NASA is set to begin live-streaming its programming on Netflix, including rocket launches, astronaut spacewalks and Earth views from the International Space Station, to the “widest possible audience” starting this summer, the space agency announced Monday.
With Netflix, NASA+ will expand the space agency’s reach to more than 700 million viewers worldwide. NASA+ will remain available for free on the agency’s website and through the NASA app.
“The National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958 calls on us to share the story of space exploration with as wide an audience as possible,” said Rebecca Sirmons, general manager of NASA+ at the agency’s headquarters in Washington, D.C.
“Together, we are striving for a Golden Age of innovation and exploration, inspiring new generations from the comfort of their couch or with their smartphone in hand,” Sirmons added.
NASA's footage of the first Apollo moon landing in 1969 attracted 650 million viewers worldwide. Now the space agency plans to broadcast its Artemis missions to the moon using a multitude of high-definition cameras. The Artemis II spacecraft, which will orbit the moon with a crew, is scheduled to launch in April 2026. The Artemis III spacecraft, designed to land on the moon, is expected to launch in mid-2027.
“I hope to be on missions to the moon, but if that doesn't happen, I'll be glued to the TV and watching pretty much everything that happens on the moon,” Artemis astronaut Scott Tingle told UPI in 2021.
“There is a huge opportunity to broadcast a significant portion of this information via NASA TV, and I don't think that organization would pass up the opportunity if it were technically feasible,” Tingle added.
Netflix has been featuring space exploration-related content for years.
In 2021, Netflix released a five-part documentary series about SpaceX and the first launch of its fully private orbital spacecraft, Inspiration4. The series featured footage of the entire mission “from training to launch and landing.”
That same year, the Russian space agency Roscosmos released a full-length feature film shot on the International Space Station to promote the growing commercialization of orbital spaceflight.
In 2020, NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine tweeted that actor Tom Cruise was planning to travel to the space station to film a movie, but no date has been announced. The film is still in development, as Cruise is expected to be the first civilian to conduct a spacewalk outside the ISS.
“More and more movies and videos will be shot in space as launch costs come down due to competition from companies like SpaceX and Blue Origin,” James Neuhaus, an IMAX cinematographer, told UPI.
Sourse: www.upi.com
