Plot Synopsis

Hosted by Dallas Campbell, TIME SCANNERS explores the scientific and architectural secrets of the world's most iconic engineering feats using 3D laser scanning technology. A team of scientists and historians led by Steve Burrows -- executive vice president of WSP, a global engineering and design consulting firm, who was also the brains behind Beijing Bird's Nest Olympic Stadium -- uses the extraordinary scans to create 3D digital models of the Roman Coliseum, the Egyptian Pyramids, the Incas' Machu Picchu, St Paul's in London, Petra and Jerusalem with pin-point accuracy. With this unique tool and insider access, the team can analyze how good the ancient engineers were, make brand new discoveries, and devise ground breaking hypotheses about these awe-inspiring places and the people who built them. In each one-hour episode, the team, comprised of researchers from the Center for Advanced Spatial Technologies at the University of Arkansas, laser scans a different structure and then studies the 3D images to unlock the mysteries surrounding each historic location. PBS aired the U.S. premiere of this series on Tuesday, July 1, 2014 at 8pm ET/PT (check local listings).