How Do You Get a Rocket to Land Back on Earth?

Returning a rocket safely back to the launch site involves a series of complex steps which begin on the edge of space, when still traveling at over 3,500 miles per hour.

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Clip Season 46 Episode 5 Length 02:23 Premiere: 02/13/19

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Season 46 Episodes

Show Episodes

Show Clips & Previews

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Clip Length 04:01 Premiere Date 02/21/19

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Clip Length 03:02 Premiere Date 02/21/19

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Clip Length 02:29 Premiere Date 02/20/19

Rise of the Rockets Preview

Preview Length 00:29 Premiere Date 02/13/19

How Do You Get a Rocket to Land Back on Earth?

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Chasing Pluto - S42 E13

Premiered On: 07/15/2015

The New Horizon's spacecraft will fly by and take the first detailed images of Pluto. It is the culmination of the spacecraft's nine-year, three-billion-mile journey.

Wednesday July 22, 2026 9:00 pm ET on KET
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Pluto and Beyond - S46 E1

Premiered On: 01/02/2019

Join the mission as the New Horizons spacecraft attempts to fly by NASA's most distant target yet. Since it explored Pluto in 2015, New Horizons is zooming toward Ultima Thule, an object four billion miles from Earth.

Wednesday July 29, 2026 9:00 pm ET on KET
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Return to the Moon - S53 E8

Follow the Artemis II engineers and crew on a perilous 10-day journey to orbit the Moon.

Wednesday August 5, 2026 9:00 pm ET on KET
Wednesday August 5, 2026 8:00 pm CT on KET
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Human: Origins - S52 E12

Trace the remarkable origins of Homo sapiens and the crucial moments that shaped our species.

Wednesday August 19, 2026 9:00 pm ET on KET
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Black Hole Universe - S45 E2

Tuesday July 21, 2026 1:00 am ET on KET2
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Sunday July 19, 2026 7:00 pm ET on KET2
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Black Hole Apocalypse - S45 E1

Tuesday July 14, 2026 1:00 am ET on KET2
Tuesday July 14, 2026 12:00 am CT on KET2
Sunday July 12, 2026 7:00 pm ET on KET2
Sunday July 12, 2026 6:00 pm CT on KET2
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Revolutionary War Weapons - S52 E7

Tuesday July 7, 2026 1:00 am ET on KET2
Tuesday July 7, 2026 12:00 am CT on KET2
Sunday July 5, 2026 7:00 pm ET on KET2
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Athens: Birth of Democracy - S53 E7

Friday July 3, 2026 1:00 am ET on KET
Friday July 3, 2026 12:00 am CT on KET
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Ancient Desert Death Trap - S52 E17

Tuesday June 30, 2026 1:00 am ET on KET2
Tuesday June 30, 2026 12:00 am CT on KET2
Sunday June 28, 2026 7:00 pm ET on KET2
Sunday June 28, 2026 6:00 pm CT on KET2
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Secrets of the Forest - S52 E8

Tuesday June 23, 2026 1:00 am ET on KET2
Tuesday June 23, 2026 12:00 am CT on KET2
Sunday June 21, 2026 7:00 pm ET on KET2
Sunday June 21, 2026 6:00 pm CT on KET2

Top

How Do You Get a Rocket to Land Back on Earth?

Recent Episodes

Return to the Moon

Rain Bombs

Athens: Birth of Democracy

Stone Age Temple Mystery

Mammal Origins

Can Dogs Talk?

Sponsored by:

Clips & Previews

The World Wide Web Celebrates its 30th Birthday

Can Super Corals Save Reefs?

Did Climate Change Cause Hurricane Harvey?

Climate Change Flooding: A Threat to National Security?

Why Hurricane Florence Caused So Much Flooding

What is Coral Bleaching?

Rise of the Rockets Preview

How Do You Get a Rocket to Land Back on Earth?

Why Kicking a Field Goal is Harder Than it Looks

What Does the Polar Vortex Have to do With Climate Change?

AI Helps Young Man with Cerebral Palsy Find Independence

How Does a Government Shutdown Affect Science?

Five Moon Names to Know for Successful Moongazing

Specials

Interview: Good Anxiety, Exercise, and Connection on the Brain with Wendy Suzuki

Interview: T. Rex to Birds with Steve Brusatte

Interview: Dark Matter = Black Holes? with David Kaiser

Interview: Discovering Dark Energy and the Hubble Tension with Nobel Prize Winner Adam Riess

Interview: Evolution of New Species, Venom, Wings, and More with Sean B. Carroll

Interview: De-Extinction, Dire Wolves, and Jurassic Park with Beth Shapiro

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Interview: The Animal Translator with Erich Jarvis

Interview: Brain Guru with Heather Berlin

Interview: Bob and Mike’s Big Idea with Bob Hazen and Mike Wong

Interview: Black Hole Badass with Janna Levin

Interview: The Deepfake Detective with Hany Farid

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Hell Creek Formation

No Dinosaurs Above the Line

Mammal Survivors

Dinosaur Fossils

King of Gore

Driving Dinosaur Diversity

Pangea

Making Granite From Volcanic Rock

A Massive Volcanic Eruption

Rock Time Capsules

The Sandstone Top of the Canyon

Fossil-Filled Limestone

The Grand Canyon's Oldest Rocks

From Lava to Land

Semi-Precious Pebbles

Five Steps of Volcanic Rock

Tearing North America Apart

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Volcanoes of Sand

Rockies 2.0

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