Venice - Sinking City (11/28)

Venice - Sinking City (11/28)

The unique beauty of Venice, city on the lagoon, attracts tens of thousands of tourists every year. But what makes the city on the Adriatic so attractive also hold the seeds of its doom.

Venice is built on the water, and is gradually sinking back into the water. Stores and squares flood ever more frequently. In the past, Venice's location protected it against attack, but today it has become its single greatest threat: In 1966 and 2003, major flooding caused serious damage to the city's structure. Even more worrisome to Venetians are the many smaller floods that give them wet feet ever more often. 200 years ago, St. Mark's Place, which is less than 2 feet over sea level, was flooded ten times a year, today it's more like 60 times. Should climate researchers prove correct in their predictions of sea levels rising by 2 feet, then flood expert Paolo Canestrelli knows the flooding will only get worse. Instead of three or four times a year, the city on the lagoon will be submerged 20 or 25 times a year, particularly in the months of October and November. The effects on daily life, business and shipping in the city would be disastrous. In order to contain the damage, scientists working with the Italian government race against time to develop workable solutions...

The most amazing achievements and insights of modern science are the subject of the cutting-edge documentary series "The Quest for Knowledge". From global warming in the Arctic to the latest breakthroughs in wind power and technological benchmarks like the world's biggest hydroelectric dam: "The Quest for Knowledge" offers insight into the greatest mysteries and most fascinating phenomena of modern research and development. 
Aktuelles und Faszinierendes aus der Welt der Wissenschaft, Forschung und Technik - dafür steht die Sendreihe "Faszination Wissen". Vom Klimawandel in der Arktis über neueste Erkenntnisse der Windkraft bis hin zu technischen Errungenschaften wie dem größten Damm der Welt: "Faszination Wissen" bietet Einblicke in die Rätsel und Phänomene der Natur sowie neueste Trends in Forschung und Technik.