[X] My Assistant

[spfrss]

As usual, NASA is embarking names onboard DAWN for the trip to Vesta and Ceres

http://dawn.jpl.nasa.gov/DawnCommunity/Sen...teroid_blt.aspx

live long and prosper

Mauro

[mike]

I've never been entirely sure that paper and electronic devices will last longer than good old stone.. I guess someone will find out, eventually, or they won't, because they won't realize paper and electronic devices existed, don't you know..

[punkboi]

I've never been entirely sure that paper and electronic devices will last longer than good old stone..  I guess someone will find out, eventually, or they won't, because they won't realize paper and electronic devices existed, don't you know..

All I know is, it was INCREDIBLY LAME that NASA placed the CD that had the submitted names of people onboard the impactor of Deep Impact, not the spacecraft itself.

"Woohoo! My name went to outer space! Too bad it didn't last long 'cause the contraption it was on collided and was vaporized by a comet!!"

Thank you, NASA.

[ljk4-1]

All I know is, it was INCREDIBLY LAME that NASA placed the CD that had the submitted names of people onboard the impactor of Deep Impact, not the spacecraft itself.

"Woohoo!  My name went to outer space!  Too bad it didn't last long 'cause the contraption it was on collided and was vaporized by a comet!!"

Thank you, NASA. 

Yes, showing once again that this whole Put Your Name on a Space Probe bit is just a publicity stunt designed to entice a public that barely knows what mission is going on where.

I can't count how many people I told about Deep Impact who had NO CLUE it even existed, let alone what its mission was. So much for the NASA publicity/education machine.

Want to guess how many people can tell you they know that a Japanese probe is orbiting a small planetoid and is set to land on it and return a sample to Earth?
You would think that would be big news, NASA or othewise, but silly me.

And if they were so gung-ho on preserving those precious signatures, it should have been on the flyby bus.

[punkboi]

Yes, showing once again that this whole Put Your Name on a Space Probe bit is just a publicity stunt designed to entice a public that barely knows what mission is going on where. 

I can't count how many people I told about Deep Impact who had NO CLUE it even existed, let alone what its mission was.  So much for the NASA publicity/education machine. 

Want to guess how many people can tell you they know that a Japanese probe is orbiting a small planetoid and is set to land on it and return a sample to Earth?
You would think that would be big news, NASA or othewise, but silly me.

And if they were so gung-ho on preserving those precious signatures, it should have been on the flyby bus.

Don't get me wrong-- I'm pretty grateful that NASA is giving us the chance to leave a mark, temporary or otherwise, on space probes that 90% of the public have absolutely no clue about...

But supporting what you said, NASA needs to send its publicity personnel to Hollywood to learn a thing or two about marketing.

And I didn't know about that Japanese probe (err, Hayubasa?) till maybe two days ago--when I read about it on the Planetary Society's website.

[dvandorn]

...NASA needs to send its publicity personnel to Hollywood to learn a thing or two about marketing. 

That's why James Cameron (who, among other things, made the film "Titanic") was a member of the panel that reported back to NASA about how NASA could get more public support for their programs. A very large part of the recommendations of the public hearings and investigations NASA put together to support Bush's Moon, Mars and Beyond initiative was to make use of Hollywood and other professionals to make people aware of the truly great things NASA is up to...

-the other Doug