NOTE: On occasion, links to BBC animations may not work because the "History A to Z" site is being updated. Be sure to check back later if that happens during your visit.

• Airplanes - Responding to Pilot Input: See what happens when a pilot uses ailerons, elevators, flaps and rudder in an aircraft. Click on "to fly," in the first paragraph.



• Ancient Books: “Turn the pages” of ancient books - together with other treasures like Mozart’s manuscripts and diaries - and see the works as they were originally created. Tip: Follow the directions (if indicated) for computer keyboard letters in order to hear a description of the work, read a transcription of the page displayed or hear the music as it is written in the manuscript. Prepare to be amazed after you click on “turn its pages” in the second-to-last paragraph of this chapter!



• Ancient Sparta: A Changed Culture During its early days, ancient Sparta was home to craftsmen. To learn why - and how - it changed to a military society, click on "how Sparta changed," in the third paragraph.



• Atoms: Splitting What do atoms look like when they split apart? Click on "neutrons are released" (in the third paragraph) and "splitting" (in the fourth paragraph) to check it out.



• Benjamin Bunny: In Animation Beatrix Potter once had a pet she called "Benjamin Bouncer." She turned him into "Benjamin Bunny" in her stories. To see an animation about Benjamin, click on "the animals (for part one) and "were real" (for part two) in the fifth paragraph of this chapter.



• Beowulf - Long Halls: Part of the Beowulf epic is set in a Danish long hall called “Heorot.” To virtually tour a recreated long hall, click on “virtual tour” (in the sixth paragraph).



• Butterflies: The Iridescent Morpho Why does the shimmering blue morpho (Morpho menelaus) butterfly appear iridescent? Learn about its fascinating wing structure by clicking on "insects," in the first paragraph. When you get to the PBS link, click "Hardware" - on the left side - then scroll to the end for the video animation.



• Butterflies: The Traveling Monarch Why is Pacific Grove, California called "Butterfly Town, U.S.A.?" What determines monarch flight patterns during their migrations? Why is their navigation ability referred to as one of the great mysteries of the natural world? To learn more, click on "insects," in the first paragraph. When you get to the PBS link, click "Voyagers" - on the right side - then click on "Presentation: Monarch Butterfly."



• Celts - An Ancient People: Celts lived in today’s Ireland and the United Kingdom for a very long time. To see what their lives might have been like in the Iron Age, click on “long history” (in the last paragraph).



• Cocaine, Effects on Human Body: To see what cocaine does to the human body, click on “animation” in the seventh paragraph.



• Colosseum, Rome - How it was Built: Did you know that designers used the Pythagorean Theorem to maximize the number of good seats in this famous arena? Click on “Under the floor,” in the last paragraph, to discover how the entire structure was originally built.



• Columbia Shuttle Explosion: Last Hour As the space shuttle Columbia prepared to reenter Earth's atmosphere, it could not withstand the high temperatures outside the orbiter. Find out what happened during its last hour by clicking on "normal" in the first paragraph. When you get to the animation, click on "Shuttle Breakup," then select "The Final Hour."



• Columbia Shuttle Explosion: Sensor Evidence About one minute before the space shuttle Columbia entered California's airspace, a left-wing sensor indicated a temperature increase. More than twenty sensors indicated further trouble, or went offline, soon thereafter. Examine the left wing sensors, in the order in which they indicated problems, by clicking on "normal" in the first paragraph. When you get to the animation, click on "Key Factors? Foam, Tiles," then select "Left Wing."



• Combat Missions: Dogfights at the Western Front During the early days of aviation, combat pilots engaged in dogfights at the Western Front. Click on ""combat missions," in the second paragraph, to see what may have happened.



• Comets - Deep Impact: To learn more about comets, from an “up close and personal” viewpoint, NASA sent a small spacecraft called IMPACTOR to visit a comet called Tempel 1. After traveling 268 million miles (that’s 431 million kilometers), IMPACTOR crashed into Tempel 1. The events were transmitted to earth by a spacecraft named FLYBY (which had launched IMPACTOR). To see what happened, click on “animated recreation” (in the seventh paragraph).



• Fossilization: How are fossils made? Why are some creatures fossilized and others are not? Click on “fossils” in the first paragraph.



• Galveston: Great Storm of 1900 The Great Storm of 1900 caused the city of Galveston, Texas to be temporarily covered by the Gulf of Mexico. It remains the worst natural disaster in American history. Cuban meteorologists had predicted that the tropical storm would intensify into a major hurricane, taking a course toward Texas. Follow the Great Storm's track by clicking on "strike," in the last paragraph.



• Halley’s Comet - A Medieval Omen: In the middle ages, people in Britain saw Halley’s Comet in the sky. They didn’t know it was a comet and were afraid that it was a bad omen. Not long after, their country was conquered by William, the Duke of Normandy, in a 1066 battle near Hastings. To discover the impact of “the star” on those medieval people, click on “narrated animation” at the end of the sixth paragraph.



• Hindenburg Explosion: What Happened? For years, experts believed hydrogen was the culprit behind the Hindenburg disaster of May 6, 1937. A recent theory, however, points to the Zeppelin's surface paint which contained aluminum and iron oxide. Click on "fatal process," in the third paragraph, to understand what may have caused the Hindenburg to explode and disintegrate as it landed at Lakehurst Naval Station.



• Honeybees: Life in the Hive What goes on inside the hives of honeybees? How do they make, and store, honey? How many bees can live inside a single hive? (Hint: The answer will surprise you!) To learn more, click on "insects," in the first paragraph. When you get to the PBS link, click "Metropolis" - on the right side - then click on "Presentation: Enter the Hive" to watch the animation.



• Hurricanes: How are They Formed? How are hurricanes formed? What is the potential for damage in each of the five categories of a named storm? Click on "Great Storm," in the first paragraph, to see an animated explanation.



• Hurricane Tracker: Fifty Years of Storms Track more than fifty years of Atlantic hurricanes (from 1950 to 2003) with this animation. After you click on "animated," in the fourth paragraph, scroll to the bottom of the link. Select "Big Hurricanes" to track the most intense storms. Select "Year," and then "Storm," to track everything else.



• Industrial Revolution - Blast Furnace: In 1709, Abraham Darby invented a furnace which used coke (instead of wood and charcoal) as the fuel to smelt iron ore. To see an animation, depicting how this revolutionary furnace worked, click on “Industrial Revolution” (in the first paragraph).



• Industrial Revolution - Spinning Mill: The invention of a spinning mill, which could stand several stories, was a marvel of the Industrial Revolution. Click on “innovative machines,” in the first paragraph, to see it operate.



• Iron Age, Britain - Chariots: In 2001, remains of an Iron-Age chariot were found in a square barrow (Iron-Age burial site) in Yorkshire. Based on what they found, experts have reconstructed how that chariot appeared “more than 2,000 years ago.” To take a look, click on “chariot” (in the first paragraph).



• Iron Age, Britain - Roundhouse: Little is left of actual roundhouses, but archeologists can reconstruct the home of an Iron-Age village chief. Watch one come to life by clicking on “architecture” (in the first paragraph).



• Mars - Animated Explorations: Explore the Red Planet with animations and other fun things by clicking on “activity is occurring” (in the last paragraph).



• Mars - Reconnaissance Orbiter: After traveling seven months to Mars, the orbiter (MRO) circles the Red Planet and transmits images to her controllers on Earth. Click on “keeping an eye,” in the next-to-last paragraph, to follow her journey.



• Metal: Its Structure What makes metal a good building material? How does it respond to stresses and heat? Click on "metal structures," in the second paragraph, to better understand its nature and function.



• Monks, Medieval - Day in the Life of: What was it like to be a monk in the Middle Ages? Click on “monk,” in the second paragraph, to find out.



• Mummies: Following the instructions of Herodotus, the “Father of History,” create an Egyptian mummy. First read this chapter, then click on “create one yourself” in the last paragraph.



• Nuclear Chain Reaction: What happens during a nuclear chain reaction? Try it yourself, by clicking on "chain reaction" in the fourth paragraph.



• Panama Canal: Working Locks How do the Panama Canal locks work, allowing ships of all sizes to pass through? Click on "animation," in the second paragraph, to find out.



• Peter Rabbit: A Favorite Character Created by Beatrix Potter, Peter Rabbit remains a much-loved fictional character. To view an animated story - about Peter Rabbit up to his usual mischief - click on "her characters" in the sixth paragraph.



• Pompeii: Plinian Eruption Pliny the Younger was the first person to describe a massive volcanic explosion which scientists now call a "Plinian" event. Mount Vesuvius sustained that type of eruption in 76 A.D. See an animation of what may have occurred by clicking on "eruption" in the sixth paragraph.



• Pompeii: Pyroclastic Flow After a volcanic eruption, a pyroclastic flow completely buried the town of Pompeii. To see the speed and ferocity of such a flow, click on "animation" in the fourth paragraph.



• Shackleton, Ernest - Endurance Expedition to Antarctica: In December of 1914, as the first World War raged in Europe, Shackleton and his crew attempted to explore Antarctica. Trapped in pack ice, their plans changed. Click on “explore,” in the fifth paragraph, to discover what happened to them after their ship was crushed by ice and sank.



• Space Shuttle: Normal Reentry What happens when a space shuttle returns to Earth? An hour before touchdown, the orbiter must be repositioned, turning tail-first. Then it is repositioned again, turning nose-first with the nose "up" at about forty degrees. With its heat tiles facing the Earth's atmosphere, the shuttle is enveloped by temperatures which can reach a maximum of 3,000 degrees Fahrenheit. See how it works by clicking on "normal" in the first paragraph. When you get to the animation, click on "Shuttle Breakup," then select "How Shuttle Lands."



• Sparta: Life in an Ancient City What was life like for men, women and children in the ancient city of Sparta? Follow the link for "Life in Sparta," in the next-to-last paragraph, and "open" the various top-row desk drawers to find out.



• Spitzer Space Telescope - How it Sees Infrared Light: The Spitzer sees infrared light (which makes visible what is invisible to the human eye). How does it work? To find out, click on “Spitzer Space Telescope” (in the next-to-last paragraph).



• Steam-Powered Locomotive - The Rocket: In 1829, George Stephenson and his assistants revealed their new steam locomotive designed to move rail passengers between Liverpool and Manchester at a very high rate of speed. Click on “The Rocket” - at the end of the chapter - to see, in animated format, the locomotive engine first able to reach speeds of 24 miles an hour.



• Titanic - Faulty Rivet Theory: Following an intensive study of forty-eight rivets, recovered from Titanic’s bow, experts believe those components were made of low-grade iron. Placed under pressure, they could quickly give way. As water from the North Atlantic poured into the ship, the rivets split apart “like a zipper.” Five forward compartments flooded, dooming the ship. Click on “not with five,” in the third paragraph, to see an interview with the experts and watch an animation of what may have happened.



• Trafalgar, Battle of: For an animated battle recreation, click on “defeated” in the second paragraph.



• Trenches, World War I: The trenches at the Western Front were places of utter misery for the soldiers who stayed there. Literally living in the ground, the men contended with rats as big as cats, lice and a host of other serious problems. Take a tour by clicking on "the trenches" in the fourth paragraph. When you get to the animation, click "view" at the bottom of your screen to begin the virtual tour.



• Triangle Trade - Animated Map: When Britain dominated the slave trade, a three-pronged system developed. Engaged in triangular trading, British ships sailed to ports on three continents. See an animated map which depicts the journey and the "goods" which were traded at each stop. Click on "triangular trading system," in the first paragraph.



• Viking Ships: Norsemen invented the longship. Some Norsemen - vikingur (meaning “hit and run raider”) - sailed their ships to other lands where they terrified local people and stole their treasures. Build a virtual Viking ship by clicking on “building their ships” in the first paragraph.



• Volcanoes: Create an Eruption To build a volcano, and watch it erupt, click on "volcanic eruptions" in the seventh paragraph. You can change conditions to create different types of volcanoes and see different types of eruptions.



• Winning a Battle: Platea Although Greece was not a unified country during the Greco-Persian Wars, many of the various city-states joined together, under Sparta's leadership, to fight the Persians at Platea (Plataia). Explore an animated battlefield, depicting where the Greeks defeated the invaders, by clicking on "stopped Xerxes" in the eighth paragraph.



• World Trade Center Towers: Collapse Why did the World Trade Center Towers collapse after the planes struck them on September 11, 2001? Click on "reconstruction," in the third paragraph, to understand the experts' theory.



• World War II, Animated Map: Animated map, summarizing WWII in Europe. Click on “were doing” in the fourth paragraph.