Celebrating the lasting legacy of our planet’s off-world laboratory because it was first inserted into orbit in 2000, NOVA presents a two-part exploration of the venerable Worldwide Area Station with “Operation Area Station” on Nov. 5, 2025 and Nov. 12, 2025. This NOVA Manufacturing by Blink Movies for GBH in affiliation with France Télévisions, was written and directed by Oscar Chan.
This inspiring PBS science documentary makes use of cinematic recreations and superior CGI alongside greater than a quarter-century of NASA archival footage to inform the entire story of this extraordinary human endeavor.
“What’s outstanding in regards to the tales that ‘Operation Area Station’ tells is the best way they remind us that the potential for catastrophe is a continuing companion for the astronauts and the way again and again, by progressive concepts and productive collaboration, they averted catastrophe,” mentioned NOVA Co-Government Producer Chris Schmidt. “Over 25 years of continuous habitation, not a single life was misplaced aboard the ISS. It is a testomony to the braveness and dedication of each astronaut and engineer. This movie is complete, emotional, and cinematic, and an actual inside take a look at how humanity can thrive beneath excessive circumstances.”
The preliminary chapter, “Excessive-Threat Construct,” examines the ISS development course of and considers the astounding engineering achievement it was. NOVA’s synopsis explains how “each step of this formidable challenge unfolded towards the backdrop of a cruel vacuum, harmful radiation, and excessive temperatures.”
A second chapter, “Science and Survival,” reveals surprising challenges that the crew encountered as soon as the ISS was completed. Astronauts ship recollections of hazard and heroism, “from the time astronaut Luca Parmitano’s helmet stuffed with water whereas on a spacewalk, to the time a software program glitch on a brand new module propelled the whole station to spin uncontrolled.”
Apart from its previous and current historical past, the docuseries ends by peering into the ISS’s future as its journey is scheduled to conclude in 2030, when it’s sadly de-orbited down into the Pacific Ocean.
“Whenever you see the challenges that these astronauts needed to overcome, you notice how skinny the margin for error actually is,” mentioned Government Producer Dan Chambers. “These moments aren’t simply highlighting technical failures – they’re displaying individuals fixing inconceivable issues, within the harshest atmosphere we all know of, with physics, chemistry, and sheer will.”
“Operation Area Station: Excessive-Threat Construct” debuts Nov. 5, 2025 at 9 p.m. ET on PBS. “Operation Area Station: Science and Survival” drops Nov. 12, 2025, at 9 p.m. ET. Each will stream at PBS.org/NOVA, NOVA’s YouTube channel, and the PBS Documentaries Prime Video Channel.
