NASA Is Launching Its Own Streaming Service Later This Year

In just a few scant years, streaming has become the dominating entertainment format, effectively becoming the new cable as every single studio, license-holder, and content creator consolidates whatever properties they've got into new, standalone services. There has been an absolute deluge of standalone platforms, catering to just about every interest from sports to cartoons to cooking. If there were perhaps one niche that hadn't yet been filled, it was streaming entertainment dedicated to space exploration, but even that too will soon be a thing of the past.

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration, better known as NASA, announced the beta-stage launch of its updated website, as well as its very own streaming platform, aptly named NASA+. This on-demand streaming service will work in tandem with the existing NASA mobile app to deliver a library of space-themed content to inquisitive minds around the world. The service is slated to launch in earnest later this year.

"From exoplanet research to better understanding Earth's climate and the influence of the Sun on our planet along with exploration of the solar system, our new science and flagship websites, as well as forthcoming NASA+ videos, showcases our discovery programs in an interdisciplinary and crosscutting way, ultimately building stronger connections with our visitors and viewers," said Nicky Fox, associate administrator of the Science Mission Directorate at NASA HQ.

Rather than a traditional streaming service stocked with standalone entertainment, NASA+ is meant to serve more as a living library of the agency's achievements, goals, and ongoing research. Through both individual videos and ongoing series, the service will offer information on current pursuits like the research conducted by the Mars probes, as well as the upcoming Artemis moon mission.

"We're putting space on demand and at your fingertips with NASA's new streaming platform," Marc Etkind, associate administrator at NASA HQ's Office of Communications, said in the platform's announcement. "Transforming our digital presence will help us better tell the stories of how NASA explores the unknown in air and space, inspires through discovery, and innovates for the benefit of humanity."

NASA+ will not be a for-profit service — access to the platform and all of its content will be available to all completely free of charge and without ads. The service will be accessible through the existing NASA app on iOS and Android devices, as well as a standalone app that will be available on Apple TV, Fire TV, and Roku devices.

NASA is planning on streamlining all of its available informational resources into both its updated website and the NASA+ service to not only make the latest space research available to the general public, but do so in a more accessible way. There's no set date for the launch of NASA+ yet, with the agency only saying it'll arrive later this year. In the meantime, we can expect to see frequent updates to the revamped NASA website as it rolls through its beta phase.