'Strip The City' peels the layers of 6 of the world's major cities on Discovery

New hybrid engineering-geology series looks at what's underneath Dubai, London, Rome, San Francisco, Sydney and Toronto

BestMediaInfo Bureau | Delhi | May 17, 2013

How did the ancient Romans build a city of a million people without modern technology? What prevents Dubai's super tall skyscrapers – balanced on unstable sand – from toppling over? How can San Francisco survive – sitting on the edge of a major earthquake fault? Discovery Channel's fascinating new hybrid engineering-geology series 'Strip The City' answers these intriguing questions by pulling apart six major metropolises to expose the hidden infrastructure beneath each city's skin and solves key mysteries surrounding their origins, geology, archaeology, engineering, weather and industry.

The six-part series premieres May 18 and will air every Saturday at 9 PM.

Two-years in the making, Strip The City utilises over 130 minutes of computer-generated imagery (CGI) to break down each city, layer by layer, to reveal a geological universe normally hidden under water, tarmac and concrete. Using stunning CGI animation and expedition-driven actuality reminiscent of the Hollywood epic 'Inception', each episode in this six-part series peels the glass and walls off buildings, rolls up the tarmac on roads, drains oceans and rivers, and slices through bedrock to look below six of the world's major cities – Dubai, London, Rome, San Francisco, Sydney and Toronto – and uncovers what keeps them running smoothly.

Every episode will home in on six iconic features of each city, ranging from man-made weatherproof skyscrapers and vast metro systems to natural dunes and lakes. Viewers will be taken deeper into the city, bringing to light an alien landscape of underground volcanoes, hidden rivers, subterranean cliffs, fragile fault lines, and ancient catacombs – geological wonders that played a surprising role in the shaping of these cities and lives of the people above. Hear from leading engineers and geologists as they examine the ingenious designs, innovative technologies and teams of forward thinking professionals who are instrumental in keeping each city alive and well.

Desert City: Dubai

Dubai is a city that defies logic; the gleaming desert metropolis has grown from the desert sands in just a few decades. Yet, it sits in one of the driest places on earth, pummelled by raging sandstorms and with its skyscrapers resting on top of sand. How did Dubai come to thrive in such an inhospitable place? Discover the secret engineering wonders and geological forces that make it possible as the amazing CGI animation peels back the glass off its skyscrapers to expose their inner workings and sweeps up the desert sand to explore its origins. The city's leading engineers and geologists reveal the secrets hidden inside Dubai's buildings that keep them standing, protect them from desert storms and keep residents alive in the searing heat.

Earthquake City: San Francisco

San Francisco is standing on the brink of disaster on top of one of the world's most infamous earthquake hotspots – the San Andreas Fault. How do the city's buildings and infrastructures survive the onslaught of a destructive earthquake? Engineers and geologists reveal the secrets behind San Francisco's skyscrapers, what protects the city from raging fires and what keeps residents safe.

Harbour City: Sydney

Sydney is home to a fifth of Australia's entire population and is trapped between the Blue Mountains and the ocean, sitting on the driest inhabited continent on Earth, and surrounding one of the planet's largest natural harbours. This episode uncovers what is inside Sydney's skyscrapers and beneath its streets that allow the city to function; from the concealed contours of the harbour that allow super-sized ships to sail into the heart of the city, to the underground caverns that store its water.

Ice City: Toronto

Toronto is a city of extremes. Perched on the shores of Lake Ontario, this sprawling metropolis has been carved out by ancient glaciers. Today, it is filled with a concrete jungle of towering skyscrapers. Each winter, temperatures plummet to an arctic minus 32 degrees Celsius and the city is battered by savage snowstorms. How did this metropolis grow to become the largest city in Canada in such an extreme, frigid environment? Using stunning CGI animation, this film looks beneath the Toronto's skin to discover what engineering wonders and geological forces are play. The city's leading engineers and geologists reveal the secrets hidden inside the iconic CN Tower that keep it standing and explore the geology that shaped Toronto's past and challenges its future, from the rich salt reserves that power its industry to the colossal falls that fuel the expanding mega-city.

Underground City: London

Beneath the streets of London lies a parallel universe. As its buildings soar higher, its tunnels go deeper. London has more infrastructures built underground than any city in the world and they hold the key to the city's success. This episode strips away the ground to reveal the city's inner workings and explores the ingenious technologies that helped engineers to build one of the biggest cities on earth. Join the engineers working in this vast underground city – from tunnel builders digging a brand new underground train line 40 metres beneath the city to squads of workers scrubbing its sewer tunnels to prevent outbreaks of disease. Using CGI animation, the episode lifts up Buckingham Palace to reveal a 'lost' river and show the innovative engineering behind the city's brand new port under construction. The film also peels away the Tower of London to reveal the true scale of the river Thames – far from being quiet and obedient, it was once a tidal torrent, and removes the steel and glass from Europe's tallest skyscraper – the Shard – to reveal its hidden inner workings. Will the rich clay that sits on the river one day consume the city?

Ancient City: Rome

At its zenith, Rome was the largest city in the world 2,000 years ago. Today, it has survived better than any ancient city on earth and is home to three million citizens. This episode strips the 'Eternal City's' most famous icons to reveal the inner workings and the ingenious technology behind the Pantheon, Coliseum, Trevi Fountain and Via Appia. Roman engineers' mastery of constructing buildings, roads and viaducts set the city on course to become the greatest empire the world had ever seen. Descend into a cavern of tunnels that runs under most of Rome, abseil into an ancient aqueduct and explore how Rome's new Metro is being built.

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