Discovery Announces Month-Long Slate of Multi-Platform Programming in Honor of Earth Day

Discovery doubles down on bringing attention to our beautiful world with a month-long celebration of the Earth and all of the wildlife that call it home. In addition to original documentary programming launching on discovery+, the definitive non-fiction, real-life subscription streaming service, Discovery Channel and Animal Planet will celebrate our natural world with marathons of some of our most beloved and award-winning series.

“For us at Discovery, we look to celebrate our planet and the incredible people, places, and wildlife who call it home each and every day,” says Nancy Daniels, Chief Brand Officer, Discovery & Factual. “Earth Day is a welcomed reminder of the important work that has to be done in order to preserve and protect our planet, but also to celebrate the beauty of our natural world. We are thrilled to invite viewers to join us all month long in celebration of our planet and the incredible slate of programming that highlights the beauty that surrounds us.”

From the top of the world to the deepest points in the oceans, Discovery will highlight what makes our planet so special. In doing so, the media company looks to shine a light on how we all can help preserve our natural world and the wildlife that depends on it to survive. You can also follow Discovery on Twitter, Facebook, and TikTok for more updates.

Earth MONTH premieres include:

EXPEDITION DEEP OCEAN (launching April 1 on discovery+) is the record-breaking mission of explorer and entrepreneur, Victor Vescovo, and his Five Deeps Expedition team made up of scientists and explorers as they set off on the first descent to the bottom of all five of the world’s oceans. With Vescovo at the helm of his purpose-built Triton submarine, they take on the ground-breaking and at times dangerous mission to reach the bottom of the Atlantic, Pacific, Indian, Arctic, and the Southern Oceans, descending up to a record depth of 10,928 meters. The ship’s team of scientists also discover over 40 extraordinary new species and scan areas of the oceans which are less well known than the surface of Mars. They brave seismic fault-zones, as well as icebergs and tropical storms, in order to gather brand-new information from the bottom of the world. These are world-first missions across a nail-biting five hours which create a new era of exploration into the deep ocean. Produced by Atlantic Productions.

FIRST TO THE TOP OF THE WORLD (launching April 8 on discovery+) tells the remarkable true story of how, in 1968, four “average Joes” from Minnesota teamed up with a French Canadian bon vivant to make the 500-mile journey across the polar ice cap to the North Pole via snowmobile. Though they had no experience in the Arctic and were told by the so-called “experts” that their mission was doomed to fail, this working-class team of “Minnesota Cronies” persevered through shifting sea ice, sub-zero blizzards, snow-blindness, and countless near-death experiences to become the first men ever to complete the overland trek to the North Pole. But that’s only half the story. With the help of acclaimed CBS journalist Charles Kuralt, the unlikely heroes of the Plaisted Polar Expedition peeled back the curtain on a cover-up more than 50 years in the making – and discovered that well-heeled explorer Robert Peary’s 1909 claim of being the first man to reach the North Pole was in all likelihood a fabrication. Brilliantly assembled with hundreds of hours of home videos, audio diaries, and 16mm footage of the expedition itself, First to the Pole provides an intimate look at the “forgotten heroes” of the Plaisted Polar Expedition, and their epic journey to do what no man had done before – and thanks to global warming, will never be done again. Produced by Jupiter Entertainment.

THE SWIM (launching April 15 on discovery+) follows long-distance swimmer Ben Lecomte as he embarks on a historic 5,000-mile long swim across the Pacific Ocean to gain awareness on the state of ocean health from pollution. After being the first man to swim across the Atlantic in 1998, THE SWIM will follow Lecomte as he journeys six months from Japan to San Francisco. Produced in association with Seeker and Nomadica.

Executive produced and narrated by Emmy(R) winner Ellen DeGeneres, ENDANGERED (launching April 22, EARTH DAY on discovery+) follows the effort of dedicated wildlife conservationists across the globe, as they work to compile the latest version of The Red List – the most comprehensive record of the state of the world’s wildlife that has ever been created. The Red List, run by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, is more than just a list – it’s a barometer of life. ENDANGERED is BBC Studios Natural History Unit’s first non-BBC commission.

CHASING OCEAN GIANTS (launching April 29 on discovery+) features Patrick Dykstra, Wall Street lawyer turned BAFTA award-winning ocean cinematographer and modern-day sea explorer, who takes his camera places others don’t dare to go. Patrick combines his unique skill set with his love of the marine world and cutting-edge ocean exploration technology – GPS, drones, underwater mapping technology, sonar and more – to seek new and unrecorded ocean phenomena to reveal the secrets of our ocean’s giants. From blues whales off the coast of Sri Lanka, to the biggest population of Orcas in the world in the Norwegian fjords, Patrick’s journey takes audiences through some of the most difficult and hostile places on Earth, both elemental and man-made. Oceanic storms, freezing waters and monster waves will hamper him at every turn, but he cannot be stopped. And when he gets to his location, the rewards are huge: breathtaking scenery and displays of animal behavior the world has never seen before. CHASING OCEAN GIANTS is produced by Underdog Films and Plimsoll Productions.

On Earth Day, April 22, Discovery Channel will air a marathon of the Emmy(R) nominated series, SERENGETI. From Emmy(R)-winners Simon Fuller and John Downer, SERENGETI is a six-part series that gives unrivaled access to one of the most pristine and unspoiled corners of Africa. Featuring a lush original score and narrated by Oscar(R) winner and Emmy(R) nominated Lupita Nyong’o, the series follows the heartwarming stories of a cast of African wildlife including lions, zebras, baboons, and cheetahs over the course of a year. Collaborating for the first time, the team employed innovative filming techniques in some of Africa’s most treasured regions, painting the ultimate portrait of survival in SERENGETI. SERENGETI will air on Discovery Channel on Earth Day from 2PM-8PM ET/PT

Also on Earth Day, viewers will get a special two-hour preview of the groundbreaking series, A PERFECT PLANET, airing 8PM-10PM ET/PT on Discovery Channel. A PERFECT PLANET is a five-part series from Sir David Attenborough and the award-winning team behind the original Planet Earth and The Hunt. In a unique fusion of blue chip natural history and earth sciences, A PERFECT PLANET explains how the living planet operates, showing how the forces of nature – weather, ocean currents, solar energy, and volcanoes – drive, shape and support Earth’s great diversity of life. In doing so, it reveals how animals are perfectly adapted to whatever the environment throws at them.

In addition, Animal Planet will honor our wondrous world with a re-airing of the exciting NORTH AMERICA series. Narrated by Tom Selleck, NORTH AMERICA turns the lens toward its homeland and captures a land where life collides with hostile, untamed wilderness in the most diverse, deadly environment on Earth. NORTH AMERICA will air on Earth Day at 6PM-11PM ET.