You may never get to visit Saturn’s largest moon, but your name can. NASA is inviting the public to send their names nearly a billion miles across the solar system aboard its groundbreaking Dragonfly mission to the mysterious, distant moon Titan.
An Extraordinary Mission to an Alien World
Before
you add your name to the passenger list, it helps to know where you're going. The destination is Titan, Saturn's largest moon and one of the most fascinating locations in our solar system. Titan is a world with a thick, nitrogen-rich atmosphere, seasons, and a landscape filled with rivers, lakes, and seas—not of water, but of liquid methane and ethane. It is also rich in the kind of complex organic materials that scientists believe are the building blocks of life. NASA's Dragonfly mission, scheduled to launch in 2028, will send a car-sized rotorcraft to this remarkable moon. Unlike a stationary lander, Dragonfly is designed to be the first-ever vehicle to perform powered, controlled flight on another world, flying from one promising site to another to analyze Titan's environment and investigate how far prebiotic chemistry—the steps before life—has progressed.
Your Name on a Microchip
As part of its 'Journey to Titan' campaign, NASA continues its tradition of bringing the public along for the ride. The agency is inviting people from all over the world to submit their names, which will be stenciled onto a tiny microchip. This microchip will be placed aboard the Dragonfly spacecraft for its long journey. After its arrival at Titan in 2034, your name will fly with the rotorcraft as it explores the moon's dunes and the floor of an impact crater, all in the search for clues about the origins of life. It’s a symbolic gesture, but one that connects humanity directly to this ambitious quest to unlock the secrets of a world that is eerily similar to early Earth.
How to Submit Your Name: A Step-by-Step Guide
Participating in this historic mission is simple and free. To add your name, you need to visit the official NASA website for the campaign. The process is straightforward: you'll find a form asking for your first and last name. After you fill it out and submit it, your name is officially on the list for the journey to Titan. There are no complex requirements or long questionnaires. The goal is to make participation as open and accessible as possible to a global audience. NASA has set up a dedicated portal at go.nasa.gov/dragonfly-names for this purpose, ensuring a direct and secure way for space enthusiasts to sign up.
Receive Your Souvenir Boarding Pass
Once you have successfully submitted your name, the experience doesn't end there. As a memento of your participation, NASA will provide you with a personalized digital 'boarding pass'. This souvenir will feature your name and details about the Dragonfly mission's flight. It’s a fun keepsake that you can print or share on social media to let others know you've joined the adventure. When you sign up, you can also opt_in to receive mission updates via email. This will allow you to follow Dragonfly's progress, from its final preparations and launch to its long voyage across the solar system and its eventual, thrilling exploration of Titan.
Don't Miss the Deadline
While the journey to Titan will take years, the window to get your name on board is limited. The public can submit their names until 11:59 p.m. EST on January 15, 2027. After this deadline, the list will be closed, and the names will be prepared for their trip to the Microdevices Laboratory at a NASA facility, where they will be etched onto the silicon microchip. With the Dragonfly launch planned for July 2028 and arrival set for 2034, this is your chance to be a part of a mission that will be making discoveries for years to come.
