Credit: NASA Ames/Daniel RutterJoin NASAs VIPER mission by sending your name to the Moon! The rover will embark on a mission to the lunar South Pole to unwind the mysteries of the Moons water and much better comprehend the environment where NASA plans to land the first woman and first person of color under its Artemis program.As part of the “Send Your Name with VIPER” project, NASA will accept names gotten before 11:59 p.m. EST, March 15. Credit: NASA Ames/Daniel RutterNASAs Invitation for Global Participation”With VIPER, we are going to study and check out parts of the Moons surface area no one has ever been to in the past– and with this project, we are welcoming the world to be part of that dangerous yet satisfying journey,” said Nicola Fox, associate administrator, Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington.
Illustration of NASAs Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover (VIPER) on the surface of the Moon. VIPER will get a close-up view of the place and concentration of ice and other resources at the Moons South Pole, bringing us a substantial step closer to NASAs supreme goal of a long-term existence on the Moon– making it possible to ultimately explore Mars and beyond. Credit: NASA Ames/Daniel RutterJoin NASAs VIPER mission by sending your name to the Moon! This public engagement campaign belongs to NASAs wider expedition efforts, including the Artemis program, and aims to study lunar water and resources with contributions from numerous NASA centers and partners.NASA is inviting people to send their names to the surface area of the Moon aboard the companys first robotic lunar rover, VIPER– short for Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover. The rover will embark on a mission to the lunar South Pole to decipher the mysteries of the Moons water and better comprehend the environment where NASA prepares to land the very first lady and first individual of color under its Artemis program.As part of the “Send Your Name with VIPER” project, NASA will accept names gotten before 11:59 p.m. EST, March 15. As soon as gathered, the agency will take the names and attach them to the rover.To add your name, visit: https://www.nasa.gov/send-your-name-with-viperThe website also allows individuals to develop and download a virtual souvenir– a boarding pass to the VIPER mission including their name– to celebrate the experience. Individuals are encouraged to share their demands on social networks utilizing the hashtag #SendYourName. Animation of NASAs Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover (VIPER) on the surface area of the Moon. Credit: NASA Ames/Daniel RutterNASAs Invitation for Global Participation”With VIPER, we are going to study and explore parts of the Moons surface area nobody has actually ever been to in the past– and with this project, we are inviting the world to be part of that risky yet satisfying journey,” said Nicola Fox, associate administrator, Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “Just believe: Our names will ride along as VIPER navigates across the rugged surface of the lunar South Pole and collects important information that will help us better understand the history of the Moon and the environment where we plan to send Artemis astronauts.”This campaign is like other NASA jobs that have made it possible for tens of countless individuals to send their names to ride together with Artemis I, a number of Mars spacecraft, and the agencys upcoming Europa Clipper mission. It draws from the agencys long tradition of shipping inspirational messages on spacecraft that have actually explored our solar system and beyond.VIPER: A Groundbreaking Lunar Mission”Our VIPER is a game-changer,” stated Daniel Andrews, VIPERs job manager at NASAs Ames Research Center in Californias Silicon Valley. “Its the very first mission of its kind, expanding our understanding of where lunar resources might be gathered to support a long-term human existence on the Moon.”In late 2024, Astrobotic Technologies Griffin Mission One is set up to provide VIPER to the lunar surface after introducing aboard a SpaceX Falcon Heavy from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. As soon as there, VIPER will count on its solar panels and batteries for its approximately 100-day mission to endure extreme temperatures and tough lighting conditions, while powering a suite of science instruments created to collect information about the attributes and concentrations of lunar ice and other possible resources.NASAs Broader Moon and Mars Exploration GoalsNASAs VIPER delivery belongs to its CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) initiative under the Artemis program. With CLPS, in addition to with human expedition near the lunar South Pole, NASA will develop a long-lasting cadence of Moon missions in preparation for sending out the first astronauts to Mars.The rover is part of the LDEP (Lunar Discovery and Exploration Program), handled by the Science Mission Directorate at the firms head office, and is carried out through the Exploration Science Strategy and Integration Office. In addition to handling the objective, NASA Ames leads the objectives science, systems engineering, real-time rover surface area operations, and flight software application. The rover hardware is designed and constructed by NASAs Johnson Space Center in Houston, while the instruments are supplied by NASA Ames, the companys Kennedy Space Center in Florida, and industrial partner Honeybee Robotics in Altadena, California.