NASA have paid a small tribute to one of our favourite shows, The Orville, by using several character names and a fictional off world medical school in an example table in an official document.

ROSES - Research Opportunities in Space and Earth Sciences - 2023. It's not quite as interesting as a talking flower voiced by Bruce Willis but Seth and the rest of The Orville gang are probably pleased.

Copied below.

Example Table of Personnel and Work Effort

* A letter of support is provided from the (foreign organization) Saturnian School of Medical Sciences for Dr. Claire Finn, participating at no cost to this proposal.

º The Graduate student from Moclan College is funded by a FINESST award and thus participating at no cost to this proposal.

Yes, they misspelled Kelly but let's not focus on that.

On one level this is just a cute nod from a fan.

On another it is the western world's premiere space agency and a major government department making that reference in a publicly available document.

At minimum this is recognition of its cultural impact and at best an endorsement.

Cheers NASA.

While there's still no news on the season 4 renewal front we did notice Disney+ listing The Orville among new releases.

So yes, season 3 has made its way there and subscribers can now enjoy it ad free.

It also continues to be available with ads on SBS On Demand.

[ Main Image: The Orville - Deflectors - Bruce Willis, Jessica Szohr and Adrianne Palicki. Credit: Hulu via IMDb.com. ]

References

Donaldson, Mark (March 18, 2023). The Orville's NASA Tribute Is A Good Sign For Season 4. ScreenRant.

NASA (February 14, 2023). Research Opportunities in Space and Earth Sciences - 2023.