM SUGAR PRODUCTION TO MEDICINE.

WE RARELY GET TO SEE THE ELEMENTS LIKE SULPHUR IN THEIR PURE STATE, BUT THEY ARE WHAT THE WORLD IS MADE OF, WHAT WE ARE MADE OF.

THERE IS NO DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE SULPHUR THAT POURS OUT OF A VOLCANO AND THE SULPHUR IN EACH ONE OF US.

ALL LIFE IS MADE UP OF THE SAME ELEMENTS AS THE EARTH.

JUST 92 ELEMENTS MAKE UP EVERYTHING ON THE PLANET.

THE ELEMENTS ARE THE BUILDING BLOCKS OF OUR WORLD...

BUT THEY ARE BILLIONS OF YEARS OLD... AS OLD AS THE UNIVERSE ITSELF.

THE SMALLEST OF THEM ALL, HYDROGEN WAS BORN AT THE BEGINNING OF THE KNOWN UNIVERSE, MOMENTS AFTER THE BIG BANG.

THEN IN THE IMMENSE PRESSURE AND HEAT OF STARS, HYDROGEN ATOMS FUSED TOGETHER TO PRODUCE BIGGER ELEMENTS: HELIUM, CARBON, OXYGEN.

BUT IT WOULD TAKE THE DEATH OF THESE FIRST STARS TO CREATE ENOUGH ENERGY TO FUSE THOSE ELEMENTS INTO THE REST OF THE CHEMISTRY SET.

92 ELEMENTS FLUNG OUT INTO SPACE BY UNIMAGINABLY POWERFUL EXPLOSIONS... WHERE THEY EVENTUALLY CAME TOGETHER TO BUILD OUR PLANET.

THE STORY OF EARTH'S CREATION IS REVEALED IN THE COLORS THAT STAIN ITS ROCKS.

BENEATH THE GREEN CARPET OF GRASS OF TANZANIA...

THE GROUND IS RED THANKS TO THE POWERFUL REACTION BETWEEN TWO OF THE PLANET'S RAW INGREDIENTS.

THIS IS THE GREAT RIFT VALLEY, WHERE THE FIRST HUMANS WALKED THE EARTH AND HAVE EXISTED EVER SINCE.

TODAY, IT'S THE MAASAI WHO LIVE OFF THIS LAND, AND THAT'S GIVEN THEM AN INTIMATE CONNECTION TO THE EARTH, ONE THAT THEY EXHIBIT IN THEIR MOST IMPORTANT CEREMONIES.

WOMAN THROUGH TRANSLATOR: IT IS A TRADITION FOR THE MAASAI TO DECORATE OUR FACES... AND DRESS UP IN RED.

NARRATOR: TOMORROW, MOISWA'S SON NDAIKA WILL CELEBRATE A LANDMARK IN THE LIFE OF A MAASAI WARRIOR.

EARTH'S ELEMENTS WILL PLAY A VITAL ROLE IN THE CEREMONY.

WOMAN THROUGH TRANSLATOR: HE'S ALWAYS BEEN A GOOD BOY.

THIS IS A BIG MOMENT IN HIS LIFE.

TOMORROW, LOTS OF MAASAI WILL COME TO CELEBRATE.

I DON'T THINK WE'VE GOT ENOUGH FOOD FOR ALL OUR GUESTS.

NARRATOR: NDAIKA WILL BECOME AN ELDER.

HE AND HIS WIVES WILL JOIN THE LEADERS OF THEIR COMMUNITY.

MAN THROUGH TRANSLATOR: IS EVERYTHING READY FOR THE CELEBRATION TOMORROW?

WOMAN THROUGH TRANSLATOR: YES, IT'S ALL UNDER CONTROL.

NARRATOR: THE FAMILY ARE ALMOST READY FOR THEIR GUESTS, BUT THERE'S ONE FINAL INGREDIENT THAT THEY MUST COLLECT FROM THE LAND.

WOMAN THROUGH TRANSLATOR: THE SAND HAS BEEN WASHED AWAY BY THE RAIN, SO, IT'S EASY TO FIND.

JUST A HANDFUL WILL BE ENOUGH FOR NDAIKA'S CEREMONY.

NARRATOR: THE INGREDIENT THEY ARE LOOKING FOR IS RED OCHRE, A TRADITIONAL PIGMENT.

[WOMAN THROUGH TRANSLATOR] WOMAN THROUGH TRANSLATOR: THIS OCHRE IS VERY RED.

IT WILL BE GREAT ON OUR FACES... AND ON OUR SKIN.

NARRATOR: THE REDNESS OF THE LAND HERE COMES FROM ONE OF THE MOST ABUNDANT OF EARTH'S RAW INGREDIENTS: IRON.

1/3 OF OUR PLANET'S MASS IS IRON, MOST OF IT LOCKED AWAY IN ITS MOLTEN CORE.

WOMAN THROUGH TRANSLATOR: THIS OCHRE IS THE BEST.

IT WILL BE VERY RED FOR NDAIKA'S CEREMONY.

NARRATOR: BUT IN THIS VALLEY, IRON HAS RISEN TO THE SURFACE.

THE IRON FOUND HERE ISN'T PURE; IT HAS BEEN POWERFULLY ATTRACTED TO OXYGEN IN THE ENVIRONMENT AND TURNED INTO IRON OXIDE, A RUSTY RED COMPOUND CENTRAL TO MAASAI CULTURE.

WOMAN THROUGH TRANSLATOR: I LOVE WEARING OCHRE.

THE OCHRE IS FROM OUR LAND...

WHICH KEEPS EVERYTHING ALIVE.

I WAS BORN HERE... AND THIS IS A TRADITION PASSED DOWN FROM OUR PARENTS.

WOMAN THROUGH TRANSLATOR: DO I LOOK NICE?

I DON'T THINK YOU'VE DONE IT PROPERLY!

WOMAN 2: I DID!

YOU LOOK FABULOUS!

NARRATOR: IRON DOESN'T ONLY INHABIT THE EARTH, IT'S WITHIN US, TOO.

NDAIKA'S PASSAGE TO ELDER STATUS WILL CULMINATE IN THE SLAUGHTERING OF A BULL.

A MOMENT THAT REVEALS THAT OUR CONNECTION TO THIS ELEMENT IS MORE THAN SKIN DEEP.

JUST LIKE THE OCHRE, THE BLOOD IS RICH IN IRON...

BUT THIS ISN'T JUST A CEREMONIAL LINK TO THE LAND AND NATURE.

THE MAASAI RELY ON THE NUTRITIONAL VALUE OF IRON-RICH BLOOD.

WOMAN THROUGH TRANSLATOR: ALL MAASAI HAVE GROWN UP DRINKING BLOOD.

THE BLOOD GIVES US POWER AND STRENGTH.

NARRATOR: THE LAND HERE AND THE LIFE THAT DEPENDS UPON IT ARE DEEPLY ENTWINED BY THE REACTION OF IRON AND OXYGEN.

THE SAME CHEMISTRY THAT MAKES THE EARTH RED ALSO KEEPS US ALIVE.

THANKS TO THE FOODS WE EAT, EARTH'S IRON IS CARRIED INTO THE BLOODSTREAM, AND LIKE THE IRON IN ROCK, IRON IN OUR RED BLOOD CELLS BINDS TO THE OXYGEN WE BREATHE, BUT ONLY GENTLY.

AS IT CIRCULATES, BLOOD RELEASES THE OXYGEN WHERE IT'S NEEDED.

LIFE HAS TAKEN THE CHEMISTRY OF THE EARTH AND MADE IT ITS OWN.

BUT FOR LIFE TO HAVE STARTED IN THE FIRST PLACE, IT NEEDED A MEDIUM FOR THAT CHEMISTRY TO TAKE PLACE.

SOMEWHERE THE ELEMENTS OF THE EARTH COULD FIND EACH OTHER, COMBINE, AND BECOME THE COMPLEX MOLECULES OF LIFE.

THAT MEDIUM WAS CREATED BY THE UNION OF TWO OF THE MOST COMMON ELEMENTS IN THE UNIVERSE, HYDROGEN AND OXYGEN: WATER.

BOY THROUGH TRANSLATOR: I THINK IT CAME FROM A SPRING IN THE GROUND AND FROM THERE IT FLOWS TO THE RIVER AND SEA.

NARRATOR: HIDDEN DEEP IN THIS FOREST IN THE CARIBBEAN... IS ONE OF THE RAREST PHENOMENA THERE IS: A MAGICAL SIGHT THAT ONLY EXISTS HERE BECAUSE OF A UNIQUE PROPERTY OF WATER.

A PROPERTY THAT MAKES IT ESSENTIAL TO LIFE ON EARTH.

AND BIOLOGIST TOM ILIFFE HAS BROUGHT A SPECIALIST TEAM HERE TO TRACK IT DOWN.

ILIFFE: THIS LIMESTONE IS FANTASTIC HERE; THE WAY IT'S POCKMARKED AND DISSOLVED AWAY INDICATES THAT THERE'S A LOT OF WATER MOVING UNDERNEATH.

GONNA KILL OURSELVES IF WE... YEAH, IT'S SLIPPERY.

SLIDE ON OUR ASS... GO THAT WAY, YEAH.

NARRATOR: ONLY A HANDFUL OF DIVERS HAVE THE SKILLS TO EXPLORE THIS NETWORK OF CAVES.

MAN: SO, YOU'RE GONNA NEED THOSE TWO AND THIS ONE, YEAH?

[INDISTINCT] NARRATOR: A PLACE THAT ONLY EXISTS BECAUSE OF WATER'S ASTONISHING POTENCY.

ILIFFE: THESE CAVES ARE ONE OF THE LAST TRUE UNDISCOVERED, UNEXPLORED, UNKNOWN FRONTIERS ON THE PLANET EARTH.

NARRATOR: 99% OF THE PLANET'S LIQUID FRESHWATER IS UNDERGROUND, BUT THIS CAVE IS SPECIAL AND IT'S ALL BECAUSE OF THIS LIQUID'S EXTRAORDINARY SOLVENCY.

WATER CAN DISSOLVE MORE SUBSTANCES THAN ANY OTHER LIQUID...

WHICH MAKES IT ABLE TO CUT THROUGH THE LIMESTONE HERE.

ILIFFE: IT CAN LITERALLY EVEN DISSOLVE ITS WAY THROUGH THE SOLID ROCK AND OPEN UP CRACKS AND CREVICES, FISSURES, THAT MAKES IT POSSIBLE FOR EVEN MORE WATER TO GO DOWN THAT CRACK, AND THE CRACK GETS BIGGER AND BIGGER AND BIGGER, AND THE BIGGER CRACKS GET MORE WATER, AND SO, THEY CAN ENLARGE FASTER AND THEY FORM CAVES.

NARRATOR: THE CAVES ARE PERILOUSLY FRAGILE, BUT THE TEAM IS INTENT ON PENETRATING AS DEEP AS POSSIBLE INTO THIS ALIEN WORLD.

ILIFFE: THE REASON WHY WE GO THROUGH THESE NARROW SLOTS, WHY WE PUSH OUR BODIES TO THE LIMITS IS TO FIND SOMETHING MAJESTIC, SOMETHING BEAUTIFUL ON THE OTHER SIDE.

UNLESS YOU GO THERE, UNLESS YOU LOOK, YOU'RE NEVER GONNA KNOW.

WORSE THING IS YOUR TANKS MAY WEDGE IN AND LITERALLY STICK YOU IN A SPOT WHERE YOU CAN'T MOVE FORWARD OR BACKWARD.

NARRATOR: THE ATTEMPT TO SQUEEZE THROUGH THE NARROWING PASSAGES HAS DISTURBED THE SEDIMENT.

TOM AND HIS BUDDY HAVE NO CHOICE BUT TO CALL A HALT TO THEIR EXPLORATION.

MAN: HEY THERE!

WELCOME BACK!

GLAD TO SEE YOU!

OH, MAN, THAT TIGHT SPOT IN THERE; I COULD BARELY FIT THROUGH, IT WAS REALLY A SQUEEZE, JUST MM-MM.

MAN: YEAH, I GOT, I GOT, LIKE, ER, THE WING STUCK ON A ROCK.

HAD TO MOVE THE ROCK OUT OF THE WAY.

I SAY WE LEAVE IT LIKE 24 HOURS AT LEAST SO IT CLEARS UP.

OK, OK. THEN COME BACK, GIVE IT ANOTHER GO, YEAH.

NARRATOR: THE TEAM HAS ONLY EXPLORED PART OF THIS CAVE SYSTEM AND SEEN A HINT OF ITS BEAUTY.

WHAT THEY WILL FIND IN THE MORNING WILL BE TRULY SPECTACULAR.

MAN: RIGHT, SO, WE'RE GONNA, ER, TIE IN A MAIN LINE AND SWIM DOWN.

THEN ABOUT, ER, 10, 15 MINUTES IN, THE LINE MAKES A SLIGHT TURN TO THE LEFT, SO, THERE I EXPECT IT TO BE PRETTY BAD VIS.

WE HAVE TO KEEP PRETTY CLOSE TO THE LINE AND BE AWARE OF THAT ALL TIME.

NARRATOR: THE NEXT DAY, THE VISIBILITY HAS CLEARED.

THE EXPLORERS ARE ABOUT TO GET THEIR FIRST GLIMPSE OF A RARE NATURAL PHENOMENON CREATED BY WATER'S POWER TO DISSOLVE.

ILIFFE: I DON'T KNOW WHAT IT IS.

I CAN'T TELL YOU EXACTLY WHAT'S HAPPENING.

BUT SOMETHING DIFFERENT, SOMETHING VERY, VERY IMPORTANT IS GOING ON IN THIS CAVE.

NARRATOR: THE QUALITY OF THE WATER SUDDENLY CHANGES.

THIS STRANGE AND BEAUTIFUL PHENOMENON IS KNOWN AS A HALOCLINE.

ILIFFE: YOU POP UP AND THERE'S CRYSTAL CLEAR WATER AND IT ALMOST AS IF YOU'RE LIFTING OFF AND FLYING IN THE AIR.

NARRATOR: SEA WATER DRAWN IN FROM THE OCEAN IS DENSE WITH DISSOLVED SALTS AND MINERALS AND SITS IN A DISCREET LAYER BENEATH THE FRESH CAVE WATER.

ILIFFE: AND IT'S SO CLEAR THERE'S A TENDENCY YOU WANNA TAKE YOUR REGULATOR OUT OF YOUR MOUTH AND YOU WANNA START BREATHING THE WATER.

NARRATOR: ALL THIS IS CREATED BY THE MARRIAGE OF HYDROGEN AND OXYGEN.

WATER'S POWER AS A SOLVENT MEANS IT TRANSPORTS EARTH'S INGREDIENTS AROUND THE PLANET... AND IT DOES THE SAME WITHIN US.

THE ELEMENTS CARRIED AROUND THE PLANET ARE ALSO CARRIED AROUND OUR BODIES.

EVERY LIVING CREATURE ON EARTH NEEDS WATER TO DELIVER THE INGREDIENTS OF LIFE TO ITS CELLS... AND LIFE WILL GO TO EXTRAORDINARY LENGTHS TO GET THOSE INGREDIENTS.

IT'S THE END OF WINTER IN THE ITALIAN ALPS.

FEW CREATURES CAN ENDURE THIS HARSH, UNFORGIVING LANDSCAPE.

THE ALPINE IBEX IS ONE OF THEM.

AS THE WINTER SNOW MELTS, IT UNLOCKS THE VAST STORES OF WATER REPLENISHING THE RIVERS.

BUT FOR THIS FEMALE AND HER KID, WATER IS NOT THE MOST IMPORTANT THING FOR THEM RIGHT NOW; IT'S WHAT THE WATER BRINGS THAT REALLY MATTERS.

WATER CARRIES SOMETHING SO ESSENTIAL TO THEIR SURVIVAL THAT THIS FEMALE IS ABOUT TO LEAD HER KID ON THE MOST CHALLENGING CLIMB OF ITS YOUNG LIFE.

RADA BIONDA IS A PARK RANGER.

HE'S FASCINATED BY THE RESILIENCE OF THESE CREATURES.

BIONDA THROUGH TRANSLATOR: THE IBEX EVOLVED IN TERRIBLE ENVIRONMENTS.

THEY GOT USED TO LIVING IN WINTER...

IN REALLY STEEP, FOR US, UNTHINKABLE CONDITIONS.

NARRATOR: RADA HAS BEEN STUDYING THE IBEX FOR YEARS AND HE KNOWS EXACTLY WHERE THEY ARE HEADING.

THIS IS THE CINGINO DAM.

THE VAST EXPANSE OF THE STONE WALL HOLDS BACK THE SNOW MELT...

BUT THERE IS AN UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCE THANKS TO THE SOLVENT POWER OF WATER.

AS IT SEEPS THROUGH THE DAM, WATER EVAPORATES.

ANY MINERALS IT CARRIED WITH IT ARE LEFT DEPOSITED ON THE DAM WALL.

THESE MINERAL SALTS ARE THE BIG DRAW FOR THE MOTHER AND HER KID.

BIONDA THROUGH TRANSLATOR: THE DIET OF ALL HOOFED ANIMALS... IS BASED ON GRASS AND VEGETATION... AND IT'S VERY POOR IN MINERAL SALTS.

SO, THEY NEED TO GET IT FROM THE ROCKS OR THE DAM.

NARRATOR: WITHOUT SALTS AND MINERALS, THE IBEX SIMPLY CAN'T SURVIVE.

MUSCLE FIBERS WON'T CONTRACT, ELECTRICAL SIGNALS IN THEIR NERVES WON'T FIRE.

THEY'RE LEFT WITH NO CHOICE BUT TO RISK SCALING THE 160-FOOT WALL.

BIONDA THROUGH TRANSLATOR: EVEN IN THIS EXTREMELY STEEP SITUATION...

THE POSSIBILITY TO LICK SOME SALT IS VERY TEMPTING.

NARRATOR: THE PROMISE OF SALT AND MINERALS LURES THEM EVER HIGHER.

THE KID GETS A FIRST TASTE OF THE PRECIOUS SALT-RICH ROCK.

IT'S A HEROIC CLIMB, DRIVEN BY BREATHTAKING DETERMINATION.

WITH EARTH'S INGREDIENTS BROUGHT HERE BY WATER THE PRIZE.

LIFE TAKES THE RAW INGREDIENTS OF THE EARTH... AND TRANSFORMS THEM.

LIFE HIJACKS EARTH'S SIMPLE CHEMICAL REACTIONS... AND MAKES THEM USEFUL.

THANKS TO THE MEDIUM OF WATER, THE CHEMICALS OF LIFE ARE ALWAYS ON THE MOVE.

WE ARE JUST CHEMISTRY; PART OF THE ETERNAL CYCLE OF EARTH'S ELEMENTS BROUGHT TOGETHER FOR A BRIEF MOMENT TO LIVE.

THIS RIVER IN HUNGARY IS HOME TO A CREATURE WHOSE LIFE IS MORE FLEETING THAN MOST.

IN EARLY SUMMER, ALL APPEARS CALM.

MAN THROUGH TRANSLATOR: I LIKE THE SILENCE AND NATURE.

IT'S JUST GORGEOUS TO LOOK AT.

NARRATOR: BUT THE PEACE IS ABOUT TO BE DISTURBED.

BENEATH THE SURFACE, SOMETHING IS STIRRING.

THESE FEATHERY GILLS BELONG TO THE LARVAE OF THE GIANT HUNGARIAN MAYFLY.

THEY ARE BURIED DOWN HERE BUSILY FEEDING, TAKING IN EARTH'S RAW INGREDIENTS AND DRAWING ENERGY FROM THE CHEMICAL REACTIONS, ENERGY THEY USE TO GROW, TO MOVE, TO LIVE.

BUT SOON THEY WILL NEED EVERY OUNCE OF ENERGY THEY CAN MUSTER.

ALL THIS FEEDING IS MERELY THE PRELUDE FOR ONE GRAND FINALE: THE SINGLE DAY THE MAYFLY LEAVES THE RIVER AND TAKES TO THE AIR.

ONCE THEY EMERGE FROM THE WATER AS ADULTS, THEY NO LONGER HAVE PROPER MOUTHS AND ARE UNABLE TO FEED.

FROM THIS MOMENT ON, THE MAYFLIES ARE LIVING ON BORROWED TIME.

THEY HAVE JUST A MATTER OF HOURS TO FULFILL THEIR DESTINY... TO FIND A MATE BEFORE THEIR ENERGY SUPPLIES RUN OUT AND THEIR BRIEF LIVES ARE OVER.

AND TIME IS JUST ONE OBSTACLE.

SAND MARTINS AND OTHER PREDATORS THREATEN TO CUT LIFE EVEN SHORTER.

IN THE FRENZY, THIS MALE AND FEMALE HAVE FOUND EACH OTHER JUST IN TIME.

MAN THROUGH TRANSLATOR: IT'S BEAUTIFUL TO LOOK AT.

WHEN THEY GET TOGETHER TO MATE, THAT IS REALLY A TRUE BLOSSOM, BECAUSE THEY FORM THE SHAPE OF A FLOWER BLOSSOMING.

NARRATOR: NOW THE FEMALE'S EGGS ARE FERTILIZED, SHE WILL DROP THEM INTO THE WATER.

BUT THEIR ENERGY RESERVES SOON RUN OUT AND THEIR BRIEF LIVES ARE OVER.

THE CALM OF THE VALLEY RETURNS...

BUT THE BODIES OF THE MAYFLIES WILL SINK TO THE BOTTOM OF THE RIVER AND BECOME EARTH'S RAW INGREDIENTS ONCE MORE, READY TO BUILD ANOTHER LIVING CREATURE.

THE ELEMENTS OF LIFE ARE ETERNAL.

THE CARBON IN A LEAF IS THE SAME CARBON THAT WAS BORN IN AN ANCIENT STAR.

THE OXYGEN WE BREATHE IS THE SAME OXYGEN THAT DINOSAURS BREATHED.

WE SHARE ALL THE ELEMENTS WITH ANYTHING AND ANYONE THAT'S EVER BEEN.

THESE ANCIENT ELEMENTS ARE BROUGHT TOGETHER FOR A FLEETING MOMENT TO CREATE A LIVING THING.

BUT WHAT IS LIFE?

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE LIVING?

THIS PART OF JAPAN IS FAMOUS FOR A UNIQUE CREATURE.

EVERY YEAR BETWEEN MARCH AND JUNE, A SPECIAL TYPE OF SQUID RISES UP FROM THE DEEP OCEAN IN THEIR MILLIONS.

WHEN THESE SQUID APPEAR, THEY PUT ON A REMARKABLE DISPLAY OF THE ALCHEMY OF LIFE.

FOR THE LOCALS, THAT ALCHEMY MAKES THEM A DELICACY.

BUT FOR FISHERMEN LIKE MR. URAKAMI, IT MAKES THEM HIGHLY PROFITABLE.

[URAKAMI SPEAKING THROUGH TRANSLATOR] NARRATOR: MR. URAKAMI IS BANKING ON WHAT HE NEEDS TO BE THE MOST PROFITABLE CATCH OF THE YEAR.

[MEN SPEAKING NATIVE LANGUAGE] NARRATOR: THE SQUID ARE PROVING ELUSIVE.

BUT ON THE BEACH, THERE ARE THE FIRST SIGNS THAT THE FIREFLY SQUID HAVE ARRIVED.

THIS IS THE DISPLAY THAT EVERYONE HAS BEEN WAITING FOR.

THIS REMARKABLE LIGHT SHOW IS CAUSED BY A BEAUTIFULLY CONTROLLED CHEMICAL REACTION INSIDE THE SQUID.

A CHEMICAL CALLED LUCIFERIN REACTS WITH OXYGEN AND PRODUCES LIGHT.

[MAN SPEAKING NATIVE LANGUAGE] [LAUGHS] NARRATOR: THE LUCIFERIN IS SIMPLY MADE OF ELEMENTS SUCH AS CARBON, NITROGEN, AND SULPHUR.

THE BASIC ELEMENTS AND REACTIONS OF THE EARTH'S RAW INGREDIENTS HAVE BEEN HIJACKED BY THE SQUID AND THEN CONTROLLED IN AN EXQUISITE EXPRESSION OF LIFE'S ALCHEMY.

BACK ON BOARD MR. URAKAMI'S FISHING BOAT, THERE'S A CHANGE IN FORTUNE.

[MAN SPEAKING NATIVE LANGUAGE] [MEN SPEAKING NATIVE LANGUAGE] NARRATOR: ALTHOUGH UNIQUELY SPECTACULAR, THE SQUID ARE DOING WHAT ALL LIFE DOES: CONTROLLING CHEMISTRY TO DO WHAT IT NEEDS TO SURVIVE.

ULTIMATELY, LIFE IS A CASCADE OF CONTROLLED CHEMICAL REACTIONS BETWEEN THE ELEMENTS OF EARTH.

REACTIONS PLAYED OUT AT EXACTLY THE RIGHT TIME IN EXACTLY THE RIGHT ORDER.

REACTIONS THAT HARNESS ENERGY AND SOMETIMES BEAUTIFULLY RELEASE IT.

[MAN SPEAKING NATIVE LANGUAGE] [SPEAKING NATIVE LANGUAGE] NARRATOR: FOR MR. URAKAMI AND HIS CREW, THIS IS THE SPECTACLE THEY LIVE FOR.

[MAN SPEAKING NATIVE LANGUAGE] NARRATOR: LIFE'S CHEMISTRY IN ACTION.

NO MATTER WHAT FORM LIFE ON THIS PLANET TAKES...

THERE IS ONE THING IT HAS IN COMMON... [THUNDER] WHETHER IT'S A PLANT... OR A FIREFLY SQUID... OR YOU...

THERE IS ONE CHEMICAL REACTION THAT IS UNIVERSAL TO LIFE... A REMARKABLE PIECE OF CHEMISTRY FOUND IN LIVING THINGS ACROSS THE PLANET...

THE CHEMISTRY THAT MAKES THE INANIMATE ANIMATE.

THE CHEMISTRY WE THINK MADE OUR PLANET COME ALIVE.

THIS FIORD IN ICELAND HOLDS THE CLUES TO HOW ROCK COULD HAVE MADE THE FIRST STEP TO LIFE.

WHAT'S HIDDEN BENEATH THE COLD WATERS HERE MAY HAVE GONE UNDISCOVERED, BUT DIVER ERLENDUR BOGASON HEARD VAGUE REPORTS OF SOMETHING STRANGE GOING ON HERE.

BOGASON: MY NEXT-DOOR NEIGHBOR WAS THIS OLD LADY TELLING ME STORIES ABOUT STEAM SHE SAW FROM THE SEA.

I HAD BEEN DIVING THERE MANY TIMES, SO I KNEW THIS PLACE.

I DIDN'T BELIEVE THIS OLD LADY.

SO, I CALLED MY FRIEND ÁRNI THE FISHERMAN AND ASK HIM TO TAKE ME TO THIS PLACE.

I WAS STRESSED, BECAUSE YOU'RE GOING ALONE SOMEWHERE TO DIVE AND YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU'RE DOING OR WHAT YOU'RE GOING TO FIND.

THEN I JUST SEE THIS HUGE WHITE THING AND IT LOOKED LIKE A GIANT.

NARRATOR: THE TOWERING PILLAR OF ROCK WAS SPEWING WATER LIKE A CHIMNEY.

BOGASON: IT WAS UNBELIEVABLE SIGHT.

WOW, IT'S BEAUTIFUL.

SOMETHING INCREDIBLE.

NARRATOR: ERLENDUR HAD FOUND A HYDROTHERMAL VENT.

BOGASON: I TOOK MY GLOVE OFF, PUT MY ARM INTO THE HOT WATER.

IT WAS BURNING HOT.

NARRATOR: SEARING HOT FRESH WATER PUMPING DIRECTLY INTO COLD SEAWATER.

BUT IT'S WHAT HAPPENS WHERE THESE TWO WATER SOURCES MEET THAT MAKES THIS PLACE SO SPECIAL.

WE CAN SEE IT IN A SIMPLE EXPERIMENT.

USING THE WATER SAMPLES COLLECTED FROM THE FIORD, WE CAN CREATE THE SAME CONDITIONS OF THE VENT ON LAND.

THE VOLT METER REVEALS THAT BRINGING THE TWO SOURCES OF WATER TOGETHER GENERATES ENERGY.

JUST LIKE IN A COMMON BATTERY, THE POWER HERE IS CREATED BY THE MOVEMENT OF CHARGED PARTICLES.

ACIDIC SEAWATER HAS LOTS OF POSITIVELY CHARGED PARTICLES, OR PROTONS.

AND ALKALINE FRESHWATER HAS RELATIVELY FEW.

WHEN YOU CONNECT THEM TOGETHER, THEY WANT TO EQUALIZE, SO, PROTONS CASCADE LIKE A WATERFALL FROM ONE SIDE TO ANOTHER, CREATING POWER.

WE NOW THINK ENERGY PRODUCED THIS WAY IS THE SPARK OF LIFE BECAUSE IT DOESN'T JUST HAPPEN AT THESE HYDROTHERMAL VENTS.

EXACTLY THE SAME FLOW OF PROTONS GOES ON INSIDE THE CELLS OF ALMOST EVERY LIVING CREATURE.

FROM THE LOWLIEST SEAWEED, A WHALE, US.

THIS SOURCE OF ENERGY IS THE ONE THING THAT UNITES LIFE ON EARTH AND THAT'S THE CLUE.

OUR MOST ANCIENT ANCESTOR WASN'T A LIVING THING AT ALL.

IT WAS MOST LIKELY A HYDROTHERMAL VENT, PUMPING OUT WATER INTO THE OCEANS OF THE RESTLESS YOUNG EARTH 4 BILLION YEARS AGO.

IF THE SPARK OF LIFE EMERGED FROM SOMETHING AS SIMPLE AS THE CHEMISTRY OF A PLANET BATHED IN WATER, IT COULD HAVE BEEN ELSEWHERE, FOR THERE ARE PLACES BEYOND EARTH WITH OCEANS OF LIQUID WATER, WHERE THERE MAY BE HYDROTHERMAL VENTS.

SUCH A WORLD MAY EXIST, CIRCLING THE GIANT GAS PLANET JUPITER.

EUROPA, ONE OF JUPITER'S MOONS, IS AN ICE-COVERED BALL OF ROCK.

IT'S NOW THOUGHT THAT BENEATH ITS ICY SHELL IS A DEEP, SALTY OCEAN, JUST THE RIGHT KIND OF PLACE TO FIND HYDROTHERMAL VENTS THAT COULD HAVE PROVIDED THE SAME SPARK THAT STARTED LIFE ON EARTH.

EUROPA'S THICK ICECAP NEED NOT BE A BARRIER TO LIFE.

BACTERIA LIVE IN LAKE WATER CAPPED BY DEEP ICE IN ANTARCTICA.

PERHAPS THE MYSTERIOUS RED STAINS ON THE SURFACE OF EUROPA ARE SIGNS OF ALIEN BACTERIA.

PERHAPS EUROPA HAS MIRRORED THE EARLY EARTH.

PERHAPS ONCE AGAIN, THE ELEMENTS OF THE UNIVERSE HAVE BEEN TURNED INTO THE WONDERFUL ALCHEMY OF LIFE.

VO: Colors reveal deep truths about what Earth is made of... and how it works.

They are a code that carry important messages.

A way to understand the world and succeed within it.

♪ Clues that allow us to search for planets like our own.

♪