NASA Revamps Its Websites, And Introduces 'NASA+', So Subscribers Can See 'More Space'

NASA, or the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, is an independent agency of the U.S. federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research.

As a federal agency, it has all the support it needs to operate and thrive.

But that doesn't mean it lacks innovation, especially when it concerns the internet, and the ways it uses to approach the audience of its work.

One of the ways, is by elevating its digital platforms.

And this time, the agency does that by revamping its flagship and science websites, and by also introducing its first-ever on-demand streaming service, calls the 'NASA+'

"Our vision is to inspire humanity through a unified, world-class NASA web experience," said Jeff Seaton, chief information officer at the agency’s headquarters in Washington, as quoted by NASA in a post on its website.

"NASA’s legacy footprint presents an opportunity to dramatically improve the user experience for the public we serve. Modernizing our main websites from a technology standpoint and streamlining how the public engages with our content online are critical first steps in making our agency’s information more accessible, discoverable, and secure.”

The enhanced web experience, according to NASA, shall serve as "an ever-expanding yet consolidated homebase for information about the agency’s missions and research, climate data, Artemis updates, and more."

The agency delivers this updated experience, by updating its nasa.gov and science.nasa.gov websites, so they can "provide a connected, topic-driven experience, with a common search engine, integrated navigation, and optimized publishing capabilities in a modernized and secure set of web tools."

Because the update is essentially a way for it to deliver more information in a more timely manner, NASA said that the online content within them shall "ensure easier, integrated access to NASA information currently found across the agency’s many websites."

What's worth noting here is that, the agency uses NASA TV for its video content and launch streams.

This service runs 24/7, streaming content on both the NASA site and YouTube.

By launching its own streaming service, NASA is practically creating a dedicated space for viewers to access its content.

Initially, the updates are introduced in beta on a rolling-basis as it receives feedback from website visitors.

The next improved experience, is through an upgrade to the existing NASA app, where NASA wants to allows users to "access to a new world of content from the space agency."

NASA calls this new experience the NASA+.

Despite the 'plus' name, in which many others use as an paid subscription, NASA+ shall be free and ad-free, and accessible to everyone without a subscription.

According to NASA, users of the family-friendly streaming service shall gain access to the agency’s Emmy Award-winning live coverage and views into NASA’s missions through collections of original video series, including a handful of new series launching with the streaming service.

"We’re putting space on demand and at your fingertips with NASA’s new streaming platform," said Marc Etkind, associate administrator, Office of Communications, NASA Headquarters.

"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."

To reach users, NASA+ shall be made available on most major platforms through the NASA existing app on both iOS and Android, and also to popular streaming media players such as, Roku, Apple TV, and Fire TV; and on the web across desktop and mobile devices.

Through this upgraded experience, NASA plans to continue connecting additional agency websites and multimedia libraries, in order to continually streamline all the information shared across its centers, missions, and programs.

"With an enhanced digital presence, NASA will share science, research, exploration, and innovation with the world through cohesive platforms," NASA said.

"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, Science Mission Directorate, NASA Headquarters.

In all, the updates focus on modernizing and streamlining all of its publicly-available content, through an experience and interface that is similar to those that many people have become accustomed to with other streaming services.

In a later date, NASA updated the news, saying that NASA+ shall be available November 8 on most major platforms.