Hot Docs 2008

Astrophysicist geeks and the scientifically challenged alike, enjoy! Follow along on a hardcore, risk-filled, scientific adventure into the heart of the Big Bang. In the ongoing attempt to unlock the mysteries of the origins of the universe, an international team of ultra-adventurous astrophysicists, led by Dr. Mark Devlin, filmmaker Paul Devlin's brother, is aiming to launch a multi-million dollar telescope attached to a NASA high-altitude balloon. And therein begins the risky and revolutionary challenges that ceaselessly plague a tireless world-class research team. Every computer chip, every mirror fragment and even an ill-placed workman's glove could spell success or disaster. As the telescope and team travel from Kiruna, Sweden, to Victoria Island, deep in the Canadian North, and to Antarctica, BLAST! tells a human story-the daily frustrations, enormous sacrifices, catastrophic failures and transcendent triumphs-of scientific pursuit.
-Myrocia Watamaniuk