Posted: 09/21/2014 12:01:00 AM MDT
As NASA's Mars MAVEN enters orbit around the Red Planet on Sunday, a select group of everyday folks will take on a very special mission: To tell the MAVEN story over social media.
NASA Social events, which launched in 2008 under the moniker NASA Tweetup, gather people to live tweet or otherwise socially share a launch, landing or other NASA experience while rubbing shoulders with the scientists and astronauts who make it all happen.
'It allows people to get behind the walls where most of the time the general public can't go,' NASA social media manager John Yembrick said. 'It gives people that personal experience behind the scenes and helps tell the story.'
On Sunday, 25 people selected from across the U.S. by NASA's social media team will gather at the University of Colorado at Boulder's Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics , to meet the scientists responsible for MAVEN's science operations.
They'll then go to MAVEN's Flight Operations Center at Lockheed Martin Space Systems in Littleton, where they'll see spacecraft under development and watch MAVEN enter Mars' orbit.
And, of course, they'll be tweeting, Facebooking and Instagramming the entire time for the world to see.
Participants are vetted by NASA's social media team, but they aren't all necessarily space nerds. They do have one thing in common, however - their dedication, said Aries Keck ( @Aries), NASA social team member.
'They might be a musician from Brooklyn, but they will know the (spacecraft's) exact deacceleration rate better than I will because they're just so into it.'
NASA has never before held a social media event in Denver. Many of those chosen are Coloradans, but there are several flying in from around the country. One of them is Ryan Ziolko, left, ( @MediumFidelity), from Illinois, who could be described as a serial NASA Socialer.
'I caught the launch-viewing bug with (Space Shuttle Atlantis launch) STS-117. After attending the launch, I began following other Twitter uses with the same addiction/ailment/hobby. I've been incredibly fortunate to attend several NASA Socials,' Ziolko said in an e-mail. 'I've contributed my fair share to the central Florida economy, traveling to see numerous launches. This is an expensive hobby.'
Donna Fasano, right, ( @donnadidit) of Denver learned about the event on Twitter and immediately dived headfirst into the online credentialing process. Fasano is a self-employed fabricator who designs and makes laser-engraved items with images and puns involving space, science, geek humor and literature.
She said she did a 'happy dance' when she got credentialed for the event.
'I'm very interested to see what this will inspire me to research and make,' she said. 'That's the next part that this will help me do. Mars is great, but what things will this inspire me for? I'm excited to find out.'
The MAVEN event will be broadcast live from Lockheed on NASA TV. People can also follow the event on Twitter through @NASASocial's MAVEN Arrives at Mars list, on our live blog, and with hashtags #JourneyToMars and #Maven on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
Follow along online
The MAVEN event will be broadcast live from Lockheed on NASA TV. People can also follow the event on Twitter through @NASASocial's MAVEN Arrives at Mars list, on the live blog at denverpost.com, and with hashtags #JourneyToMars and #Maven on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
Entities 0 Name: NASA Count: 12 1 Name: Instagram Count: 2 2 Name: Denver Count: 2 3 Name: Lockheed Count: 2 4 Name: Boulder Count: 1 5 Name: John Yembrick Count: 1 6 Name: Illinois Count: 1 7 Name: Lockheed Martin Space Systems Count: 1 8 Name: Donna Fasano Count: 1 9 Name: Florida Count: 1 10 Name: Littleton Count: 1 11 Name: Ziolko Count: 1 12 Name: Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics Count: 1 13 Name: Fasano Count: 1 14 Name: Brooklyn Count: 1 15 Name: NASA Socialer Count: 1 16 Name: Aries Keck Count: 1 17 Name: U.S. Count: 1 18 Name: University of Colorado Count: 1 19 Name: Ryan Ziolko Count: 1 Related 0 Url: http://ift.tt/1qQPH0K Title: Pair of Spacecraft -- Plus Comet -- Arriving at Mars : DNews Description: A new investigation in the quest to learn if Mars ever supported life begins this weekend with the arrival of NASA's MAVEN spacecraft. Unlike previous orbiters, landers and rovers, MAVEN's focus is on Mars' upper atmosphere. Scientists suspect gases in the upper atmosphere are being stripped away by the solar wind and other phenomena, processes that likely have been underway for eons.
Post a Comment for "NASA picks 25 to live tweet MAVEN event from mission HQ in Colorado"