Human Universe

Professor Brian Cox discovers how the universe played a key role in our ascent from apeman to spaceman by driving the expansion of our brains. But big brains alone did not get us to space. To reveal what did, Brian explores humanity's' earliest civilizations what took us to the stars.

Brian Cox reveals how the wonderful complexity of nature and human life is simply the consequence of chance events constrained by the laws of physics that govern our universe. This leads him to a deeper question - why does our universe seem to have been set up with just the right rules to create us?

Brian Cox explores the ingredients needed for an intelligent civilization to evolve in the universe - the need for a benign star, for a habitable planet, for life to spontaneously arise on such a planet and the time required for intelligent life to evolve and build a civilization.

Brian Cox explores our origins, place, and destiny in the universe. We all start our lives thinking that we are at the center of the universe, surrounded by our family and the world as it spins around us. But our human urge to explore is strong.

Brian Cox concludes the series by returning to the top of the world in Svalbard, where he gains access to our civilization's greatest treasure, locked away in a vault buried deep in the permafrost. Join him as he unlocks the secret of our long-term survival.