Virtually Attend a Q&A With a Co-Creator of 1980s Series 'Cosmos'

Are you a fan of science TV shows and documentaries? Though they’ve been around in some version since 1903, one 13-part series on PBS that aired in 1980 really captured the country’s attention. It was called “Cosmos: A Personal Voyage” and was created and written by Carl Sagan, Ann Druyan and Steven Soter, with Sagan serving as the show’s host (serving as a “science communicator” before most people were using that word).

When it first aired, it was the kind of appointment television—one of those gather-your-whole-family-around-the-TV moments—that made you feel left out if you missed it. In fact, for 10 years, it was the most-watched series ever on public television in America, and in a 2011 article in the New York Times, Dave Itzkoff called the series “a watershed moment for science programming.” Anyway, if you haven’t seen it, now’s your chance, and later today, you can even attend a virtual Q&A session with Druyan. Here’s how to watch.

How to watch ‘Cosmos’ and attend the live Q&A

National Geographic, in conjunction with American Cinematheque, are making one of the original 1980 episodes of the series entitled “One Voice in the Cosmic Fugue” available through a screener link once you RSVP for the live Zoom Q&A session with Druyan through this link on Eventbrite. “Talk Nerdy” host Cara Santa Maria will moderate the event, which begins at 9p.m. EST/5p.m. PST on Sunday, June 28th. The screener episode will be sent to viewers ahead of the live event.

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Not sure what you’re getting yourself into? Yes, as the name suggests it does have to do with space, but it goes beyond that, touching on topics like the origin of life, genetics, natural selection, animals and nuclear warfare. But rather than just spewing facts at the audience, Sagan explained everything in terms of how humans fit into the universe.

Beyond that, Druyan has an amazing background of her own, including being the creative director of NASA’s Voyager Interstellar Message Project—you know, the one with the golden discs attached to both the Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 spacecraft. (She was also married to Sagan from 1981 until his death in 1996.) In other words, this Q&A is your opportunity to interact with a science legend.

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