Celebrate the amazing outdoors this month with WKAR!
This month, take some time to enjoy the beauty of nature. Whether you are outdoors or indoors, embrace the warm summer weather and learn about the stunning flora and fauna of the planet.
Aug. 1 -31 | Airing in primetime on WKAR-HD and WKAR World. Listings are subject to change.
1 | Mon | 8 p.m. | WKAR WORLD 23.2
“Changing Planet”
Join conservation scientist Dr. M. Sanjayan for the beginning of an ambitious 7-year project, a global environmental health check of six of Earth’s bellwether biomes. From the Arctic to the Amazon, these vulnerable habitats are changing, revealing surprising animal behaviors as species adapt.
1 | Mon | 9:30 p.m. | WKAR WORLD 23.2
“Stories From The Stage: No Matter What”
Susanne Schmidt tries “extreme camping” and learns about love, friendship and the virtues of a well-built campfire; José Palma embarks on a perilous journey to reach the U.S. and the possibility of a brighter future; and Annemarie Whilton discovers that letting go is not the same as giving up.
2 | Tue | 9 p.m. | WKAR-HD 23.1
“America Outdoors with Baratunde Thurston: Tidewater: Homecoming”
Baratunde treks along the coast of North Carolina and discovers surprising ways in which history has shaped these environments. He explores a daunting swamp, soars above the dunes on a Wright Brothers glider and tracks wild horses on the beach.
3 | Wed | 8 p.m. | WKAR-HD 23.1
“The Green Planet: Human Worlds”
Sir David Attenborough reveals how humans are helping plants, many of which face extinction. From projects in Africa to re-seeding the landscape to rebuilding a Brazilian rainforest tree by tree, everyone can work to make our world a little wilder.
3 | Wed | 9 p.m. | WKAR-HD 23.1
“NOVA: Universe Revealed - Black Holes”
Take a seat on the ultimate thrill ride to explore nature’s strangest and most powerful objects. Discover new science showing how black holes reshape entire galaxies, warp the fabric of space and time, and might even be portals to another universe.
3 | Wed | 10 p.m. | WKAR-HD 23.1
“Expedition with Steve Backshall: Socorro: Expedition Shark Island”
Dive with Steve on an expedition to the remote volcanic island of Clarion in the Revillagigedo National Park. Steve and his team are looking to discover where shark mothers give birth and help protect a new generation of these ocean giants.
5 | Fri | 8 p.m. | WKAR WORLD 23.2
Magical Land of Oz: Ocean
An exploration of one of the most magical lands on the planet. Its unique wildlife includes a tree- dwelling kangaroo, a spider that survives underwater and a bird that spreads fire.
5 | Fri | 9 p.m. | WKAR WORLD 23.2
Magical Land of Oz: Human
A natural history exploration of Australia’s magical coasts and islands where three oceans create the perfect environment for whales, giant cuttlefish and sharks.
7 | Sun | 8 p.m. | WKAR WORLD 23.2
“The Green Planet: Human Worlds”
Rebroadcast from 8/3.
7 | Sun | 11 p.m. | WKAR WORLD 23.2
“Forces of Nature: Shape”
We can’t directly see the forces that govern Earth, but we can see their shadows in the shapes of nature that surround us. If we understand why these shapes exist, we can understand the rules that bind the entire universe.
9 | Tue | 8 p.m. | WKAR WORLD 23.2
“Expedition with Steve Backshall: Socorro: Expedition Shark Island”
Rebroadcast from 8/3.
9 | Tue | 9 p.m. | WKAR-HD 23.1
“America Outdoors with Baratunde Thurston: Minnesota: A Better World”
Baratunde ventures to Minnesota’s Arrowhead Region, one of the last places where you can hike or paddle into the remote wilderness. He meets with passionate birders and harvesters of wild rice and hears from them why wilderness means so much.
9 | Tue | 9 p.m. | WKAR WORLD 23.2
“NOVA: Extreme Animal Weapons”
From lobster claws and dog teeth to bee stings and snake fangs, every creature depends on a weapon. But some are armed to extremes that make no practical sense—whether it’s bull elks with giant 40-pound antler racks or tiny rhinoceros beetles with horns bigger than their body. What explains giant tusks, horns, and claws that can slow an animal down and even impair health and nutrition?
10 | Wed | 8 p.m. | WKAR-HD 23.1
“Nature: Dogs in the Land of Lions”
Follow the unforgettable journey of a close-knit family of wild dogs in Zimbabwe and witness rarely seen behavior, from tender moments with newborn pups, to the thrills of hunting wildebeest, to close encounters with their greatest enemy - the lion.
10 | Wed | 9 p.m. | WKAR-HD 23.1
“NOVA: Universe Revealed - Big Bang”
The Big Bang is when the cosmos started and time itself began. With stunning animation based on space telescope images, NOVA winds back the ages to discover new clues about this ultimate genesis and what happened in the universe’s first few seconds.
10 | Wed | 10 p.m. | WKAR-HD 23.1
“Expedition With Steve Backshall: Expedition Unseen”
Embark with Steve to the remotest parts of the planet in search of precious natural wonders. From Saudi Arabia to Kamchatka, Steve and his team unearth the secrets of an ancient civilization and discovers wildlife more at risk than ever before.
11 | Thu | 8 p.m. | WKAR WORLD 23.2
“America ReFramed: The Falconer”
One of only a handful of African American falconers in the country, Rodney Stotts is on a mission to build a bird sanctuary and provide access to nature for his stressed community. This is a story of second chances: for injured birds of prey, for an abandoned plot of land, for a group of teenagers who have dropped out of high school, and for Rodney himself.
11 | Thu | 9 p.m. | WKAR WORLD 23.2
“Greta Thunberg: A Year To Change The World: Episode 1”
Follow Greta as she sees impacts of climate change at three locations: melting glaciers and dying trees in Canada, and fire devastation in California. When a UN conference moves to Madrid, she sails across the ocean during life-threatening storms.
12 | Fri | 8 p.m. | WKAR WORLD 23.2
“Outback: The Dry Season”
It might be the dry season, but there's no rest in the outback: There are turtle eggs to be laid, saltwater crocodiles to dodge and young birds on maiden flights. Cattle must be mustered from the far corners of vast cattle properties and, when that is done, rodeos slam into action.
12 | Fri | 9 p.m. | WKAR WORLD 23.2
“Outback: Return Of the Wet”
Inland Kimberley is now so stiflingly hot, everything and everyone moves with caution – with the exception of gold diggers Honest John and Steve. The region's remaining waterholes are packed with animals, forced dangerously close. The coast is also a place to congregate. The humidity builds and finally, the skies explode with thunder and rain.
14 | Sun | 11 p.m. | WKAR WORLD 23.2
“Forces Of Nature: Elements”
The forces of nature make Earth a restless planet, but they also turned our ball of rock into a home for life. How did our planet’s ingredients, the chemical elements, come together and take that first crucial step from barren rock to a living world?
16 | Tue | 8 p.m. | WKAR WORLD 23.2
“NOVA: Mysteries Of Sleep”
From fruit flies to whales, virtually every animal sleeps. But why? Why do we need to spend nearly a third of our lives in such a defenseless state? Scientists are peering more deeply into the sleeping brain than ever before, discovering just how powerful sleep can be, playing a role in everything from memory retention and emotional regulation to removing waste from our brains.
16 | Tue | 9:30 p.m. | WKAR WORLD 23.2
“Nature: American Horses”
American horses are icons. Mustang. Appaloosa. Morgan. Quarter Horse. Follow the history of the uniquely American horse breeds that helped shape our nation and meet the people who are continuing in the long tradition of caring for them.
18 | Thu | 9 p.m. | WKAR WORLD 23.2
“Greta Thunberg: A Year To Change The World: Episode 2”
Follow Greta's journey from the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, to Poland, where she speaks with miners who have lost their jobs. She also visits the UK, where she meets with one of her inspirations, Sir David Attenborough.
21 | Sun | 11 p.m. | WKAR WORLD 23.2
“Forces Of Nature: Color”
Earth is painted in stunning colors. By understanding how these colors are created and the energy they carry, we can learn the secret language of the planet.
22 | Mon | 8 p.m. | WKAR WORLD 23.2
“Plants Behaving Badly: Sex and Lies”
Revel in the ethereal beauty of orchids and examine their exotic flowers, which are shaped for one purpose – to attract pollinators. Many use sex as a lure, impersonating a female bee or wasp.
23 | Tue | 8 p.m. | WKAR WORLD 23.2
“NOVA: Rise of the Mammals”
Sixty-six million years ago, an asteroid wiped out the dinosaurs in a fiery global catastrophe. But we know little about how their successors, the mammals, recovered and took over the world. Now, hidden inside ordinary-looking rocks, an astonishing trove of fossils reveals a dramatic new picture of how rat-sized creatures ballooned in size and began to evolve into the vast array of species.
23 | Tue | 9 p.m. | WKAR WORLD 23.2
“NOVA: Bat Superpowers”
Bats have been implicated in deadly epidemics such as COVID-19 and Ebola, yet scientists are discovering evidence that they may hold a key to a longer and healthier life. From caves in Thailand and Texas to labs around the globe, NOVA meets the scientists who are decoding the superpowers of the bat.
24 | Wed | 8 p.m. | WKAR-HD 23.1
“Nature: The Bat Man of Mexico”
An ecologist tracks the lesser long-nosed bat’s epic migration across Mexico, braving hurricanes, snakes and seas of cockroaches, in order to save the species and the tequila plants they pollinate.
24 | Wed | 9 p.m. | WKAR-HD 23.1
“NOVA: Operation Lighthouse Rescue”
On the picturesque bluffs at the very tip of the island of Martha’s Vineyard, disaster looms. The historic Gay Head Lighthouse is soon to become the next victim of the persistent erosion of the island’s cliffs. Built in 1856, the more than 400-ton structure soars 175 feet above the sea. But over the years, storms and the raging ocean have eroded the headland away.
24 | Wed | 10 p.m. | WKAR-HD 23.1
“American Experience: Fatal Flood”
In the spring of 1927, the Mississippi River went on a rampage, inundating hundreds of towns, killing as many as a thousand people and leaving a million homeless. In Greenville, Mississippi, efforts to contain the river pitted the majority black population against an aristocratic plantation family, the Percys, and the Percys against themselves. A dramatic story of greed, power and race during one of America's greatest natural disasters.
25 | Thu | 9 p.m. | WKAR WORLD 23.2
“Greta Thunberg: A Year To Change The World: Episode 3”
Join Greta in Switzerland and Denmark to investigate potential solutions to limit climate change. She also explores how everyone can play a role, from what we eat to what we wear. Finally, she looks for lessons from the world's response to COVID-19.
26 | Fri | 8 p.m. | WKAR WORLD 23.2
“Colombia: Wild and Free - Two Rivers”
Explore the magnificent eastern region of Colombia, a land defined by two powerful rivers: the Orinoco and the Amazon. Along the way, meet amazing wildlife, including jaguars, capybaras, anacondas, and pygmy marmosets, the world's smallest monkeys.
26 | Fri | 9 p.m. | WKAR WORLD 23.2
“Colombia: Wild and Free - From the Pacific to the Andes”
Journey to the largely uninhabited Pacific coast of Colombia, where humpback whales give birth and fish hunt crabs in the mangrove forests. Then ascend to snow-capped Andean volcanoes, home to stunning spectacled bears, condors and hummingbirds.
27 | Sat | 11 p.m. | WKAR WORLD 23.2
“Walter Anderson: The Extraordinary Life and Art of the Islander”
The fascinating life and work of Mississippi Gulf Coast watercolorist Walter Inglis Anderson is explored in this intimate and revealing new film. Through poignant family interviews, never-before-seen artwork, and breathtaking images from Anderson’s beloved Horn Island, discover the genius who has been called "the South's greatest artist."
28 | Sun | 8 p.m. | WKAR WORLD 23.2
“Nature: The Bat Man of Mexico”
Rebroadcast from 8/24.
28 | Sun | 11 p.m. | WKAR WORLD 23.2
“Forces of Nature: Motion”
The forces of nature have kept Earth on the move since it was formed billions of years ago. Though we can’t feel the motion, we experience the consequences, from tidal bores surging through the Amazon rainforest to the ruinous power of hurricanes.
29 | Mon | 8 p.m. | WKAR WORLD 23.2
“The Burren: Heart of Stone”
In the countryside of County Clare, Ireland, is the Burren, a mysterious place unlike anywhere else, with deep caves, a stony landscape, and ancient dolmens, ring forts, and castles. The two-part documentary series unveils the secrets hidden in the stones of this dramatic wind-swept countryside.
29 | Mon | 10 p.m. | WKAR-HD 23.1
POV: Faya Dayi
A hypnotic immersion in the world of Harar, Ethiopia, a place where one commodity – khat, a euphoria-inducing plant – holds sway over the rituals and rhythms of everyday life, Faya Dayi captures intimate moments in the lives of everyone from the harvesters of the crop to people lost in its narcotic haze to a desperate but determined younger generation searching for an escape from political strife.
30 | Tue | 9 p.m. | WKAR WORLD 23.2
“NOVA: Butterfly Blueprints”
The hidden scientific secrets of butterflies reveal them to be more inventive and resilient than we ever imagined. Follow their extraordinary life cycle and migrations to tropical rainforests, windswept prairies, and even inside a chrysalis as it’s being spun.
31 | Wed | 8 p.m. | WKAR-HD 23.1
“Nature: Cuba’s Wild Revolution”
In the crystal-clear waters of the Caribbean, Cuba is an island teeming with exotic biodiversity: from coral reefs pulsating with life to five-foot-long Cuban rock iguanas. As international relations ease, what will become of this wildlife sanctuary?
31 | Wed | 10 p.m. | WKAR-HD 23.1
“American Experience: Surviving The Dust Bowl”
The remarkable story of the determined people who clung to their homes and way of life, enduring drought, dust, disease — even death — for nearly a decade.