NASA is offering space enthusiasts a chance to make history by sending their names to the Moon.
Aptly named “Send Your Name with VIPER”, the initiative allows participants to immortalise their names on the Moon, a process facilitated through the dedicated link nasa.gov/send-your-name-with-viper. The deadline – March 15.
But this isn’t just a symbolic gesture. Participants can craft a virtual keepsake – a personalised boarding pass to accompany VIPER on its lunar odyssey.
The collected names will be affixed to the rover, becoming part of a cosmic mission to explore uncharted lunar territories.
Scheduled for a groundbreaking mission to the lunar South Pole, VIPER is not merely a rover; it’s a pioneering force set to unravel the Moon’s water mysteries.
This mission lays the groundwork for the historic Artemis programme, where the first woman and the first person of colour will land on the Moon.
Nicola Fox, associate administrator of the Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters, expressed excitement about the venture.
“Our names will ride along as VIPER navigates across the rugged terrain of the lunar South Pole, gathering valuable data,” she shared.
VIPER’s project manager, Daniel Andrews, highlighted the mission’s transformative potential, calling it a “game-changer”.
It marks the first-of-its-kind, expanding our understanding of lunar resources crucial for sustaining a prolonged human presence on the Moon.
Scheduled for late 2024, Astrobotic Technologies’ Griffin Mission One will deliver VIPER to the lunar surface, launching aboard a SpaceX Falcon Heavy from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.
Armed with solar panels and batteries, VIPER is set for a 100-day mission, surviving extreme lunar conditions while collecting data on lunar ice and potential resources.
This marks another chapter in NASA’s inclusive approach, following previous opportunities for names to accompany missions like Artemis I, various Mars spacecraft, and the upcoming Europa Clipper mission.
Humanity, it seems, is leaving an indelible mark on the cosmos.
