NICKELODEON LAUNCHES KIDS INTO SPACE WITH THE ASTRONAUTS

Ron Howard who made a name for himself as an actor playing the wholesome All-American teen Richie Cunningham on Happy Days and has evolved his career to become recognized as one of the best directors in Hollywood (Apollo 13, A Beautiful Mind, Solo: A Star Wars Story) is now venturing into the realm of producing children's entertainment. His new production company Imagine Kids + Family is releasing its first project, THE ASTRONAUTS which is debuting on Nickelodeon with the first two episodes of the family-friendly series airing back-to-back on Friday, November 13 2020 at 7pm ET/PT. This brand-new live-action series follows a group of kids who embark on the adventure of a lifetime when they are mistakenly launched into space.

From the looks of this trailer, while aimed for a kids audience this looks like a show that I'd really enjoy watching myself along with my son and daughter. THE ASTRONAUTS at first glance looks like the perfect show for a family to enjoy together. It has a youthful starring cast but the imagery for this show looks out of this world.

In the hour-long premiere of THE ASTRONAUTS, spacecraft Odyssey II is set to launch on a mission to retrieve a foreign object that could potentially save mankind. The plan quickly goes awry when five untrained kids use their parents’ security clearances to sneak onto the empty ship. Soon after they board, the onboard AI system triggers the launch sequence. Unable to stop the ship from blasting off, the kids must assume their new role as astronauts and brave harrowing tasks, as their parents rush to find a way to take control of the situation.

Yes the premise may seem unreal, but hey it is a TV show! Just sit back and enjoy the ride. And it looks like these astronauts are going to take us on an interesting trek through outer space.

Check out this behind-the-scenes look at the new Nickelodeon series with THE ASTRONAUTS director Dean Israelite:

CAN YOU STILL BUY TANG

We've been geeking out about space travel recently. First, this dad blogger participated in a virtual movie watching party on Twitter to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the film APOLLO 13 live chatting with Director Ron Howard and astronaut Scott Kelly. Next my son and I recorded a video of us interviewing former astronaut Mike Massimino for the blog about his experiences in space and the historic Space X rocket launch that is taking place on Wednesday, May 27. Finally, we are going to be watching on the Discovery Channel this week when for the first time since the space shuttles were retired NASA launches astronauts from American soil into outer space.

While all this is going on, I wondered if the astronauts going up into space this week will be taking Tang along with them on their trip. This flavored drink created by mixing an orange tasting powder with water was made famous by astronauts using it from the early days of space travel through the space shuttle era. Advertisements for Tang highlighting this space connection were prominently featured during my childhood in the 1970s-80s among the commercials aired with Saturday morning cartoons.

While Tang was included on the menu for the first astronauts during their star treks, it wasn't actually developed specifically for use in space. It was actually created by William A. Mitchell, who also invented Pop Rocks candy and Cool Whip desert topping, for General Foods Corporation as an alternative to fresh juice and frozen concentrates. The product caught the attention of NASA who included it in eating experiments they conducted with Mercury astronaut John Glenn while he was orbiting the Earth.

Tang took off from there being a part of astronauts diets during space missions for decades including the Apollo missions to the moon. Mike Massimino mentioned to us he drank Tang during his space shuttle missions. Generations of kids also drank Tang they had parents pick up from grocery store shelves so they could feel like astronauts themselves.



Yet I can't remember the last time a Tang advertisement caught my eye, saw a package of the stuff on a store shelf, or witnessed someone taking a sip of this orange flavored drink. Just as space travel has slipped from the public eye since the shuttle fleet was retired in 2011 so has Tang diminished from popular culture. Can you even buy Tang anymore?

The answer is YES you can! The product is now produced by Mondelēz International, a Chicago-based corporation that is one of the largest snack making companies in the world. In fact, they sell almost a billion dollars worth of Tang every year. Tang orange flavored breakfast beverage is currently sold in 35 countries and is especially popular in Argentina, China and the Middle East. And if you want to bring some home to drink here in the United States, Tang is available from Walmart.

To get in an astronaut state of mind and do something out of the ordinary, we picked up some Tang from Walmart to drink while watching the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launch NASA astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley in their Crew Dragon spacecraft to the International Space Station. Will be giving a Tang toast to these astronauts, all the brave men and women who proceeded them, and all those still to come.

Welcomes to Mars

NASA has an established goal of landing human explorers on the planet Mars by 2030.  Wow! based upon that timeline first graders now like my son and daughter would be the ideal age to serve as the crew for that space mission when it launched.  What would it be like for them to travel through space and land on the red planet?

Only a handful of people in Earth's history have ever traveled off our planet to walk on the moon.  Buzz Aldrin, who was the second person to walk on the moon following the footsteps of that famous first leap made by Apollo 11 mission commander Neil Armstrong just a few minutes later on July 20, 1969, has a few thoughts on how to get astronauts to Mars and what life would be like for the first pioneers to colonize that planet.  In his new book National Geographic Kids: Welcome To Mars, Aldrin provides his unique perspective to challenge curious kids to think about Mars as not just a faraway planet but rather as a possible home for Earthlings.  He makes the book relatable to children by exploring topics like what would you eat for breakfast on Mars (sweet potato pie made from yams grown in a green house); what would you do for fun (snowboarding down Martian gullies or zip lining across valleys); where would you live (imagine a combination of a college dormitory and a super-sized dirt igloo); and what would people wear (flexible, light weight space suits).  Plus the book includes some great hands-on science experiments that children can do at home to excite them about space exploration as well as science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).

If you have an elementary school or high school aged child in your life that may be imagining one day being an astronaut, A Geek Daddy has a great giveaway for you.  Courtesy of our friends at National Geographic Kids, one luck A Geek Daddy reader who follows the instructions below will receive a complimentary edition of Buzz Aldrin's Welcome To Mars book.  For a chance to win you  must be a U.S. or Canadian resident over 18 years old and submit one or all of the following entry methods to earn up to 4 entries prior to 11:59 pm EST on Sunday October 4, 2015. 

UPDATE (10/5/2015) Congrats to Joel from Northville, Michigan who won the Welcome to Mars book by Buzz Aldrin.

 EMAIL (1 Entry)  E-mail thegeekdaddy [at] yahoo [dot] com your name and mailing address.   Email subject line should be Welcome to Mars. 

FACEBOOK COMMENT (3 Entries) Visit A GEEK DADDY on Facebook and leave a comment on our contest post sharing which planet or moon in our solar system you'd like to visit and why.

All valid entries will be assigned a number in the order they are received and one number will be  selected to determine the winner using random.org.  E-mails will only be used to contact the winner and deleted following the selection of a winner.

Welcome to Mars is a 96 page hardcover book filled with 155 color illustrations that retails for $18.99.  It is recommended for readers 8 to 12 years old.  Inspires young readers to want to soar through the skies and reach for the stars like Buzz Aldrin by reading about this astronaut and rocket scientist in a book that explores his ideas about traveling through space and colonizing the red planet.  This is a great example to show children that a book about space travel doesn't have to be science fiction to be amazing and interesting to read.  It's time to inspire the generation that will one day be embarking on missions to Mars!

DISCLAIMER:  A Geek Daddy Blog will be responsible for selecting the winner of this contest and delivery of the prize.  By participating in this contest you waive any liability towards A Geek Daddy Blog or its publisher that may arise from your involvement with this promotion.  A Geek Daddy Blog did not receive any financial compensation but did receive the prize that is being awarded to one of our readers for this contest for free.  A Geek Daddy Blog is hosting this contest as a benefit to our readers. Any opinions in this post are my own.  #NGKINSIDER

Mission: Red Planet - Board Game Allows You to Role Play the Conquest of Mars

I've always enjoyed role playing and strategy games except for that they often take way too long to play out so I often pass on them because of time constraints.  An exception to that complaint is a great board game by Fantasy Flight Games called MISSION: RED PLANET that allows players to engage in the planetary exploration of Mars in a Victorian Steampunk universe that takes approximately 45 - 90 minutes to play out.  That's long enough to have plenty of fun but a short enough span that the game doesn't drag on too long.

In the game, you take control of mining corporations competing to occupy Mars and harvest its invaluable, newly discovered natural resources.  Players launch their astronauts into space, station them in the most profitable zones of the planet. and mine for minerals and ice, all the while cunningly undermining their competition. 

MISSION: RED PLANET was originally released in 2005, but Fantasy Flight has just announced that an updated, revised edition of the game is coming out this fall in collaboration with its original designers Bruno Faidutti and Bruno Cathala.  The new edition allows astronauts to land in a new zone, the moon Phobos, and now the Soldier can can convey astronauts from Phobos to anywhere on Mars.  Missions and Discoveries have been fine-tuned and new Action Cards join the Event deck.  The game's Victorian Steampunk aesthetic has also been refreshed with an all new graphic design for a more contemporary look. If you don't get the gist of these changes it is probably because you haven't experienced the original game yet but once you give MISSION: RED PLANET a shot you'll quickly get a grasp on the game play.  Trying to keep a family game night going once your kids have hit those teenage years? MISSION: RED PLANET is a great game for an evening of family fun!

MISSION: RED PLANET is suitable for ages 13 and older and can be played by two to six players. The updated version also will include special rules for a new two-player variant of the game. For more information, visit www.fantasyflightgames.com.

Some After School Fun with Space Scouts

As part of A Geek Daddy Blog's participating in the U.S. Family Guide Network we tested out the first two month's mailers from the monthly subscription service SPACE SCOUTS the other day when my kids returned home from school.   SPACE SCOUTS lets children explore the galaxy from the comfort of their own home through sending space themed boxes filled with arts and crafts projects, educational lessons and other fun treats each month.  From our experience, each month's mailer should occupy a kid's attention for about a half an hour and provides a nice opportunity for a parent to spend some quality time with children in a manner that is both entertaining and educational at the same time.  The SPACE SCOUTS program is probably best for children 6 to 8 years old.

The first month's mailer included a metallic lunchbox (which can be used to store all your Space Scouts stuff), a solar system poster, activity pages, a sticker scramble, a constellation collector ring, and a set of wikki stix that could be used for creative building.  We decyphered a code for a secret message, completing a space themed cross word puzzle, and answering astronomy themed trivia questions.

My daughter really enjoyed the sticker scramble where you have to match numbers on sticker sheets to the ones on an index card.  If you complete the puzzle correctly you'll see an interesting space image from the unscrambled stickers. 

 

The week two mailer included a grasping hand that amused my son to no end, some astronaut figurines, magnets to place on the Space Scouts lunchbox, a constellation card to include on the storage ring provided in the first mailer.  It also included some more activity sheets, another sticker scramble and some stickers to place on the solar system map that was initially provided.    Each package provides items that supports and builds upon items previously received to boast children's knowledge of math, technology, science and astronomy.

Pricing starts out at $11.95 + $3 shipping per month with additional discounted plans for multi-month purchases.  A GEEK DADDY blog readers receive a 20% discount on their initial purchase of any SPACE SCOUT subscription plan by using promo code USFAMILY20.

For more information, visit  www.atcssc.com/space-scouts 

DISCLAIMER: A Geek Daddy Blog was introduced to this product through its participation in the US FAMILY GUIDE Blogger Program.  A Geek Daddy blog was not provided any financial compensation for this post but was provided a complimentary two month subscription to the Space Scouts to review.  A positive review is not required of our blog to participate in this promotion. The opinions in this review are my own.