Ryan’s World Teams with NASA to Promote STEM Learning

The pocket.watch series Ryan’s World and its star Ryan Kaji have joined forces with NASA to promote STEM learning and space exploration.

Kaji interviewed NASA’s Megan McArthur and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency’s (JAXA) astronaut Akihiko Hoshide, who are currently living and working aboard the International Space Station. Kaji and his family also visited the Mars rover Perseverance’s twin, OPTIMISM, at the Jet Propulsion Lab in Pasadena, California.

The conversation with the astronauts took place live on July 22, and was streamed on both NASA’s YouTube channel and the Ryan’s World YouTube channel. At the Jet Propulsion Lab, Kaji and his family interviewed members of the development team and interacted with the full-scale engineering twin model of NASA’s Mars rover and the Mars helicopter. Fans will be able to watch these videos and learn about STEM concepts on Kaji’s YouTube and social media channels.

Kerry Tucker, chief marketing and franchise officer at pocket.watch, said: “Becoming a YouTuber today is as popular as becoming an astronaut was for previous generations. We recognize pocket.watch and Ryan’s World’s unique position to promote interest in science, technology and space exploration through this invaluable opportunity with NASA. We look forward to reigniting careers in STEM as NASA heads back to the moon and its eventual journey outward to Mars.”

Shion Kaji, Ryan’s father and founder of the family’s production company Sunlight Entertainment, said: “Educational videos, including science experiments and history lessons, are a huge part of the content we produce for the Ryan’s World YouTube channel, so we’re excited for this opportunity of a lifetime with NASA to deliver more fun learning content that kids can look forward to. We know a lot of kids look up to Ryan, so continuing to provide videos that spark new interest means so much to us!”