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President Barack Obama to introduce series premiere of Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey
MUMBAI: US president Barack Obama will introduce the highly anticipated series premiere episode of Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey airing this Sunday, 9 March on 10 Fox Networks Group channels, including Fox and National Geographic Channel. In the video message, which leads into the premiere episode, Obama invites a new generation to embrace the spirit of discovery and inspires viewers to explore new frontiers and imagine limitless possibilities for the future.
The series premiere episode of Cosmos will air simultaneously across multiple US Fox networks, including Fox, National Geographic Channel, FX, FXX, FXM, Fox Sports 1, Fox Sports 2, Nat Geo Wild, Nat Geo Mundo and Fox Life. This first multi-network launch event for Fox Networks Group, along with the series debut on Fox International Channels and National Geographic Channels International, will make Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey available on 220 channels in 181 countries, with an overall footprint of more than half a billion homes.
Last Friday, 28 Febraury, Fox Broadcasting Company (Fox) and National Geographic Channel (NGC) hosted a special preview of Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey at the White House as part of the first-ever White House Student Film Festival. The festival celebrated the Obama administration’s commitment to using technology in the classroom. As part of the event, president Obama delivered remarks detailing progress toward his ConnectED goal of connecting 99 per cent of students to next-generation broadband and wireless technology within five years.
Additionally, National Geographic Channel hosted 100 teachers in Washington, D.C. this week -winners of the Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST) – for a sneak peek at Cosmos. The educators represented all 50 states, D.C. and Puerto Rico. President Obama hosted them on Monday night for a reception honouring their commitment to and excellence in education.
After the cross-network premiere event, Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey will continue its epic 13-episode run, airing Sundays at 8:00 pm from 16 March on National Geographic Channel India.
More than three decades after the debut of Cosmos: A Personal Voyage, Carl Sagan’s stunning and iconic exploration of the universe as revealed by science, Seth MacFarlane (Ted, Family Guy) has teamed with Sagan’s original creative collaborators, writer/executive producer Ann Druyan and co-writer, astronomer Steven Soter to conceive the 13-part series that will serve as a successor to the Emmy and Peabody Award-winning original series.
Carl Sagan’s original series Cosmos was first broadcast in 1980 and remains the most globally successful American public television series of all time. Seen by more than 750 million viewers, Cosmos has remained popular throughout the world.
As with the legendary original series, the new Cosmos is the saga of how we discovered the laws of nature and found our coordinates in space and time. The series brings to life never-before-told stories of the heroic quest for knowledge, transporting viewers to new worlds and across the universe for a vision of the cosmos on the grandest – and the smallest – scale. The series invents new modes of scientific storytelling to reveal the grandeur of the universe and re-invent celebrated elements of the original series, including the Cosmic Calendar and the Ship of the Imagination. The most profound scientific concepts are presented with stunning clarity, uniting skepticism and wonder, and weaving rigorous science with the emotional and spiritual into a transcendent experience.
Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey is produced by Cosmos Studios, the Ithaca, NY-based company Ann Druyan co-founded in 2000, and Fuzzy Door Productions, MacFarlane’s company. Druyan and Steven Soter are the series’ writers. Druyan, MacFarlane, Cosmos Studios President Mitchell Cannold and Brannon Braga (the Star Trek franchise, 24) are the executive producers of the series with Jason Clark (Ted, 42).
NEW DELHI: Hamdard Laboratories gathered a cross-section of India’s achievers in New Delhi on Friday, handing out the Hakeem Abdul Hameed Excellence Awards to figures who have left their mark across healthcare, education, sport, public service and the arts.
The ceremony, attended by minister of state for defence Sanjay Seth and senior officials from the ministry of Ayush, celebrated individuals whose work blends professional success with a sense of public purpose. It was as much a roll call of achievement as it was a reminder that influence is not measured only in profits or podiums, but in people reached and lives improved.
Among the headline awardees was Alakh Pandey, founder and chief executive of PhysicsWallah, recognised for turning affordable digital learning into a mass movement. On the sporting front, Arjuna Awardee and kabaddi player Sakshi Puniya was honoured for her contribution to the game and for pushing women’s participation onto bigger stages.
The cultural spotlight fell on veteran lyricist and poet Santosh Anand, whose songs have echoed across generations of Hindi cinema. At 97, Anand accepted the honour with characteristic humility, reflecting on a life shaped by perseverance and hope.
Healthcare honours spanned both modern and traditional systems. Manoj N. Nesari was recognised for strengthening Ayurveda’s place in national and global health frameworks. Padma shri Mohammed Abdul Waheed was honoured for his research-backed work in Unani medicine, while padma shri Mohsin Wali received recognition for his long-standing contribution to patient-centred care.
Education and social development also featured prominently. Padma shri Zahir Ishaq Kazi was honoured for decades of work in education, while former Meghalaya superintendent of Police T. C. Chacko was recognised for public service. Goonj founder Anshu Gupta received an award for his dignity-centred rural development initiatives, and the Hunar Shakti Foundation was honoured for empowering women and young girls through skill development.
The Lifetime Achievement Award went to former IAS officer Shailaja Chandra for her long career in public healthcare and governance, particularly in the traditional systems under Ayush.
Speaking at the event, Hamdard chairman Abdul Majeed said the awards were a tribute to those who combine excellence with empathy. “These awardees reflect Hakeem Sahib’s belief that healthcare, education and public service must ultimately serve humanity,” he said.
Minister Seth struck a forward-looking note, saying India’s young population gives the country a unique opportunity to become a global destination for learning, health and wellness by 2047.
The ceremony also featured the trailer launch of Unani Ki Kahaani, an upcoming documentary starring actor Jim Sarbh, set to premiere on Discovery on 11 February.
Instituted in memory of Unani scholar and educationist Hakeem Abdul Hameed, the awards have grown into a national platform that celebrates those building a more inclusive and resilient India. For one evening at least, the spotlight was not just on success, but on service with substance.
