“Secrets of the Dead” (8 p.m., PBS) returns with sunken treasure. At least for history buffs.
Researchers and divers from the University of Hawaii have recently located and explored the remains of the Japanese I-401 submarine, a super-secret advanced weapon that the U.S. Navy sank at the end of World War II to keep it from falling into Soviet hands.
What made this submarine so potentially dangerous? It was a remarkable hybrid weapon. A stealthy sub capable of crossing the oceans undetected, it was also a mini-aircraft carrier, carrying four dive bombers assigned the task of terrorizing American cities, possibly spreading biological weapons, or destroying the strategically vital Panama Canal.
We’re shown early plans for the super weapon and computer animation of the weapon at work, as well as interviews with military scholars and aged veterans of Japan’s navy and air force.
Liev Schreiber narrates “Secrets of the Dead.” If his voice sounds familiar, it’s because his voice accompanies many popular documentary series on PBS and elsewhere, most notably the History Channel’s new survey course, “America the Story of US.”