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NBC Launches Eight-Part CGI Docuseries “Surviving Earth”

6/11/2026

Summary

NBC Premieres Docuseries

NBC premieres the eight-part docuseries Surviving Earth on Thursday, June 11, 2026 at 8 p.m. ET/PT.
Tim Haines created the series with Universal Television Alternative Studio and Loud Minds.
The CGI series depicts life from 450 million to 450,000 years ago after consulting 300 scientists.
The first episode “When the Earth Burned” shows gorgonopsians as apex predators linked to mammals.
Episodes air Thursdays through July, stream on Peacock Friday, and cost $7.99 per month.

Summary

Lystrosaurus Endures

The series opens with the end-Permian extinction, which eliminated about 96 % of marine species.
It links the Great Dying to massive Siberian Traps eruptions that triggered rapid climate collapse.
The narrative shows that survival depended on adaptability, as the burrowing Lystrosaurus endured extreme heat and low oxygen while the dominant gorgonopsid perished.
A ten-million-year jump in the finale emphasizes the planetary reset from devastation to early Triassic life.

History

Historical Context

About 252 million years ago, massive Siberian Traps eruptions flooded the atmosphere with CO2, raising levels from ~400 ppm to ~2,500 ppm and triggering oceanic anoxia. This drove the end-Permian extinction, wiping out roughly 81 % of marine species and 70 % of terrestrial vertebrates. High-resolution dating at the Meishan Global Stratotype now links these changes to the Permian-Triassic boundary.

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NBC Premieres Docuseries

NBC premieres the eight-part docuseries Surviving Earth on Thursday, June 11, 2026 at 8 p.m. ET/PT.
Tim Haines created the series with Universal Television Alternative Studio and Loud Minds.
The CGI series depicts life from 450 million to 450,000 years ago after consulting 300 scientists.
The first episode “When the Earth Burned” shows gorgonopsians as apex predators linked to mammals.
Episodes air Thursdays through July, stream on Peacock Friday, and cost $7.99 per month.

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