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Catalyst – Planet of the Rings (2005)

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Hitching a ride education content clip 1

Original classification rating: PG. This clip chosen to be PG

Clip description

The Huygens probe must release from the Cassini mother ship and begin its own exploration of Titan, the biggest of Saturn’s moons, offering scientists information which they hope will tell them more about the origins of the universe.

Curator’s notes

by Janet Bell

This is nail-biting action adventure stuff, really well explained and clearly illustrated for even the least scientific viewer. I suppose the inevitable question has to be asked, if scientists can pull this off, how come we haven’t got a cure for the common cold? But that would be carping at this great moment of discovery. And Richard Smith is the master of telling a story of science that is gripping from first to last. The technique of him breathlessly telling the story as if he’s just outside the control room while it’s really happening is wonderfully effective at involving us in the drama, even in this short clip.