Summary The sun has long been worshipped as a god, the giver of heat and light and life itself here on Earth. But how it actually works (and what dangers it might hold) are still mysteries that scientists are trying to unfold.

This epic documentary shows how, after Galileo and other early astronomers began to study the sun, researchers began to wonder if the sun might interact with the earth in other ways than just giving it heat and light.

One scientist in particular, Eugene Parker, theorised in the 1950's that the sun should be expanding into space, blasting our planet with radiation in the form of deadly fast moving particles. These particles could be the source of strange phenomena such as the eerie 'Northern Lights' and might explain why sometimes, electrical systems here on Earth begin to overload for no apparent reason.

He was ridiculed by the establishment, because at that time empty space was thought to be a vacuum. But then an early mission to Venus proved he was right all along... and as a 90 year-old Parker charmingly says, 'the rest is history'.

Now NASA has launched a space probe named after Parker, the 'Parker Solar Probe' to actually touch the atmosphere of the Sun, a daring mission to find out more about how the sun works.

What seems clear though, is that very occasionally the sun will throw off a very large amount of material, and if it just happens to hit us, it could do severe damage to electrical and communications systems around the world.

This is an exhilarating real-life space adventure, revealing that our nearest star could pose a serious threat to our modern way of life. What seems clear though, is that very occasionally the sun will throw off a very large amount of material, and if it just happens to hit us, it could do severe damage to electrical and communications systems around the world.

This is an exhilarating real-life space adventure, revealing that our nearest star could pose a serious threat to our modern way of life.

• Documentary