Science Channel sets ‘Mysteries of the Abandoned’ season 2 premiere for March 20
A Cold War anti-ballistic missile complex in the desolate plains of North Dakota. A Utopian city in Brazil built by Henry Ford. A prison complex in Cuba that once held Fidel Castro. These and other strange, yet fascinating engineering marvels that are merely shells of what they once were, are brought back to life with advanced CGI modeling in season two of the popular Science Channel series, MYSTERIES OF THE ABANDONED, premiering Tuesday, March 20th at 9PM ET/PT.
MYSTERIES OF THE ABANDONED features stories behind some of the world’s most amazing engineering wonders, why they were built, and why they were eventually left to crumble. These structures stood at the cutting-edge of technology when they were built, but today they are deserted, relegated to the annals of history. Each story highlights the people who designed the structures, their significance, and why they were ultimately deemed to be no longer of any use.
The second season premiere travels to the Nekoma Safeguard Complex in North Dakota, a bizarre looking pyramid that stands as a monument to the Cold War. Once officially called the ‘Stanley R. Mickelson Safeguard Program,’ it was a 1960’s initiative to shoot down incoming Russian intercontinental ballistic missiles. Built at a cost of six billion dollars the site consisted of the giant pyramid to house a radar system, and dozens of launching silos for surface-to-air missiles tipped with thermonuclear warheads.
Among the other structures explored in season two are: Fordlandia, a city built by Henry Ford in the late 1920’s in the Amazon rainforest of Brazil, where he had hoped to produce his own source of rubber needed for making tires and other auto parts; the Miles Glacier Bridge in Alaska, a multi-span Pennsylvania truss bridge built in the early 1900’s that completed a 196 mile railroad line, financed by J.P. Morgan and Solomon Guggenheim, to haul copper; and the Presidio Model Prison built in the 1920’s by Cuban dictator Gerardo Machado. Joliet Prison in Illinois inspired its design which was based on the radical ‘panopticon’ theory. The cells in each circular building were constructed around a central tower which allowed them all to be under constant observation.
MYSTERIES OF THE ABANDONED is produced for Science Channel by Like A Shot. Henry Scott is Executive Producer for Like A Shot. Neil Laird and Kyle McCabe are Executive Producers for Science Channel.
About Science Channel
Science Channel, a multi-media business unit of Discovery Communications, is the home of all things science around the clock, including series such as MYTHBUSTERS, STREET SCIENCE, OUTRAGEOUS ACTS OF SCIENCE, WHAT ON EARTH?, HOW THE UNIVERSE WORKS, MYSTERIES OF THE ABANDONED, UNEARTHED, SPACE’S DEEPEST SECRETS, and HOW IT’S MADE. Science Channel is the premiere TV, digital and social community for those with a passion for science, space, technology, archeology, and engineering, providing immersive, engaging, high-quality entertainment across all Science Channel assets including: Science Channel television network, available in more than 68 million homes in the U.S; complimentary Video On Demand offering; SCI Go app allowing viewers to catch up on full episodes of their favorite shows anytime; deep video, interactive storytelling and virtual reality at www.sciencechannel.com; and conversations on Science Channel’s popular social platforms including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat via @ScienceChannel.
About Discovery Communications
Discovery Communications (Nasdaq: DISCA, DISCB, DISCK) is the world’s #1 pay-TV programmer reaching nearly 3 billion cumulative subscribers in more than 220 countries and territories. For 30 years Discovery has been dedicated to satisfying curiosity and entertaining viewers with high-quality content through its global television brands, led by Discovery Channel, TLC, Animal Planet, Investigation Discovery and Science, as well as U.S. joint venture network OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network. Discovery controls Eurosport, the leading pan-regional sports entertainment destination across Europe, Asia Pacific, the Middle East and Africa. Discovery also is a leading provider of educational products and services to schools, including an award-winning series of K-12 digital textbooks, through Discovery Education, and a digital leader with a diversified online portfolio, including Discovery Digital Networks. For more information, please visit www.discoverycommunications.com.
