NASA Wins Emmy Award For Its Extraordinary Coverage Of Cassini’s ‘Grand Finale’
The spectacular five-month campaign that followed the Cassini spacecraft during the final act of its 20-year mission has landed NASA an Emmy Award, the space agency proudly announced today.
The Emmy was awarded to the team of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California — the creative minds behind the extraordinary digital campaign which unfolded on a large number of media channels and kept more than 3 million people on the edge of their seats.
As the Inquisitr previously reported, JPL’s campaign kicked off with Cassini’s spectacular dive between Saturn and its rings on August 26, 2017, and covered the spacecraft’s famous last exploits until the mission’s epic end on September 15, 2017.
This final act of Cassini’s mission was dubbed the “Grand Finale” and became a full-blown media phenomenon. JPL’s extensive coverage of the event kept the public apprised of Cassini’s daily progress right up until the end, through multiple live social, web, and TV broadcasts, as well as regular updates on Twitter, Facebook, Snapchat, Instagram, and the Cassini mission website.
JPL’s multifaceted interactive campaign celebrated Cassini’s many scientific and engineering accomplishments, while also serving as a means to explain why the mission had to end the way it did — with a legendary plunge into Saturn’s atmosphere.
Their effort and dedication of getting the story out there have earned JPL an Emmy Award for Outstanding Original Interactive Program, which was presented last week during the Creative Arts Emmy Awards, hosted on September 8 in Los Angeles.
New data from Hollywood: we won! We’re grateful to the #Emmys for this recognition. Even more, we’re thankful for the spacecraft that could, and did. And to all of you for riding along with us on the journey to Saturn. pic.twitter.com/AoeXyboPF5
— NASA Solar System (@NASASolarSystem) September 9, 2018
“This award represents the special magic that happens when we combine the stunning imagery and powerful science from a mission such as Cassini with the extraordinary talents of an innovative media and communications team,” Michael Greene, JPL’s director for Communications and Education, said in a statement.
Upon accepting the Emmy Award, the JPL team thanked all the space fans that tuned in to watch Cassini’s “Grand Finale” — a campaign which also included a dramatic short film that showcased the mission’s story, multiple 360-degree videos, and software that tracked the spacecraft’s journey in real-time.
And the Emmy goes to: Cassini's Grand Finale https://t.co/mTe2Z1TkvX pic.twitter.com/ZoC5dvROUR
— Frank's Geekery (@FranksGeekery) September 11, 2018
“The Cassini team is tremendously grateful that our mission’s amazing story was told in such a creative way by the communications team at JPL, and that the TV Academy has chosen to honor that story. Receiving an Emmy is one more amazing first for Cassini,” said Earl Maize, Cassini Project Manager.
According to Space, the other 2018 Emmy nominees for Outstanding Original Interactive Program were a Google animated virtual-reality short called “Back to the Moon” and three Oculus VR experiences for the movies Blade Runner 2049, Coco, and Spider-Man Homecoming.
The Creative Arts Emmy Awards ceremony will be broadcast on September 15, which incidentally marks the one-year anniversary of Cassini’s grand finale dive.
