The Weather Channel announced today that it has greenlit "Hacking the Planet," a new series that tracks the fascinating work of scientists developing ways to prevent, weaken or redirect threatening weather conditions and natural phenomena including tornadoes, hurricanes, lightning, earthquakes, and volcanic eruptions. Produced by Castle Pictures, Inc., "Hacking the Planet" features 6x 30-minute episodes and will premiere Thursday, Feb. 28, 2013 at 9:00 p.m. ET.
What if humans were no longer as susceptible to Mother Nature's wrath? Geo-engineers are exploring seemingly unimaginable concepts, including attempts to deflect hurricanes, increase and decrease rainfall, channel lightning, and harness the power of tornadoes. Each episode of "Hacking the Planet" will follow host and former Scientific American editor-in-chief John Rennie through a series of field experiments, illustrated by unique animated graphics, to uncover strategies for potentially manipulating the Earth, and whether those plans would help mankind, harm the planet, or both. Rennie will be joined by Huffington Post's"Talk Nerdy to Me" Science Blogger Cara Santa Maria and Brian Malow, science writer and science comedian, who will help Rennie talk through each scenario and its plausibility.Videos