PBS SPECIAL: THE BLUE PLANET: A NATURAL HISTORY OF THE OCEANS (2001) AA

A wonderful exploration of the marine world, much of which is new because of the develoment of deep submersibles.  Narrated by David Attenbrough . . . who just recently passed away.

Described as "the first ever comprehensive series on the natural history of the world's oceans",^[1] each of the eight 50-minute episodes examines a different aspect of marine life. The underwater photography included creatures and behaviour that had previously never been filmed.^[2]

From Wikipedia:

The series took almost five years to make, involving nearly 200 filming locations. The fact that most of the ocean environment remains a mystery presented the production team with many challenges. Besides witnessing animal behaviour for the first time, the crew also observed some that were new to science. The producers were helped by marine scientists all over the world with state-of-the-art equipment.

Blue whales — whose migration routes were previously unknown — were located by air, after some of the animals had been given temporary radio tags. The camera team spent three years on standby, using a microlight to land on the water nearby when they finally caught up with the creatures in the Gulf of California. The open ocean proved more difficult and over 400 days were invested in often unsuccessful filming trips. After six weeks, the crew chanced upon a school of spinner dolphins, which in turn led them to a shoal of tuna. OffMexico, the behaviour of a flock of frigatebirds guided the cameramen to a group of sailfish and marlin: the fastest inhabitants of the sea. Near the coast of Natal in South Africa, the team spent two seasons attempting to film the annual sardine run, a huge congregation of predators such assharks and dolphins that assembles to feast on the migrating fish by corralling them into 'bait balls'. Meanwhile, in Monterey Bay, orca were documented attacking gray whales and killing a calf. Filming in the deep ocean required the use of special submersibles. One of them enabled the crew to dive over a mile into the San Diego trench, where the carcass of a 40-ton gray whale had been placed to attract a large variety of scavengers.^[4]

Upon its first transmission on BBC One, over 12 million people watched the series and it regularly achieved an audience share of over 30%.

The Great Courses: THE WORLD'S GREATEST GEOLOGICAL WONDERS AA+

http://www.thegreatcourses.com/courses/the-world-s-greatest-geological-wonders-36-spectacular-sites.html

If you at all interested in the physical wonders of our earth and "discovery" during your travels . . . this series is a MUST WATCH. The presenter is Michael E. Wysession of Washington University in St. Louis.  The man is one of the best teachers you will have the joy of listening to. After watching the series it is hard to believe what geologists have learned about the earth since I was a student . . . when the concept of plate tectonics was not understood.   

This blurb is from the material from the Great Courses website:  

36 lectures  |  30 minutes per lecture

Yellowstone, the Grand Canyon, Mount Fuji, the Galapagos Islands. These natural wonders are on everyone’s list of must-see attractions that are both spectacular and geologically fascinating. But what of Ha Long Bay, the Columbia Glacier, Erta Ale lava lake, and the Great Blue Hole? They also belong on the list, along with more than 200 other sites, both famous and obscure, that are well worth a visit to see breathtaking vistas combined with the grandeur of geological forces in action.

Shaped by erosion, plate tectonics, volcanic eruptions, and other processes over the course of billions of years, Earth is a planet of immense variety. Impressive geological scenes are everywhere. But only a select few—whether astonishing valleys, mountains, waterfalls, or other formations—qualify as geological wonders that are not only memorable and worth a special trip, but that also tell us something profound about the way the world works.