Nine Finalists Chosen in NASA's Mars 2020 Rover Naming Contest
January 23, 2020 | NASAEstimated reading time: 2 minutes
Members of the public have an opportunity to vote for their favorite name for NASA's next Mars rover. The nine candidate names were made possible by the "Name the Rover" essay contest, which invited students in kindergarten through 12th grade from across the United States to come up with a fitting name for NASA's Mars 2020 rover and write a short essay about it.
More than 28,000 essays were submitted after the contest began on Aug. 28 last year. A diverse panel of nearly 4,700 judge volunteers, composed of educators, professionals and space enthusiasts from all around the country, narrowed the pool down to 155 deserving semifinalists from every state and territory in the country.
"Thousands of students have shared their ideas for a name that will do our rover and the team proud," said Lori Glaze, director of NASA's Planetary Science Division in Washington. "Thousands more volunteered time to be part of the judging process. Now it is the public's opportunity to become involved and express their excitement for their favorites of the final nine."
The nine finalists (submission name, grade level, student name and state) are:
- Endurance, K-4, Oliver Jacobs of Virgina
- Tenacity, K-4, Eamon Reilly of Pennsylvania
- Promise, K-4, Amira Shanshiry of Massachusetts
- Perseverance, 5-8, Alexander Mather of Virginia
- Vision, 5-8, Hadley Green of Mississippi
- Clarity, 5-8, Nora Benitez of California
- Ingenuity, 9-12, Vaneeza Rupani of Alabama
- Fortitude, 9-12, Anthony Yoon of Oklahoma
- Courage, 9-12, Tori Gray of Louisiana
The poll opens online today and will remain open through Jan. 27 until 9 p.m. PST (midnight EST). The results of the poll will be a consideration in the final naming selection. For the poll, visit:
After the poll closes, the nine student finalists will discuss their rover names with a panel including Glaze, NASA astronaut Jessica Watkins, NASA-JPL rover driver Nick Wiltsie and Clara Ma, who earned the honor of naming the Mars rover Curiosity as a sixth-grade student in 2009.
The contest will conclude in early March, when the rover's new name - and the student behind it - are announced. The grand prize winner will also receive an invitation to see the spacecraft launch in July 2020 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.
The currently unnamed rover is a robotic scientist weighing more than 2,300 pounds (1,000 kilograms). It will search for signs of past microbial life, characterize the planet's climate and geology, collect samples for future return to Earth and pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet. Scheduled to launch in July or August 2020, the rover will land in Jezero Crater on Feb. 18, 2021.
The naming contest partnership is part of a Space Act Agreement in educational and public outreach efforts between NASA, Battelle of Columbus, Ohio, and Future Engineers of Burbank, California.
For complete contest and prize details, including a full listing of the 155 state/territory semifinalists, visit:
Suggested Items
Schweizer Electronic: Business Development in Q1 2024
05/08/2024 | Schweizer Electronic AGThe sales of the SCHWEIZER Group amounted to EUR 39.2 million in the first quarter of 2024 (Q1 2023: EUR 37.1 million). This corresponds to an increase of +5.5 percent compared to the same quarter of the previous year.
Key Tronic Announces Results for Q3 of Fiscal Year 2024
05/08/2024 | Globe NewswireFor the third quarter of fiscal year 2024, Key Tronic reported total revenue of $140.5 million, compared to $164.6 million in the same period of fiscal year 2023.
Q1 Global Semiconductor Sales Increase 15.2% YoY
05/07/2024 | SIAThe Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA) announced worldwide sales of semiconductors totaled $137.7 billion during the first quarter of 2024, an increase of 15.2% compared to the first quarter of 2023 but 5.7% less than the fourth quarter of 2023.
Micross, Sital Announce Global Manufacturing & Distribution Partnership
05/07/2024 | Micross Components, Inc.Micross Components, Inc., a leading global provider of mission-critical microelectronic components and services for high-reliability aerospace, defense, space and industrial applications, is pleased to announce our exclusive partnership with Sital Technology (sitaltech.com), the leader in MIL-STD-1553 IP cores, specializing in integrated FPGA solutions.
Flex Announces Upcoming Changes to Its Board of Directors
05/07/2024 | FlexFlex announced that consistent with its succession plan, Michael D. Capellas, non-executive Chair of the Board of Directors of Flex, has informed the Board of his decision not to stand for re-election to the Board at the company's 2024 Annual General Meeting of shareholders to be held on August 8, 2024. Mr. Capellas has served on the company's board for 10 years, including as Chair since 2017, during which time he played a key role in building Flex's reputation as a trusted global technology, supply chain and manufacturing solutions partner and driving the company's success.