You have until Nov 1st to have your name sent to Mars aboard NASA’s InSight Lander
While I don’t anticipate ever setting foot on Mars, I can at least get my name sent there — thanks to the fine folks at NASA!
By reserving your boarding pass, your name will be etched onto a microchip and placed aboard NASA’s InSight Lander.
Get your boarding pass now! You have until November 1st, 2017.
Just like our Earthly aviation, you can earn frequent flier points which reflect your personal participation in NASA’s Mars exploration. The points accrue over multiple missions and decades. While you may not be able to convert your points into Mars miles, you can at least get some bragging rights as a Mars frequent flier.
go.nasa.gov/InSightPass
The Mission
The InSight mission’s purpose is to explore the evolutionary formation of rocky planets, including Earth, by investigating the interior structure and processes of Mars. Pretty cool, huh?
Once the spacecraft lands, it will set down a series of sensors to measure:
- Marsquakes
- Meteor Strikes
- Overall seismic energy
Additionally, the spacecraft will deploy a self-hammering heat probe, which will burrow deeper into Mars than any previous mission.
Mission Dates
- Launch Opportunity Opens: May 5, 2018
- Landing: Nov. 26, 2018
- Surface operations: 728 days / 708 sols
Learn more about the mission here
NASA Insight | NASA.gov
Why is this cool?
You may think that sending your name hurdling through space millions of miles away isn’t cool (and if you do… I question what you actually think is cool…).
Space is a sense of wonder for us. It is something that is mysterious, yet fuels our intellectual curiosity and sense of adventure. The more people that can get excited and involved in NASA’s missions, the more we can inspire a younger generation to embrace their curiosity and love science.