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PBS will travel back 50 years to the Summer of Space, when the crew of Apollo 11 became the first people in history to successfully land on the moon.
With an audience of more than a half-billion people watching on television, Neil Armstrong stepped out of his craft on to the surface of the moon and proclaimed, “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.”
Over more than a month this summer, PBS will take viewers back to 1969 with more than 15 hours of new science and history programming.
This will be anchored by the three-part, six-hour docuseries Chasing the Moon on American Experience, which tells the story of the space race. Chasing the Moon premieres Monday-Wednesday, July 8-10 from 9-11 p.m. ET.
The following week, viewers can join the crew of Apollo 11 for their eight day, three hour, 18 minute and 35 second journey in 8 Days: To the Moon and Back, which PBS co-produced with BBC Studios. The film blends authentic mission audio of conversations between Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins with newly shot studio footage, news archives and CGI recreation of their history journey.
On Wednesday, July 24, two new science series will premiere: the three-part Ancient Skies and five-part Nova: The Planets. Ancient Skies helps shows audiences how knowledge was accumulated throughout the history of humankind that ultimately led them to space. The Planets tells the story of our solar system, spanning billions of years.
Other PBS favorites such as Secrets of the Dead and Antiques Roadshow will air special space-dedicated episodes, and encores of popular space-related PBS specials, such as A Year in Space, also will air.
Viewers can find schedules and even more celestial-based programming on PBS’ interactive hub at PBS.org.
CREDITS
Client: PBS
Writer/Producer: Jeffrey Hughes
Creative Director: John Ruppenthal
Senior Producer: Erin Block Ward
Agency: Interface Media Group
President: Jeff Weingarten
Editor: Anthony Black