Name: Saving the Right Whale
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Endangered right whale populations are declining and not a single adult is known to have died of natural causes in more than a decade.

Entanglement responders work to free a critically endangered whale from rope.

Scientists Attempt To Free Entangled Right Whale

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Northern Mariana Islands

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American Samoa

Guam

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U.S. Minor Outlying Islands

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The North Atlantic right whale is on the brink of extinction. But a handful of specialists are determined to help save it as they discover new secrets about the lives of these giants of the sea.

Follow scientists determined to save the critically endangered right whale.

Saving the Right Whale

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In 2020, the number of North Atlantic right whale calves born in the Southeast was slightly higher than it had been in previous years, but still nowhere near enough to get the population moving in a positive direction.

Since 2010, the average time between North Atlantic right whale births has increased.

Meet Snow Cone the Right Whale and Her Calf

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Aerial view of two right whales near the water's surface.

North Atlantic right whales are among the planet’s most critically endangered large ocean mammals. With fewer than 350 remaining as of 2023, they could be extinct within 20 years. But teams of marine biologists and whale rescuers are determined to help save the species. Follow their efforts and get a glimpse into the lives of these giants of the sea and their prospects for survival. (Premiered May 3, 2023)

Follow scientists determined to save the critically endangered right whale.

Planet Earth

Colossal explosions shake a remote corner of the Siberian tundra, leaving behind massive craters. In Alaska, a huge lake erupts with bubbles of inflammable gas. Scientists are discovering that these mystifying phenomena add up to a ticking time bomb, as long-frozen permafrost melts and releases vast amounts of methane, a potent greenhouse gas. What are the implications of these dramatic developments in the Arctic? Scientists and local communities alike are struggling to grasp the scale of the methane threat and what it means for our climate future. (Premiered February 2, 2022)

In the Arctic, enormous releases of methane, a potent greenhouse gas, threaten the climate.

Arctic Sinkholes

The top half of Jupiter in blue and green against a night sky

A composite image of Jupiter using images captured by the James Webb Space Telescope. Image Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, Jupiter ERS Team; image processing by Judy Schmidt.

Explore the cosmos, delve into ancient history, and follow an extreme rescue with NOVA’s most-watched documentaries released in 2022.

NOVA’s most popular science documentaries of 2022

Four bright orange loops brand off of a dark blue blob

A transmission electron micrograph of HIV-1 virus particles (orange) replicating from the plasma membrane of an infected H9 T cell. Credit: NIAID, Flickr

Scientists have cured a handful of people of HIV by piggybacking on treatments they received for blood cancer. But does that bring a widespread cure any closer?

Saving the Right Whale

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This 33-Million-Year-Old Whale Sucked Up Food Like A Giant Vacuum

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Meet Snow Cone the Right Whale and Her Calf

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Explore More

Using Drones to a Solve 170-Year Bowhead Whale Mystery

Saving the Right Whale

This 33-Million-Year-Old Whale Sucked Up Food Like A Giant Vacuum

How long can a bus-sized whale shark go without food?

Meet Snow Cone the Right Whale and Her Calf

Bill Nye: A Whale of a Joke

Could Whale Poop Help Cool the Planet?

Ship Noises Mute the Songs of Humpback Whales