This incredible detective story and careful reconstruction of one of natures most impressive mammals showcases just how technology can help the natural world survive, as well as help us to learn more about it.
In Raising Big Blue, we follow Canadian scientists as they uncover a buried skeleton of a blue whale and put it back together for display in a prominent museum.
But it's not as simple as it seems from washing ashore on Prince Edward Island (PEI) in 1987, to arriving at its permanent home at UBCs Beaty Biodiversity Museum last year; the scientists project is one of the toughest of its kind. First they need to locate the buried whale, develop a method to clean the appalling stench from the bones and put all the pieces together.
The film crew followed the project for three years and documented how the skeleton was first revealed during a preliminary dig in PEI, the triumphs and setbacks of the excavation, and the mystery of the missing flipper that threatened to unhinge the three-year project.
Well also learn how scientists found ways to clean and degrease 20-year-old whale bones saturated with rancid oil; reconstruct a giant skull that had been broken into dozens of pieces; and transport the 85-foot exhibit into the museums glass atrium.