In early March 2022, NASA opened a free invitation to the public: sign up, and your name will ride along on Artemis I, the first uncrewed test flight of the Space Launch System rocket and Orion capsule around the Moon. The names are stored on a flash drive aboard Orion, and each participant receives a virtual boarding pass guarded by a personal PIN. It is a small, almost playful gesture, but it echoes an old human impulse to leave a mark on distant journeys, while the flight itself is a patient step toward returning people to the lunar surface, with no launch date yet fixed.
NASA Will Fly Your Name Around the Moon on the Artemis I Mission
The passengers, in effect, will be the names on the drive.
Mark
So what exactly is NASA offering here?
Mimi
A free spot for your name on the Artemis I flight. It gets saved to a flash drive carried on the Orion capsule around the Moon.
Mark
What do you get in return?
Mimi
A virtual boarding pass with your name and flight details. You set a four-to-seven-digit pin to open it later.
Luke
Worth saying plainly: the name travels, not you. This is an uncrewed flight.
Mark
Right, so what is the mission actually testing?
Mimi
It's the first uncrewed flight test of the Space Launch System rocket and the Orion spacecraft. NASA calls it the first of increasingly complex missions toward a lasting human presence at the Moon.
Luke
And the line about landing the first woman and first person of color is NASA's stated aim for the broader program, not something this flight does.
Mark
When does it launch?
Mimi
From Kennedy Space Center in Florida, later this year, but there's no precise date.
Luke
That's the real unknown. Anything firmer than 'later this year' isn't in the reporting, and the source doesn't say how many people have signed up.
Il Polso
- NASA has opened a free sign-up that lets ordinary people send their names around the Moon on an uncrewed flight.
- Each name is saved to a flash drive riding inside the Orion capsule, with no one aboard to hold it.
- Participants must choose a 4-to-7-digit PIN to reclaim their virtual boarding pass later, so memory becomes part of the ritual.
- Artemis I is a test of the Space Launch System and Orion, and it stands as a prelude to crewed lunar landings.
- The launch from Kennedy Space Center is expected later this year, but the exact date remains unsettled.
In early March 2022, NASA opened a free invitation to the public: sign up, and your name will ride along on Artemis I, the first uncrewed test flight of the Space Launch System rocket and Orion capsule around the Moon. The names are stored on a flash drive aboard Orion, and each participant receives a virtual boarding pass guarded by a personal PIN. It is a small, almost playful gesture, but it echoes an old human impulse to leave a mark on distant journeys, while the flight itself is a patient step toward returning people to the lunar surface, with no launch date yet fixed.
NASA has made an offer that asks nothing but a few minutes at a keyboard: sign up, and your name will travel around the Moon. The agency announced it on Twitter, saying it was preparing for Artemis I and wanted to bring people along.
The process is simple and free. Names are saved on a flash drive that will fly aboard the Orion capsule. Each registrant receives a virtual boarding pass with their name and flight details, protected by a PIN of four to seven digits that they will need to return to it later.
Artemis I is the first uncrewed flight test of the Space Launch System rocket and the Orion spacecraft, so no astronauts will be aboard. NASA calls it the first in a series of increasingly complex missions meant to build a lasting human presence on the Moon, and a step toward landing the first woman and the first person of color there.
The launch is planned for Kennedy Space Center in Florida later this year, though no precise date has been set. For now, the only action is the sign-up page, and the thing to watch is when the rocket finally lifts.
NASA has put out an invitation that costs nothing and requires only a few minutes at a keyboard: sign up, and your name will travel around the Moon. The agency announced the offer on Twitter, writing that it was getting ready for Artemis I and wanted to take people along with it.
The mechanics are simple. Names of participants will be saved on a flash drive, and that drive will ride aboard the Orion capsule on the Artemis I mission, with no charge to the person signing up. Anyone interested can register on NASA's website, where they receive a virtual boarding pass bearing their name and flight details.
There is one small step of security built in. Users are asked to enter a pin code of four to seven digits, which they will need later to get back into their boarding pass. Anyone who signs up will want to remember it.
The flight itself matters beyond the keepsake. NASA describes Artemis I as the first uncrewed flight test of the Space Launch System rocket together with the Orion spacecraft. No astronauts will be on board; the passengers, in effect, will be the names on the drive.
The agency frames the mission as the opening of a longer effort. In its words, Artemis I is the first in a series of increasingly complex missions meant to build a long-term human presence at the Moon for decades to come. NASA also said the flight paves the way toward landing the first woman and the first person of color on the Moon.
The launch is set to take place at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The Hill's report says the mission is planned for later this year, but there is not a precise launch date, so the timing remains open.
For now, the practical step for anyone curious is the sign-up page on NASA's website. The thing to watch is the launch date, which NASA has not yet fixed.
Citazioni salienti
We're getting ready for Artemis I, and we want to take you with us.— NASA, on Twitter
The flight paves the way toward landing the first woman and the first person of color on the Moon.— NASA
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