 Radio program logo | |
| Other names | EarthSky |
|---|---|
| Running time | 60 and 90 second spots |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Language(s) | English, Spanish |
| Syndicates | NPR |
| Created by | Deborah Byrd, Joel Block |
| Executive producer(s) | Deborah Byrd |
| Recording studio | Austin, Texas, USA |
| Original release | 1991 – June 2, 2013 |
| Website | earthsky |
Earth & Sky was a daily radio series that presented information aboutscience andnature.[1] It began broadcasting in 1991 and ceased operations in 2013.EarthSky is the ongoing website, serving 21 million users in 2019, according to Google Analytics.[2]
Earth & Sky was the creation of producersDeborah Byrd and Joel Block, who were also the hosts. Byrd had previously created the radio programStar Date that began broadcasting in the US in 1978, and Block wasStar Date's original host.
The final episode ofEarth & Sky was broadcast on June 2, 2013. President and co-founder Deborah Byrd said that although funding options existed to continue the radio program, a decision was made to stop producing the radio show in order to concentrate on the EarthSky.org website and social media.[3]
Earth & Sky presented 60- and 90-second radio spots (called "modules") on a wide variety of scientific topics, communicating through terrestrialradio as well assatellite radio andinternet radio.[4]Earth & Sky was aired one or more times daily on more than 1,000commercial,NPR, and otherpublic radio stations, 80 affiliate stations for the sight-impaired, and across 35 channels on bothXM andSirius satellite radio in the United States.[5] Abroad, the programming iwas heard on American Forces Radio,Voice of America Radio,World Radio Network, and others.
The information onEarth & Sky came directly from scientists. Thejournalists who produced theEarth & Sky radio program spoke to several scientists each day, dozens each week and hundreds each year.[6] More than 500 scientists had joinedEarth & Sky as volunteer advisers.Earth & Sky science advisers suggested content, gave feedback, recommended other experts, and reviewed scripts for accuracy before they were recorded for broadcast.
Earth & Sky featured many fields of science. In 2006, it focused onnanotechnology,women in science,observing the Earth,astrophysics andspace, and the human world.[6]