'Scanning the Skies: Discovery Channel Telescope' -- EXCLUSIVE CLIP

Published on August 16, 2012 01:00PM EDT

DISCOVERY TELESCOPE — Photo: Lowell Observatory/AP Photos

The Discovery Channel has put a spotlight on the mysteries beyond our own atmosphere for over two decades, and now the network has decided it’s about time they have their own telescope.

That telescope was completed earlier this year and is now fully operational in its home near Flagstaff, Ariz. EW can exclusively report that Discovery Channel will feature the new window to the stars in a new special called Scanning the Skies: The Discovery Channel Telescope.

Set to air on Sunday, Sept. 9 at 7 p.m., the program will document the construction of the telescope, featuring interviews with astronomers from Lowell Observatory, where the Discovery Channel Telescope is based.

Images, videos and research from the telescope will also find their way into classrooms this fall, as Discovery Education (a division of Discovery Communications) is partnering with various school districts worldwide, providing teachers with lesson plans and virtual field trips related to the telescope.

Check out an exclusive clip from the special below, which focuses on the telescope’s ability to display faint objects like meteors.

It’s a program that Discovery is billing as fit for “viewers of all ages,” with a clear educational purpose, but if your kid tends to over-think apocalyptic scenarios, you better be prepared to talk with him about this soundbite from the clip below: “Had [Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9] hit Earth, it would have ended all life on our planet.” Now don’t you start over-thinking that.

Netflix ‘Just For Kids’: Learn about the streaming service��s kiddie corner

Discovery Channel announces new show ‘Bering Sea Gold: Under the Ice’