NICK EICHER, HOST: NASA is preparing to launch a new Mars rover later this year. But first, they have to answer an important question: What to call it?
AUDIO: The Illudium Q-36 Explosive Space Modulator.
Nah, too cartoony.
No, NASA sought K-to-12 student input from across the country for possible names.
And out of 30,000 essays received, they’ve narrowed the options to nine.
Here they are:
- Endurance
- Tenacity
- Promise
- Perseverance
- Vision
- Clarity
- Ingenuity
- Fortitude
- Courage
And you can vote for the winner at mars.nasa.gov.
But I think what’s clear here is that student input is much better than surveys of the general public. Perhaps you remember a few years ago, the Natural Environment Research Council asked the public to name a research vessel.
And the result they came up with: RSS Boaty McBoatface. ’Nuff said.
It’s The World and Everything in It.
