DISCOVERY SCIENCE LAUNCHES “COUNTDOWN TO ASTEROID DAY”

Do scientists know when an asteroid will strike? How much warning will you get if an asteroid is headed for your city? How frequently do asteroid impacts occur? To answer these questions and more, Discovery Science, the only global network dedicated entirely to the wonders of science, is partnering with Asteroid Day. Asteroid Day is a global awareness movement educating people on the hazards of asteroids and what we can do to protect ourselves from impacts such as the 2013 meteor strike in Russia. The first official Asteroid Day will take place of 30 June 2015, the anniversary of the 1908 Siberian Tunguska event, the largest asteroid impact on Earth in recent history.

To celebrate the 2015 Asteroid Day in Central & Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa (CEEMEA), the network is launching “Countdown to Asteroid Day”, a programming stunt running for ten days leading up to the event, kicking off on the 20^th of June. On Asteroid Day, Discovery Science will air its first ever scripted content, with the film “51 Degrees North” and the premiere of “Mission Asteroid”, narrated by renowned director David Cronenberg.

Throughout the “Countdown to Asteroid Day”, Discovery Science will feature bespoke on air packaging and Question & Answer break spots, with fascinating facts on asteroids, written by renowned astronauts and scientists. To top it all off, the channel will be launching a pan-European competition to find out how viewers would protect themselves from an asteroid strike.

Special programming line-up

To kick start celebrations in the ten days leading up to Asteroid Day
(Saturday 20^th - Monday 29^th June) Discovery Science will broadcast asteroid themed programming for two hours a day, from 21:00 CET. On Asteroid Day, the channel will premiere “Mission Asteroid” (20:10 CET) and “51 Degrees North” (21:00 CET), the first ever scripted content to be shown on Discovery Science, written and produced by Films United.

51 Degrees North

When Damon Miller, a talented, young London filmmaker becomes involved in the disturbing research surrounding Near-Earth Objects, he stumbles onto the discovery that the Earth stands on the brink of an extra-terrestrial disaster.

Mission Asteroid

Killer asteroids are not just science fiction, the threat is real! Mission Asteroid tells the story of NASA's best and brightest and their efforts to conquer the asteroids that could destroy us, but might also be the key to our survival. US President Barack Obama boldly declared that NASA's next mission would be to near-Earth asteroids in deep space. The goal is ambitious and the stakes are high. To rise to the challenge, scientific leaders must commit themselves fully, sacrificing all else. If they fail, it could mean the annihilation of the planet.

Pan European Consumer Competition – A chance to appear on Discovery Science

As part of the Asteroid Day stunt, Discovery Science is launching a dedicated competition for viewers, asking them to upload videos or images describing how they would protect themselves from an asteroid hitting Earth. The contest is hosted on www.yourdiscoveryscience.com and entries will be open from the 1^st of June 2015 to June 30^th 2015.

Entries will be judged by a panel of experts including rock legend Brian May from the band Queen, astronaut Rusty Schweickart, from the space mission Apollo 9; and the Director of 51 Degrees North, Grigorij Richters. The winner of the competition will go on a private tour of the world’s biggest telescope in La Palma, Spain and have the opportunity to appear on Discovery Science.