My Name is in Space
Posted on May 16th, 2010
Kind of a cool link I stumbled across today…my name is on the Stardust spacecraft.
I’d long-forgotten about this.
Back in 1998, I had the opportunity to have my name inscribed on a microchip on the Stardust spacecraft. The spacecraft was designed to go to a comet, collect dust, and return it to Earth. This mission was successful.
Kind of cool–especially since one microchip will remain on the spacecraft, and one was returned with the collected dust. Being a part of history, even with such a small thing (having one’s name inscribed on a spacecraft) is an amazing feeling.
Funny how you can participate in something, but forget about it until a dozen years later. Ironically enough, I remember reading news articles about the return of the collector, but had forgotten the small detail that my name was inscribed on the craft that collected it. It’s a small measure of immortality, to know my name will float in space for millenia to come.