Modern Marvels: Season 10
Season 10 Lore Primer
Key plot threads, lore context, and character stakes you need to remember before diving into this season.
- Directly follows the overarching narrative developments of Modern Marvels Season 9.
- Faction dynamics and core character alliances shift under escalating external stakes.
- Crucial mysteries introduced previously reach key turning points and narrative reckonings.
- Sets up serialized story arcs that build directly toward the climactic season finale.
Episode Guide
Season 10 Progress Shield
Trans-Siberian Railroad
Jan 1, 2003 · 44 min
It’s the longest, most expensive and complicated railroad ever built. Ordered by the Czar in an effort to save his empire and unify his country at the twilight of the 19th century,
Castles & Dungeons
Jan 7, 2003 · 44 min
Some of the most imposing structures ever built, medieval castles withstood both bloody assaults and the test of time. Designed like machines with nearly every architectural detail
Ice Road Truckers
Jan 30, 2003 · 44 min
Based on the book Denison’s Ice Road by Edith Iglauer, the episode detailed the treacherous job of driving trucks over frozen lakes, also known as ice roads, in Canada’s Northwest
Winter Warriors
Jan 31, 2003 · 44 min
Traces the story of the U.S. Army’s legendary 10th Mountain Division. They were formed after WWII began, specifically to fight in high, rugged mountain conditions. After training i
Booby Traps
Feb 4, 2003 · 44 min
All it takes to set off a booby trap is an unsuspecting victim lifting, moving, or disturbing a harmless-looking object. Booby traps continue to worry law enforcement; made from ea
The Alcan Highway
Feb 11, 2003 · 44 min
Today, vacationers travel from British Columbia north through the Yukon Pass on their way to Fairbanks, Alaska, thanks to one 2-lane roadway, the 1,522-mile long Alaska Highway. A
Twin Towers of the East
Mar 4, 2003 · 44 min
Rising almost 1,500 feet high, the Petronas Twin Towers in Malaysia were named the world’s tallest in 1996 by the Council on Tall Buildings. Connecticut architect Cesar Pelli blend
The Mackinac Bridge
Mar 5, 2003 · 44 min
Until recently, the Mackinac Bridge was the longest suspension bridge in the world. One of the top engineering marvels of the 20th century, the bridge spans the 4-mile wide straits
Bullet Trains
Mar 11, 2003 · 44 min
Traveling between 135 and 190 miles per hour with an astonishingly high safety record, bullet trains can be found throughout Europe, Japan, and on the US eastern seaboard. How high
Non-Lethal Weapons
Mar 13, 2003 · 44 min
They stun, debilitate, immobilize–providing police and peacekeepers with options other than shouting or shooting. From the ancient caltrop–a multi-pointed contraption hurled by foo
Army Corps of Engineers
Mar 18, 2003 · 44 min
Made up of soldiers and civilians, scientists and specialists in an enormous variety of fields, the US Army Corps of Engineers was created over 200 years ago by Congressional manda
Black Hawk: Night Stalker
Mar 26, 2003 · 44 min
For over 20 years, the Black Hawk has been the U.S. Army’s front-line utility helicopter for air assault, air cavalry, and medical evacuation. The Black Hawk remains today the worl
Japanese Guns of WWII
Mar 26, 2003 · 44 min
As Japan bombed its way into the Pacific during WWII, Imperial soldiers carried pride, a sense of invincibility, and an arsenal of clumsy and outdated weapons. Convinced that the t
Titanic Tech
Apr 1, 2003 · 44 min
Welcome aboard the luxury liner Titanic, the world’s largest ship and pride of the White Star Line. Watertight compartments and a steel-plated hull render it all but unsinkable. Ne
Coal Mines
Apr 2, 2003 · 44 min
Coal–the fuel responsible for more than half the electricity used daily. We unearth the amazing technological advances that have led to today’s extremely efficient methods–from anc
Secrets of the Acropolis
Apr 10, 2003 · 44 min
With a thrilling combination of dramatic reconstructions and 3-D animation, we step back in time to the Golden Age of Greece and the birth of democracy, to an era of unparalleled h
Ball Turret Gunners
May 1, 2003 · 44 min
In war, certain missions demand the most and constitute much of the legends of bravery. Journey back to the Second World War when fearless airmen manned the B-17′s belly guns–glass
MiG 15
May 10, 2003 · 44 min
After World War I, Russia began building its most prolific aircraft, the MiG line. MiG pilots fought with distinction in WWII, but the MiG heyday hit with the design of the MiG-15,
T-34: Russian Victory
May 10, 2003 · 44 min
Born out of a desperate need to defend the Motherland, Stalin enlisted the ideas of an American engineer, J. Walter Christie, to develop in total secrecy one of the most formidable
Tank Crews
May 15, 2003 · 44 min
During WWII, American tank crews duked it out with Nazi Panzers in a high-explosive duel to the death. The German tanks had thicker armor and better guns than the mainstay of the U
Harley-Davidson
May 21, 2003 · 44 min
From humble beginnings in the Davidson family garage to one of the world's most famous companies and a marketing juggernaut, Harley-Davidson is known for one thing American built m
Torture Devices
May 22, 2003 · 44 min
For more than 3,000 years, emperors and generals, dictators and police, criminals, clerics, and even medical doctors have created and used a vast array of torture devices–everythin
Cosmodrome
May 26, 2003 · 44 min
The story of Russia’s “Crown Jewels”, the finest rocket engines in the world, built under conditions of absolute secrecy to land a man on the moon. Learn how, at the height of Cold
Exterminator
Jun 3, 2003 · 44 min
In a raging war for control of Earth, occupying forces buzz and skitter, with some out to draw blood! Termites, mosquitoes, rats, mice, ants, and cockroaches have spread damage, di
Million Dollar Guns
Jun 7, 2003 · 44 min
They are the treasures of a select few. Each holds a story of human triumph…epic pagentry or desperate tragedy…cast forever in iron, steel, and wood. Some command price tags well o
High Voltage
Jun 24, 2003 · 44 min
Look closely at those tall metal towers that span the country and you might see tiny specks climbing up the soaring steel like spiders on an enormous web. Meet the courageous linem
4x4
Jun 22, 2003 · 44 min
In this full immersion journey through the world of maximum off-roading, learn what it’s like to blow the carbon out of your system as we trace the history of the four-wheel drive
Dangerous Cargo
Jun 25, 2003 · 44 min
Toxic traffic is everywhere! An average of 800,000 shipments of hazardous materials hit our highways and railways daily. From Wild West wooden crates filled with explosives to HAZM
Engineering Disasters 4
Jul 2, 2003 · 44 min
Engineering disasters can result in personal tragedy, national humiliation, and economic ruin. But buried within their wreckage lie lessons that point the way to a safer future. Th
Nature Tech: Tsunamis
Jul 8, 2003 · 44 min
Among the most mysterious disasters, tsunamis–Japanese for “harbor waves”–claimed over 50,000 lives in the 20th century! Generated by offshore earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and
Logging Tech
Jul 9, 2003 · 44 min
When Paul Bunyan cried "Timber!", he never foresaw today's cutting-edge, controversial industry that feeds a ravenous, lumber-crazy world–a world striving to protect nature while d
Breaking the Sound Barrier
Jul 16, 2003 · 44 min
For decades, the sound barrier loomed as an impenetrable wall against manned flight that buffeted planes with shock waves as they approached the speed of sound. Scientists thought
Car Crashes
Jul 23, 2003 · 44 min
In the mid-1960s, the US lost an average of 55,000 people yearly to car crashes. Since then, the number of cars on the road has doubled, but fatalities have decreased by nearly a t
Sandhogs
Jul 23, 2003 · 44 min
Sandhogs work hundreds of feet down, where it is dark, damp, and dangerous, challenging nature’s awesome forces to drive tunnels through solid rock and sinking mud. They drill and
Convertibles
Jul 24, 2003 · 44 min
Topless, unobstructed–the convertible completely transforms the driving experience and unlike any other car, sets the driver free. During this face-paced hour, experts highlight th
Loading Docks
Jul 30, 2003 · 44 min
Each day ships, trains, trucks, and planes haul supplies that keep store shelves full and factories moving. At every stop there’s a loading dock–an interface where shipping and sto
Terror Tech: Military
Aug 5, 2003 · 44 min
The chance of enemy confrontation by sea, tank, or air battle is small, but terrorist networks operating in the shadows will likely challenge the U.S again. Instead of waiting to r
Nature Tech: Tornadoes
Aug 5, 2003 · 44 min
How does technology grasp nature’s most violent, chaotic storm? For half a century, U.S. meteorologists have been building a countrywide system of Doppler Radar, widespread automat
Military Movers
Aug 6, 2003 · 44 min
The challenge: Move millions of soldiers and tons of cargo halfway around the world and into the thick of action. How? Use the biggest ships, the widest planes, and the strongest t
Bullets
Aug 13, 2003 · 44 min
From "safe" bullets that stop hijackers but leave aircraft unscathed to bullets that chain-saw through steel and "smart" bullets computer-programmed to hit a target, this explosive
Aircraft Carrier
Aug 15, 2003 · 44 min
From the earliest experiments in WWI to the technological wonders that ruled the sea and sky of the Middle East, George C. Scott chronicles the history of one of today’s most versa
The Gunboats of Vietnam
Aug 18, 2003 · 44 min
It takes brave sailors to steer their gunboats into waters where larger ships cannot go. In this historic documentary, relive the dramatic rescue of General MacArthur by a squadron
Metal
Aug 19, 2003 · 44 min
They constitute the very essence of the modern world; the cadence of our progress sounds in the measured ring of the blacksmith’s hammer. From soaring skyscrapers and sturdy bridge
Landmines
Aug 21, 2003 · 44 min
A major battlefield weapon since the American Civil War and the stuff of nightmares ever since, the civilian toll from landmines remains immense. Inflicted by an enemy that can’t b
Space Shuttle Columbia
Aug 26, 2003 · 44 min
Combination rocket, spacecraft, and airplane, the space shuttle is the most complex vehicle ever built. Long before it ever flew, the shuttle was nearly scuttled due to political p
Overseas Highway
Sep 3, 2003 · 44 min
A spectacular roadway nearly 120 miles long, the Overseas Highway links mainland Florida with the Florida Keys, and contains 51 bridges, including the Seven-Mile Bridge. A boat was
Terror Tech: Civilian
Sep 8, 2003 · 44 min
Witness the construction of a terrorist-proof safe room. Discover how your windows might someday act as biological weapons detectors. Learn how scientists are protecting the food y
Machu Picchu
Sep 24, 2003 · 44 min
The engineering marvel Machu Picchu sits perched on a ridge in the Peruvian Andes. Originally built by the Incas, this magnificent structure remains a mystery. Was it an observator
The PT Boats
Sep 24, 2003 · 44 min
Pound for pound, the small wooden Patrol Torpedo Boats of WWII were among the most powerful warships of all time. Daring PT vets recall why their speed and maneuverability were too
The Battleships
Sep 24, 2003 · 44 min
General quarters! You’re going into battle aboard the century’s deadliest warships–the Dreadnought, Bismarck, Missouri, Yamato. Follow the 1916 Battle of Jutland, decisive World Wa
Early Machine Guns
Sep 26, 2003 · 44 min
The story of the birth and development of rapid fire weapons from the 14th century until the end of WWI–where on one terrible day the machine gun was responsible for mowing down ne
Smart Bombs
Sep 30, 2003 · 44 min
Precision-guided munitions, smart bombs were the media buzz of the first Gulf War and a major military and political driving force of the second. But their apparent sudden celebrit
Lake Pontchartrain Causeway
Oct 15, 2003 · 44 min
In the land of Mardi Gras, jambalaya, and zydeco, exists an engineering marvel called the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway that seems to go on forever. Two ribbons of concrete span the
Inviting Disaster 1: Three Mile Island
Oct 21, 2003 · 44 min
They make our lives more comfortable, more rewarding, and more secure. They are the magical machines that have brought us to the edge of the new frontier of limitless possibilities
The Luftwaffe
Oct 22, 2003 · 44 min
What if the Nazis had held out and the war in Europe lasted until 1946? We’ll review the remarkable aircraft that Germany had in development at war’s end, such as manned supersonic
Panzers
Oct 22, 2003 · 44 min
The story of a revolutionary breed of tank, a weapon whose speed and power would dominate European battlefields with a new kind of battle, the stunning Blitzkrieg–”lightning war”.
U-Boats
Oct 25, 2003 · 44 min
They dominated the Atlantic Ocean from Europe to the eastern coast of the U.S. They struck against Allied shipping with near impunity, holding England in a stranglehold for the fir
Inviting Disaster 2: The Kursk
Oct 28, 2003 · 44 min
The amazing machines of human invention most often do our bidding with uncomplaining proficiency. But when they go wrong, they exact a terrible wage. In August 2000, the Russian su
FBI's Crime Lab
Oct 29, 2003 · 44 min
To spearhead its fight against crime and terrorism in the 21st century, the FBI is relying on its $150 million-plus building, the new Crime Lab at Quantico. Here, nearly 700 highly
Inviting Disaster 3: Challenger and Columbia
Nov 4, 2003 · 44 min
No program better symbolizes human mastery of machines than does the space shuttle. But the breakups of EM Challenger /EM and EM Columbia revealed the program is tragically flawed.
Inviting Disaster 4, Building Failures
Nov 4, 2003 · 44 min
Based on the popular book, this episode explores historical building collapses–from ancient pyramids to the Cathedral at Beauvais to Kansas City’s Hyatt Regency–and demonstrates th
Shipyards
Nov 5, 2003 · 44 min
Shipyards are waterside construction sites where the extraordinary takes shape and where some of the largest tools built by humans help create the biggest machines on earth. But sh
Guns of the Sky
Nov 7, 2003 · 44 min
Hop into the cockpit for a daring century-long ride through the history of aircraft weaponry–from the very first handgun fired from a biplane. Features interviews with Chuck Yeager
Extreme Trucks
Nov 12, 2003 · 44 min
Hop into the cab for the ride of your life as we examine extreme trucks, including: a jet truck that can travel 300 mph; the Baltimore Technical Assistance Response Unit's mobile c
ET Tech
Nov 25, 2003 · 44 min
In 2003, with Mars closer to Earth than it had been in 60,000 years, scientists launched three life-seeking planetary landers. If the long journeys prove successful, all should be
Million Dollar Cars
Nov 26, 2003 · 44 min
There is very little that collectors, historians and auctioneers agree about, but they do agree that a few passionate visionaries created a small number of automobiles that have as
The Technology of Lewis and Clark
Apr 28, 2003 · 44 min
Explore the technology and survival techniques used by the men of Lewis and Clark on their landmark journey to the Pacific. From their 15-ton supply ship to the 193 pounds of dehyd
B-52: Stratofortress
Nov 28, 2003 · 44 min
For nearly half a century, one bomber has dominated the skies. With a maximum speed of 650 m.p.h., a range of over 8,000 miles, and ability to drop a massive 70,000 pounds of bombs
Rolls Royce
Dec 2, 2003 · 44 min
The world’s most famous brand, Rolls Royce, is owned by the same company that makes Bentley, a luxury leader once known for its prowess on the track. Their stories combine all that
Tailgating
Dec 3, 2003 · 44 min
At stadiums nationwide, thousands of football fans come together to show team spirit, eat incredible food, and join the community of tailgating. We journey around the U.S. to legen
Wheel Estate
Dec 3, 2003 · 44 min
Land Yachts, Portable Palaces, Corrugated Condos–whatever the name, travel trailers and RVs have become an American icon–the 20th century’s covered wagon. Hit the road as we travel
Sports Cars
Dec 4, 2003 · 44 min
Car aficionados rarely agree on what makes a true sports car, but they concede that in little over a hundred years, they went from crude to sublime. We’ll examine Britain’s MG, Tri
Technology of Kitty Hawk
Dec 17, 2003 · 44 min
Two brainy bicycle makers…a remote North Carolina moonscape…and an impossible dream. On December 17, 1903, Wilbur and Orville Wright took wing at Kitty Hawk and flew–as none before
Egyptian Pyramids
Dec 18, 2003 · 44 min
Constructed as tombs for the ancient pharaohs, over 100 pyramids remain in Egypt. Built during a span of well over 1,000 years, they stand as cultural and engineering marvels of st
The Berlin Wall
Dec 19, 2003 · 44 min
During the Cold War, the Berlin Wall stood as a forbidding barrier in an embattled world. Erected in August 1961, the Wall system stretched 103 miles through and around Berlin, loc
Toys
Dec 23, 2003 · 44 min
All aboard the nostalgia express as we take a trip through the past to enjoy toys of our youth–the ones we can't forget and those that some of use never gave up! This is the real t
Engineering Disasters 5
Dec 30, 2003 · 44 min
Examines some of the most notorious engineering failures of recent years and asks what went wrong and what we learned from them. We take viewers to the southern coast of Louisiana,