NASA has earned three Webby awards and five People’s Voice awards in the 26th annual Webby Awards Competition, recognizing excellence in online communications. The awards are NASA’s 24th, 25th, and 26th Webby Awards since 1998 and represent the breadth of the agency’s digital communications, including NASA’s first interactive graphic novel.
NASA’s 2022 Webby award-winning entries, selected by a panel of judges, are:
- First Woman – NASA’s Promise For Humanity – “First Woman” tells the tale of Callie Rodriguez, the first woman to explore the Moon, aiming to capture our attention and unite the next generation of explorers. NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate/National Institute of Aerospace (Webby winner for Best Integrated Mobile Experience)
- NASA’s Global Climate Change – The latest news, features, and data about our changing planet. This is the site’s third Webby Award, and it has also won four People’s Voice awards. NASA/Jet Propulsion Laboratory/Caltech (Webby winner for Best Website, Sustainability & Environment)
- NASA’s Solar System Exploration – Launched in October 1998, the Solar System Exploration website is a real-time, living encyclopedia of the robotic exploration of our solar system. This is the site’s second Webby Award, and it has also received four People’s Voice awards. NASA/JPL/Caltech (Webby winner for Websites and Mobile Sites - Science)
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Alongside the juried Webby Awards, which are selected by members of the Academy, the winners of the People’s Voice Awards are determined by a public vote. Five NASA projects received the honor of winning People’s Voice awards:
- NASA’s Social Media: Creating a Community of Explorers – With millions of followers, NASA’s flagship social media accounts provide the agency with a collective audience that spans platforms and diverse groups of people. This is the program’s fourth People’s Voice Award, and they have also won four Webby Awards. NASA Office of Communications (People’s Voice Award winner for Best Overall Social Presence - Brand)
- NASA’s Global Climate Change – Also chosen for a Webby award, this JPL-managed site tracks real-time data about how Earth’s climate is changing. NASA/JPL/Caltech (People’s Voice Award winner for Websites and Mobile Sites - Sustainability & Environment)
- NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory Virtual Tour – Takes visitors across the 168-acre laboratory, including mission control, spacecraft assembly clean rooms, and the Mars Yard. Each location is embedded with dozens of points of interest – including videos, fun facts, and images. NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (People’s Voice Award winner for Virtual & Remote - General: Science & Education)
- NASA’s Curious Universe: James Webb Mini-Series – This four-part narrative podcast mini-series explores the science, engineering, people, and launch of the James Webb Space Telescope. NASA Audio (People’s Voice Award winner for Podcasts - Limited-Series & Specials: Health, Science & Education)
- First Woman – NASA’s Promise For Humanity – Also selected for a Webby award for Best Integrated Mobile Experience, this 40-page graphic novel about the fictional first woman to explore the Moon highlights NASA technologies that make exploration possible. NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate/National Institute of Aerospace (People’s Voice Award winner for Best Integrated Mobile Experience)
NASA also made substantial contributions to National Geographic’s Mars Rover Augmented Reality Experience with NASA, which earned a People’s Voice award for Best Use of Filters/Lenses.
This is the second Webby win for NASA’s Solar System Exploration website, which also won three People’s Voice awards in previous years. NASA’s Global Climate Change website has earned a total of three Webby awards and four People’s Voice awards. Overall, NASA projects have won 26 Webby awards and 42 People’s Voice awards since the contest’s inception in 1998.
Other NASA Nominees
Overall, NASA projects were nominated for eight Webby awards this year. The agency’s other nominees included:
- NASA’s Curious Universe: A Day in Space – This special episode features sound recordings and personal reflections collected by astronauts onboard the International Space Station. NASA Audio (Nominated for Podcasts - Individual Episodes: Science & Education)
- “Snacktime with NASA” – This video series takes viewers on a delicious tour of NASA’s role in agriculture here on Earth and in space, with recipes bringing food from space to your plate. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (Nominated for Social Content Series & Campaigns: Education & Discovery)
Four other NASA properties were chosen as honorees in six categories. Webby honorees are recognized for their excellence but are not eligible for the Webby Award or the People’s Voice Award.
- NASA Astromaterials 3D – A virtual library for exploration and research of NASA’s space rock collections. NASA Johnson Space Center (Honored selection for Websites and Mobile Sites - Features & Design: Best Data Visualization)
- NASA’s Exoplanet Exploration Social – Looking for planets and life beyond our solar system. NASA/JPL/Caltech (Honored selection for General Social: Education & Discovery)
- NASA’s #SolarTour: A Journey To Touch The Sun – NASA’s #SolarTour took our audiences on a voyage from Earth to the Sun, culminating in the announcement that the Parker Solar Probe had finally “touched” the Sun. NASA/ADNET Systems Inc. (Honored selection for Social - Social Content Series & Campaigns: Education & Discovery, and Best Social Campaign)
- We Asked NASA Scientists and Astronauts “What is your Favorite Hubble Image?” – NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center (Honored selection for Social - Social Video: Education & Discovery, and Video - General Video: Science & Education)
NASA also made substantial contributions to two other award-winning selections:
- The Lego “Build to Launch” series, which Lego Education worked with NASA to create (People’s Voice winner for Virtual and Remote Health & Science Series)
- Google’s “A Mars Rover Looks Back” (Webby Winner and People's Voice Winner for Video - Branded Entertainment - Music and People’s Voice Award for Social Video)
About the Webbys
The Webbys are an annual awards competition hosted and presented by the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences. According to its website, last year’s Webby Awards received nearly 13,500 entries from nearly all 50 states and 70 countries worldwide.
Winners in each category will be honored in an awards ceremony held in New York on May 16, 2022.
See the full list of past NASA Webby Award winners and nominees.