NASA invites the public to sign a poem that will travel to Jupiter

NASA has launched a campaign for people to put their names to an original poem dedicated to the Europa Clipper mission before the spacecraft begins its journey to Jupiter's moon Europa in October 2024.

The poem and names will be a message in a bottle, traveling billions of kilometers as the mission investigates whether the ocean believed to lie beneath Europa's icy crust could support life.

As part of NASA's "Message in a Bottle" campaign, names received before the last minute of December 31, 2023, will be engraved on a microchip, along with the poem, written by American poet Ada Limón and titled " In Praise of Mystery: A Poem for Europa".

"'Message in a Bottle'" is the perfect convergence of science, art, and technology, and we are excited to share with the world the opportunity to be a part of Europa Clipper's journey," said Nicola Fox, associate administrator of the Science Mission at The NASA.

Europa Clipper

The main scientific objective of the Europa Clipper mission is to determine if there are places below the surface of Jupiter's Moon Europa that could harbor life.

The mission's three main science goals are to understand the nature of the ice sheet and the ocean beneath it, along with the composition and geology of the moon.

The mission's detailed exploration of Europa will help scientists better understand the astrobiological potential for habitable worlds beyond our planet.