Smithsonian TV Guide — Tuesday TV Listings & Schedule

Browse the full Smithsonian TV guide for Tuesday, 1 September 2026. 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?

S4 · E10 · Super Stadiums & Extraordinary Elevators Science

Super Stadiums & Extraordinary Elevators

A 70,000-seat stadium defies seismic forces and international flight paths in LA; Zaha Hadid's dramatically twisted 33-story tower rises around ancient vaults.

01:00 1h

Mayday: Air Disaster

S25 · E9 · Collision Catastrophe Documentary

Collision Catastrophe

German investigators are stumped when two planes collide while flying in the skies over southern Germany.

02:00 1h

Mayday: Air Disaster

S3 · E3 · Out of Control True

Out of Control

A freight train exceeds its weight limit, barrels out of control down a San Bernadino mountainside and careens into a hamlet below.

03:00 1h

Mayday: Air Disaster

S16 · E2 · 9/11: The Pentagon Attack Documentary

9/11: The Pentagon Attack

On September 11, 2001, American Airlines Flight 77 was hijacked by five men with Al-Qaeda, and deliberately crashed into the West wall of the Pentagon.

04:00 1h

Mayday: Air Disaster

S12 · E5 · Blind Landing Documentary

Blind Landing

In August 2005, a domestic flight in Peru encounters torrential rain at Pucallpa, its scheduled destination, but the pilots initiate approach anyway.

05:00 1h

Mayday: Air Disaster

Runway Collisions True

Runway Collisions

Experts investigate how two planes can find themselves on the same runway at the same time by examining three runway collisions.

Morning

06:00 1h

Mayday: Air Disaster

S20 · E1 · Heat of the Moment True

Heat of the Moment

Catastrophes caused by quick decisions.

07:00 1h

Mighty Cruise Ships

S1 · E1 · Paul Gauguin Travel

Paul Gauguin

The crew of the MS Paul Gauguin, a ship that sails through French Polynesia, deals with rough weather, narrow passageways and shallow channels.

08:00 1h

Mighty Cruise Ships

S1 · E2 · Le Soleal Travel

Le Soleal

A 14-day voyage through Indonesia on Le Soleal goes to places most cruise ships cannot get to, showing its passengers unique wildlife and live volcanoes.

09:00 1h

Mighty Cruise Ships

S3 · E5 · Symphony of the Seas Travel

Symphony of the Seas

The MS Symphony of the Seas is built to house, feed, transport and entertain more than 5,500 passengers as they sail to ports in Spain, France and Italy.

10:00 1h

Mighty Cruise Ships

S3 · E6 · Marina Travel

Marina

The MS Marina is Oceania Cruises' largest ship and makes a 12-day voyage with stops at ports in Scotland, England, Wales, Northern Ireland and Iceland.

11:00 1h

Mighty Cruise Ships

S4 · E1 · Seven Seas Explorer Travel

Seven Seas Explorer

Sailing from Chile all the way to Costa Rica, guests paraglide over sand dunes, cruise through mangroves, and zipline through jungles on a luxurious ship.

Daytime

12:00 1h

Mighty Cruise Ships

S4 · E2 · AIDAnova Travel

AIDAnova

The world's first cruise ship running on liquefied natural gas, AIDAnova visits the volcanic landscape and stunning beaches of the Canary Islands and Madeira.

13:00 1h

Mighty Trains

S2 · E6 · Hector Rail Science

Hector Rail

Based in Stockholm, the Hector Rail is an independent train haulage provider operating in Europe, and hauls timber for paper products in Ostrand, Sweden.

14:00 1h

Mighty Trains

S4 · E1 · Tren Turistico Science

Tren Turistico

A tourist train's engineering is challenged every time the train takes passengers through Lima, Peru and up the Andes mountains.

15:00 1h

Mighty Trains

S1 · E1 · Canadian Science

Canadian

An in-depth look is taken at a legendary locomotive called the Canadian as its crew works tirelessly to keep the train in pristine condition on its journey.

16:00 1h

Mighty Ships

S7 · E1 · Norwegian Breakaway - The Voyage True

Norwegian Breakaway - The Voyage

The floating city called Norwegian Breakaway contains 29 restaurants, 22 bars and a casino, and its maiden voyage begins with a North Atlantic winter storm.

17:00 1h

Mighty Ships

S7 · E2 · Norwegian Breakaway - The Build True

Norwegian Breakaway - The Build

Germany's Meyer-Werft Shipyard takes on the challenge of building a cruise ship three times the size of HMS Titanic in just 18 months.

Evening

18:00 1h

Mighty Ships

S9 · E6 · Fram True

Fram

MS Fram, a cruise ship that goes where others fear to tread, leaves Reykjavik, Iceland, sailing in and out of the fjords of Greenland on its way to Ilulissat.

19:00 1h

Mighty Cruise Ships

S4 · E3 · Diamond Princess Travel

Diamond Princess

The Diamond Princess is a British-registered cruise ship owned and operated by Princess Cruises, carrying passengers to some of Japan's most iconic cities.

20:00 1h

Mighty Cruise Ships

S4 · E4 · Nieuw Statendam Travel

Nieuw Statendam

Pinnacle-class cruise ship MS Nieuw Statendam is the world's largest boutique cruise ship at 300 meters long and can carry over 4,000 passengers.

21:00 1h

Mighty Planes

S4 · E3 · Twin Otter True

Twin Otter

The DHC-6 Twin Otter is a Canadian 19-passenger short takeoff and landing utility aircraft is a successful commuter passenger airliner.

22:00 1h

Mighty Trains

S3 · E1 · Thai Rail and Death Railway Science

Thai Rail and Death Railway

The State Railway of Thailand travels through ancient areas, historic tunnels and raging rivers; the infamous Thai-Burma "Death Railway" is featured.

23:00 1h

Mighty Cruise Ships

S1 · E6 · Marco Polo Travel

Marco Polo

The Marco Polo delivers travelers to cities such as Copenhagen, St. Petersburg and Helsinki in late autumn, when crowds are smaller but travel is riskier.