In 1996, on the banks of the Columbia River near Kennewick, Washington, two college students stumbled across a human skull. Forensic investigators identified the victim as Caucasian, possible a 19th century European settler. But then came a shocking discovery: the bones were 9,300 years old. What was someone who looked like a European doing in North America thousands of years before Christopher Columbus?

The stunning discovery of the Kennewick Man threatens to rewrite the pre-history of the Americas. It has also sparked a legal battle between Native American groups who claim the bones and want them reburied immediately, and scientists who say the Kennewick Man is a scientific treasure that must be studied.

Join NOVA as we delve into the astonishing mystery of the first Americans. Watch forensic sculptors reconstruct the faces of the ancient past. Learn how prehistoric Asians made their way past the Ice Age glaciers and into the Americas. And search for traces of prehistoric people lost over thousands of years of changing climates, coastlines and DNA.