Help NASA Choose the Name For Its Next Mars Rover (nasa.gov) 80
Slashdot reader DevNull127 writes: NASA will launch a new rover to Mars this July — and 28,000 American schoolchildren wrote essays with suggestions for what NASA should name it.
NASA has now selected the top nine finalists, which they'll let the public vote on through Monday on a special web page where they're also displaying the schoolchildren's essays. "Scientists are tenacious," wrote one student who suggested the name Tenacity. "It is what keeps them thinking and experimenting... When scientists make mistakes they see what they did wrong and then try again.
"If they didn't have tenacity, Mars rovers wouldn't be a thing."
The new rover will also be carrying the names of 10,932,295 earthlings, etched onto a microchip.
Bloomberg points out that because Mars and Earth are unusually close in July and August -- a mere 39 million miles -- another rover will also be launched by the international ExoMars programme (led by the European Space Agency and the Russian Roscosmos State Corporation), while the United Arab Emirates will also try sending an orbiter to Mars, and China will deploy "an orbiter to circle the planet and a rover to land on it."
NASA has now selected the top nine finalists, which they'll let the public vote on through Monday on a special web page where they're also displaying the schoolchildren's essays. "Scientists are tenacious," wrote one student who suggested the name Tenacity. "It is what keeps them thinking and experimenting... When scientists make mistakes they see what they did wrong and then try again.
"If they didn't have tenacity, Mars rovers wouldn't be a thing."
The new rover will also be carrying the names of 10,932,295 earthlings, etched onto a microchip.
Bloomberg points out that because Mars and Earth are unusually close in July and August -- a mere 39 million miles -- another rover will also be launched by the international ExoMars programme (led by the European Space Agency and the Russian Roscosmos State Corporation), while the United Arab Emirates will also try sending an orbiter to Mars, and China will deploy "an orbiter to circle the planet and a rover to land on it."
Vision, of course (Score:4, Funny)
For a long time I've been advocating the next rover should be 2020 Vision.
Glad to see that at least ONE of the entries is "vision".
Boner McStonedface (Score:2, Insightful)
Re: (Score:2)
Mounty McMountainface FTW. [space.com]
Re: (Score:3)
1. Rover McRoveface
2. Nuclear Wessel
3. RRS Sir David Attenborough
4. Wesley Crusher
5. Pussy Wagon
Re: (Score:2)
Re:Vision, of course (Score:4, Insightful)
One word: Hindsight.
Re: Vision, of course (Score:2)
Love it. Both inspirational and punny, and a lot better than the unoriginal Thing McThingface that wasn't going to be accepted anyway.
Isn't that an American saying though? (Score:2)
(Not that I have anything against an American rover being named a pun off an American saying. Just that the joke will be lost on most of the rest of the world.)
Re: (Score:2)
The rest of the world uses 6/6 (meters instead of feet) or just 1.0.
Opticians might but there's no equivalent saying so at least in English speaking countries they'd let it stay, I don't think anyone in the UK or Australia would have trouble understanding it. For countries that dub series/movies it depends on whether it's re-written or directly translated, but in my experience they often translate it quite literally. So I think quite a lot of people could recognize 20/20 vision even if it's not a "native" expression.
Re: (Score:3)
20/20 vision refers to being able to read a line from 20 feet that someone with perfect vision can read from 20 feet.
No. 20/20 vision means you can see what a person with normal vision can see. Where "normal" is defined as 20/20 vision.
Plenty of people have better than 20/20 vision, especially young children. My son has 20/10 vision. He can see from 20 feet what a person with 20/20 vision can see from 10.
Someone with perfect vision can read the chart from the edge of the observable universe.
Re: (Score:3)
Well, not quite THAT far away. The diffraction limit kicks in. So even with "perfect" vision, in the visible part of the spectrum you couldn't resolve anything that subtends less than about half an arcmin. So reading the chart from ~200 ft. away is probably a hard physical limit.
Re: Vision, of course (Score:1)
Rovie McRoveFace (Score:5, Funny)
They just gotta
Re: (Score:2)
That's soo a few years ago.
Get with the current theme.
It is going to be called Tasha Yar.
Re: (Score:1)
I shall anoint you "Faddy McFadFace".
Re: (Score:2)
That's soo a few years ago.
Get with the current theme.
It is going to be called Tasha Yar.
Why? So it can get needlessly axed off early in the second season before anyone really cares?
Re: (Score:2)
To pave the way for the Space Force, duh.
To locate any dangerous black puddles before we send anybody else.
Because she already knows how to use the transporter.
Re: Rovie McRoveFace (Score:2)
I was thinking more Quaid, Quato, "Start the reactor" or "Get your ass to Mars"
Re: (Score:2)
In terms of learning and children, curiosity is the most important trait to learn and cultivate.
But we alll know this is a smokescreen, as there is only one name the will insure they continue to get Funding. The rover is going have to painted gold and have a big T on it.
Red Rover (Score:5, Funny)
Rovy MacRoveface obviously (Score:1)
...or Colbert.
What else?
Re: (Score:2)
...or Colbert.
What else?
"Epstein Didn't Kill Himself"
Thread's over everyone (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
...or Colbert.
What else?
Elon's bitch
Re: Rovy MacRoveface obviously (Score:3)
What else?
Marsy McMarsface.
However, Firststep would better define the commitment to colonize Mars. Along with the rover, a cache of seeds and simple garden tools will solidify the commitment. If it's there, then we should do something about it.
Re: Gelsacs. (Score:2)
I miss those press releases from K'breel.
Pre-approved names only, I see. (Score:2)
They anticipated it.
Face it (Score:5, Funny)
At least be a little creative, Rovey McRoverfaces.
Red Rover McRoverface
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:3)
That is the oppoaite of creative. (Score:2, Funny)
That makes you a copy machine on legs.
Then again, this *is* what this generstion considers to be "creative".
Parroting memes and creating recreations and reciting the Mario theme for the trillionth time... on a spoon instrument. "SO creative!" "Genius!" "Almost as good as a robot!"
Kill me.
(No, actually, take the complementary set of that!)
Re:Face it (Score:4, Informative)
Unfortunately you only get to vote from their selection, almost as if they knew it the result would be Rovey McRoverface otherwise.
The choices are:
1 Endurance
2 Fortitude
3 Perseverance
4 Vision
5 Promise
6 Tenacity
7 Clarity
8 Ingenuity
9 Courage
Courage sounds like something Apple would make. Ingenuity, well maybe the first one but by this point they have the hardest part (landing) down to an art. Endurance might jinx it. The rest are all kinda generic TBH, I'd have gone with something that alludes to humans arriving later, Precursor or Scout or something. Vanguard is a cool word but they probably want to avoid military connotations. Frontier perhaps.
Re: (Score:1)
wrt your sig: Feminism is the radical notion that women are men
Re: (Score:2)
Vanguard has been used already, very early on. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/... [wikipedia.org]
I like tenacity.
Re: (Score:2)
Courage the Cowardly Rover!
Re: Face it (Score:2)
their selection
It's too bad that my selection wasn't included, none of the above.
Re: (Score:1)
unfortunately not on the list
Considering what happened this week... (Score:1)
Threre's only one choice (Score:2)
K'Breel's bane!
Rover McRover Face (Score:4)
Nothing else comes close
I got one, I got one ... (Score:3)
Re: (Score:2)
Since V'ger is already taken... (Score:5, Insightful)
...R'ver.
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It's not rigged. (Score:2)
That's the worst part.
"People" ... and I use that term very loosely ... really "want" such a stupid name.
I think it reflects them well.
Didn't he reside on Mars? (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Easy Answer (Score:3)
As with all public voting, the top answer is going to be something like, "Rover McRoveyface."
Re: (Score:3)
As with all public voting, the top answer is going to be something like, "Rover McRoveyface."
I'm OK with that.
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As with all public voting, the top answer is going to be something like, "Rover McRoveyface."
But this is US schoolchildren, not sarcastic Brits: it'll probably become the "MAGA Space Force Marz Tank" instead.
Obviously Rovy McRoveface (Score:2)
To show the full extent of how retarded this species is.
Rovey McRoverFace (Score:2)
Corporate sponsorship: Ford F150 Mars Raptor (Score:2)
Corporate sponsorship would pay for a sizable chunk of the mission budget.
Almost a drone, so... (Score:2)
How about Mawhrin-Skel? If it helps popularize the Culture books, so much the better!
Re: (Score:2)
Any other drone, please. Mawhrin-Skel was an unstable asshole who threatened and blackmailed Gurgeh. Unless you're trying to say something about the Mars Rover hardware.
Name this one Podkayne. If they ever have a model that goes to Mars, stays there for years and is then brought back, name it Smith.
The Choices (Score:2)
Here are the names, if anyone is curious:
CLARITY
PROMISE
COURAGE
INGENUITY
VISION
ENDURANCE
PERSEVERANCE
FORTITUDE
TENACITY
Given in a random order each time you load the page. Nice.
None of those names are quite right (Score:2)
Why that's easy (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
..Mars is basically the only hope for human survival at this point...
That is so, in the sense that it is just as "nil" as everything else. The technology needed to make a survivable base on Mars would be so much more difficult that having an equally liveable-in pod here on earth. Even after everything turns to shit here, with a global climate catastrophe (basic consequence of the "tragedy of the commons" scenario that will play out pretty soon here) someone will probably batten down the hatches and survive in a pod for some stretch of miserable time before giving in to the i
A good (Score:2)
black name like Rondale or D'Shawn or Sinutab.
Dusty McRedeye (Score:2)
Your friend on Mars - ready for it's own Disney cartoon.
Machine learning (Score:2)
The Normandy. (Score:2)
...
I should go.
Splat (Score:1)
Re: (Score:2)
My entry (Score:1)
It'll be great to hear all the news about Elon Musk on its way to Mars, Elon Musk roaming around Mars, etc.
I've got it (Score:2)
Podkayne
Dejah Thoris (Score:2)
nt
Classic Sci-Fi Names (Score:2)
2. John Carter
3. Valentine Michael Smith
4. Kim Stanley Robinson
5. Malacandra
6. Total Recall