Nova Ancient Desert Death Trap (Season 52, Episode 17)
TV-G
TV Episode | 53 min | Documentary

Primary photo for Ancient Desert Death Trap

Nova

Ancient Desert Death Trap (Season 52, Episode 17)

TV-G

TV Episode | 53 min | Documentary

A team of archaeologists researches the desert kites, the stone megastructures across northern Saudi Arabia and southern Jordan.

Director

Nathalie Laville

Writers

Nathalie Laville | Jean-François Mondot | Jessy Picard

Producers

Marie Drogue (producer) | Romain Pieri (producer)

Composers

Jeremy Bruyère (original music) | Tay Chee Wei (NOVA theme music: for NOVA)

Cinematographers

Gabriele Buti (director of photography) | Jac Mulder (director of photography) | Arnaud Murel (director of photography) | Léo Scomorovschi (director of photography)

Editor

Emmanuelle Gachet (edited by)

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Edit Released

Updated Oct 22, 2025

Release date

Oct 22, 2025 (United States)

Awards

Series awards

Won 1 Primetime Emmy Award. Another 23 wins & 68 nominations

Contacts

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Cast	+ Add Cast
16 cast members

Name	Known for
Mercer Boffey Narrator (voice) Narrator (voice) See fewer	The Bombing of Pan Am 103 (2025)
Rémy Crassard Self - Archaeologist, CNRS, Archéorient (as Remy Crassard) Self - Archaeologist, CNRS, Archéorient (as Remy Crassard) See fewer	Nova (1974)
Olivier Barge Self - Geographer, CNRS, Archéorient Self - Geographer, CNRS, Archéorient See fewer	Nova (1974)
Waël Abu Azizeh Self - Archaeologist, Lyon 2 University, Archéorient (as Wael Abu Azizeh) Self - Archaeologist, Lyon 2 University, Archéorient (as Wael Abu Azizeh) See fewer	Nova (1974)
Saifi Alshailali Self - Historian, Royal Commission for AlUla Self - Historian, Royal Commission for AlUla See fewer	Nova (1974)
Bill Finlayson Self - Archaeologist, University of Oxford Self - Archaeologist, University of Oxford See fewer	Nova (1974)
Bruno Depreux Self - Geomorphologist, CNRS, Archéorient Self - Geomorphologist, CNRS, Archéorient See fewer	Nova (1974)
Mohammad Tarawneh Self - Archaeologist, Al-Hussein Bin Talal University Self - Archaeologist, Al-Hussein Bin Talal University See fewer	Nova (1974)
Cheryl Makarewicz Self - Zooarchaeologist, Kiel University Self - Zooarchaeologist, Kiel University See fewer	Nova (1974)
Florian Hutter Actor Actor See fewer	The Last Duel (2021)
Bibi Jacob Voiceover Voiceover See fewer	Tales of the Night Sky (2019)
Chris Mack Voiceover Voiceover See fewer	Nova (1974)
Rufo Quintavalle Voiceover Voiceover See fewer	God Save the Tuche (2025)
Astrid Saule Actress Actress See fewer	Wasteland (V)
David Stanley Voiceover Voiceover See fewer	Nova (1974)
Hester Wilcox Voiceover Voiceover See fewer	Laura's Happy Adventure (1998)