Last week we shared the new Cosmos from a fan’s perspective. Now we get to hear from the makers themselves.

Host Neil deGrasse Tyson and executive producers Ann Druyan and Brannon Braga discuss how their ambitious remake of the seminal ’80s science series channels the spirit of Carl Sagan while introducing the universe to a new generation of viewers.

Speaking about Carl Sagan, the astronomer who created the original series:

“Here was a man who not only pioneered science, but ways that science reached the public,” says astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson, who’d met Sagan several times before the latter’s passing in 1996. “What Carl did was connect the science to humanity, to your mind, body, and soul. Before him, science was just something to learn, whereas Cosmos told us why it matters and how it affects us in today’s world.”

So when Tyson joined Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane, science fiction showrunner Brannon Braga, film producer Mitchell Cannold, and Ann Druyan, Sagan’s widow and co-creator of the original Cosmos, to remake the series for a new generation, it was quite a legacy to follow. They faced the daunting task of maintaining the original’s core values, while advancing the science and presentation. The resulting 13-episode resurrection of that iconic series–Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey, premiering March 9 on 10 Fox and National Geographic channels–is both a continuation and updating of that message.

Looking forward to it.