Space travel is clearly for astronauts and the super rich, but NASA has found a way the rest of us can claim our spot among the cosmos.
“You can send your name to the Moon,” agency officials wrote in a June 12 Facebook post.
“How? Sign up to get your boarding pass and join the nearly 3 million ‘passengers’ flying around the Moon aboard #Artemis I this year.”
Names can be added to the list by visiting Nasa.gov/wearegoing.
NASA says the names of all 3 million “passengers” will circle the Moon on a flash drive aboard the Orion spacecraft and the trip will cover 1,300,000 miles.
While that definitely qualifies as cheap seats, the occasion will be historic at multiple levels.
NASA says the uncrewed Artemis I qualifies as our first step toward building “a long-term human presence at the Moon for decades to come.”
“The flight paves the way toward landing the first woman and the first person of color on the Moon!” NASA reports.
“We will collaborate with commercial and international partners and establish the first long-term presence on the Moon. Then, we will use what we learn on and around the Moon to take the next giant leap: sending the first astronauts to Mars.”
A launch date remains vague, but a “wet dress rehearsal test” is June 18 at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Updates on the mission are posted at: Blogs.nasa.gov/artemis/.
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