Documentary series tracing the exploration of our solar system. A look at the quest to understand the sun, from the simple etchings of the astronomer Galileo to the discoveries of the latest solar probes. The latest scientific images reveal that the sun is a gigantic nuclear generator, a swirling mass of superheated gases that travel along powerful magnetic field lines.

90 million miles away from us is the power that shapes our world - the sun. We see it shine in the sky above us, but beyond our sight something dramatic is happening - the sun is going into overdrive.

Professor Brian Cox explores the globe to reveal how a few fundamental laws of science gave birth to the most complex and unique feature of the universe - life.

In this episode Brian Cox visits South East Asia's 'Ring of Fire'. In the world's most volcanic region he explores the thin line that separates the living from the dead and poses that most enduring of questions: what is life?

As far as we know, there is only one place in the universe on which life has taken hold - Earth - but for how much longer will this distinction remain? Astronomers are on the brink of finding other worlds the same size as Earth and the same distance from their star.

In this spellbinding series Professor Brian Cox visits the most extreme locations on Earth to explain how the laws of physics carved natural wonders across the solar system.

Professor Brian Cox explores the sun - the powerhouse of our solar system.

Professor Brian Cox looks at the rings of Saturn, formed from a chaotic cloud of gas.

How an envelope of gas can create some of the most wondrous sights in the solar system.

Brian Cox shows how a planet's size can make the difference between life and death.

Brian Cox explores how the search for aliens has followed the search for water.