Water covers much of the earth's surface and is immensely powerful, capable of taking lives and changing the shape of the land. One of the History Channel's better recent science programs, “Underwater Universe,” explores the destructive power of the oceans. Season One is out on DVD.
The opening episode, “Killer Shockwaves,” sets the tone. The rushing walls of water called tsunamis, caused by earthquakes below the sea, are the most infamous aquatic shockwaves. But there are others, including “rogue waves” rising out of the blue to tremendous heights. Reported as early as the ancient Greeks, their existence was scoffed at by science until oil platform cameras and sensors recorded one in 1995. The episode includes interviews with the crew of a government research ship, swamped off the California coast by a rogue wave in 2000, who barely escaped with their lives.
“Underwater Universe” is fast paced with good computer graphics and film footage and is mercifully free of the stentorian overkill that mars many cable documentaries.
