Cosmic Vistas - Season 2 (2011)

Thanks to a dramatic repair mission, the Hubble Space Telescope has another chance to capture more stunning pictures like only it can.

Gigantic telescopes of the future with multiple mirrors working in unison like the Spitzer Space Telescope, will see further than the Hubble Space Telescope, and possibly get our first pictures ever of another planet than can support life as we know it.

In the world of astronomy, how do we overcome the limits imposed by our own eyesight? The universe comes alive by viewing the cosmos in infrared light to gamma radiation.

High in the mountains and far removed from the light pollution of big cities, the Atacama Desert in Chile provides some of the best views on earth of the night sky. Advanced telescopes gather images that rival, and sometimes surpass the Hubble Space Telescope.

The northern lights are more than just beautiful. They tell us about the make up of our planet, our sun, and may even be a signpost for the possibility of life on other planets.

Computer simulations are helping us see what it's like to fly over other worlds and how galaxies interact over millions of years.