New Perspectives on Planet Earth (02:17)

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Our planet is a patchwork of extraordinary patterns and shapes created by human beings, natural phenomenon, and animals. (Credits)

Congo Jungle (09:01)

Patterns can continue for hundreds of miles if caused by geological shifts. Elephants travel to gather at the salt flat clearing at Dzanga Bai, where they obtain minerals, fight, and mate. Calves spend their first four years with their mothers.

Coral Reefs (03:50)

Coral reef patterns appear random but scientists now understand the grazing halos because of satellite imagery. Fish find food by feeding on the coral or the sea bed. Coral groupers and sharks patrol nearby.

South Australia (03:16)

Light patches are interlinked with narrow trails. The southern hairy nose wombat lowers its body temperature by exposing his belly and digging underground. Because of satellite imagery, scientists believe populations are recovering after a rapid decline in the early 20th century.

Shaped by Natural Forces (06:41)

The wind blows sand in the Namib Desert into iconic dunes covering 30,000 square miles; tectonic plates raise mountains in the Rockies. At Lençois Maranhenses, tropical vegetation is being covered by sand. The paninga turtle feeds on fish in freshwater lagoons during the rainy season.

The Himalaya (05:44)

Black snub-nosed monkeys feed on dry lichen in the winter months and rhododendron nectar during the spring. Satellite images capture the change of the seasons in the Yunnan prefecture.

Andes Mountains (06:27)

The sun warms mountain snow creating the headwaters of the Amazon. Satellite images reveal how the river has changed the topography. At an oxbow lake in Peru, conservationists return a manatee to the wild.

Unexpected Patterns (07:35)

Satellite imagery reveals the largest beaver dam in the world. In Mozambique, an isolated rainforest exists, completely untouched by man. There is a dark ring of meltwater and broken ice in Lake Baikal; seal pups move around on the frozen lake to develop muscles needed to swim and hunt.

Human Shapes (08:43)

Man-made patterns are more ordered and designed with great precision. Crop circles erupt because farmers can water agriculture more easily. Bobwhite quail raise their chicks in wild habitat in Missouri.

Credits: Patterned Planet (00:30)

Credits: Patterned Planet