Smithsonian TV Guide — Today's TV Listings & Schedule

Browse the full Smithsonian TV guide for today. 24 programmes listed , including 6 tonight. US listings updated daily — scroll down to tonight's highlights or use the day tabs above to browse the weekly schedule.

Early Morning

00:00 1h

How Did They Build That?

S5 · E8 · Wings & Waterlines Science

Wings & Waterlines

Lord Foster's 5-winged steel towers cool Abu Dhabi's national museum naturally. Robots 3D-print a steel bridge in Amsterdam & a concrete tower in Switzerland.
01:00 1h

Ice Airport Alaska

S7 · E1 · Fuel's Gold Other

Fuel's Gold

Father-son aviators battle turbulence to refuel a remote mine, bush pilots fight an aerial jam to reach Alaska's biggest sled race.
02:00 1h

Mayday: Air Disaster

S23 · E8 · Deadly Deception Documentary

Deadly Deception

A Bulgarian airliner gets hijacked and to save them the hijackers must be convinced that their demands have been met before the planes fuel runs out.
03:00 1h

Mayday: Air Disaster

S1 · E1 · Communication Breakdown True

Communication Breakdown

Two Boeing 747 passenger jets collided on the runway at Tenerife North Airport making it the worst aviation accident of all time, because of a misunderstanding.
04:00 1h

Mayday: Air Disaster

S19 · E5 · Fuel Trouble True

Fuel Trouble

Crew mismanagement and mechanical failures causing fuel issues.
05:00 1h

Mayday: Air Disaster

Dead of Night True

Dead of Night

Airplane catastrophes that occurred while darkness was in effect.

Morning

06:00 1h

Mayday: Air Disaster

Cockpit Breakdown True

Cockpit Breakdown

Experts investigate catastrophes linked to mismatched pilots.
07:00 1h

Mayday: Air Disaster

S14 · E3 · Vanishing Act Documentary

Vanishing Act

In 1989, a Brazilian flight crew realizes too late that they're 30 miles past their runway and then has to belly-land in the jungle because they're low on fuel.
08:00 1h

Mayday: Air Disaster

Accidents in the Air True

Accidents in the Air

After the Flydubai Flight 981 enters a rapid descent and crashes in Russia, investigators realize that it aborted its second landing attempt in poor weather.
09:00 1h

Mayday: Air Disaster

S2 · E3 · Collision Course True

Collision Course

When a Greek ferry is pushed off course by strong waves, it crashes into some rocks and makes eighty passengers lose their lives waiting for a rescue.
10:00 1h

Mayday: Air Disaster

S16 · E1 · Deadly Silence Documentary

Deadly Silence

On October 25, 1999, a Learjet 35, with professional golfer Payne Stewart onboard, ran out of fuel and strayed off course before crashing into a field.
11:00 1h

Mayday: Air Disaster

S3 · E5 · Bomb on Board True

Bomb on Board

A Philippine Airlines Flight is in danger as an Al-Qaeda terrorist has sneaked an explosive on board as it's in route to Tokyo, Japan.

Daytime

12:00 1h

Mayday: Air Disaster

S17 · E8 · Terror Over Egypt Documentary

Terror Over Egypt

On October 31, 2015, Metrojet Flight 9268 crashed after taking off from Sharm El Sheikh Airport, Egypt, while on route to Saint Petersburg, Russia.
13:00 1h

Mayday: Air Disaster

S9 · E5 · Target is Destroyed True

Target is Destroyed

In 1983 a Korean Air Lines flight was shot down when it strayed into Soviet airspace because the crew failed to set the autopilot correctly after takeoff.
14:00 1h

Mayday: Air Disaster

S17 · E5 · Pacific Plunge True

Pacific Plunge

All 88 passengers & crew on board Alaska Airlines Flight 261 are killed when the plane's horizontal stabilizer break and the plane crashes into the ocean.
15:00 1h

Mayday: Air Disaster

S9 · E7 · The Final Blow True

The Final Blow

In 1992 an Airbus A320 struck a mountain as it was circling a French airport, and a pilot's misreading of the autopilot controls was assigned partial blame.
16:00 1h

Mayday: Air Disaster

S15 · E1 · Fatal Transmission Documentary

Fatal Transmission

At a small airport in Illinois with intersecting runways but no control tower, a runway collision becomes one of aviation history's worst ground incidents.
17:00 1h

How Did They Build That?

S5 · E8 · Wings & Waterlines Science

Wings & Waterlines

Lord Foster's 5-winged steel towers cool Abu Dhabi's national museum naturally. Robots 3D-print a steel bridge in Amsterdam & a concrete tower in Switzerland.

Tonight's Highlights

18:00 1h

How Did They Build That?

S5 · E9 · Space Homes & Glass Waves Science ▶ Now

Space Homes & Glass Waves

NASA's 3D-printed Mars habitat rehearses human life on the red planet. Seoul's historic city hall gains a 13-story glass wave.
19:00 1h

How Did They Build That?

S5 · E2 · Earthquakes & Exoskeletons Science

Earthquakes & Exoskeletons

Milwaukee commissions Calatrava to design a museum with 90-ton wings that take flight. Oslo tears down its national ski jump and rebuilds it.
20:00 1h

How Did They Build That?

S5 · E1 · Reborn Buildings & Sacred Grounds Science

Reborn Buildings & Sacred Grounds

London's crumbling Battersea Power Station is reborn with two million new bricks. In Spain, Frank Gehry crowns a historic winery with floating titanium ribbons.
21:00 1h

How Did They Build That?

S5 · E10 · Sculptures & Skyscrapers Science

Sculptures & Skyscrapers

Some of the most unique buildings, bridges and lifts in the world highlight the creativity of the engineers and architects behind their radical designs.
22:00 1h

How Did They Build That?

S5 · E5 · Canals & Curves Science

Canals & Curves

Witness amazing buildings, bridges, lifts, and other structures that pushed structural concrete engineering to the edge.
23:00 1h

How Did They Build That?

S5 · E10 · Sculptures & Skyscrapers Science

Sculptures & Skyscrapers

Some of the most unique buildings, bridges and lifts in the world highlight the creativity of the engineers and architects behind their radical designs.