Tuesday, October 04, 2011

GRAIL Naming Contest

Now that the GRAIL mission is underway, the two robotic spacecraft, currently dubbed "GRAIL-A" and "GRAIL-B," need real names -- ones that capture the spirit and excitement of lunar exploration.
Students, choose names for the two GRAIL spacecraft and explain your choice.
Your justification can be any length, from a short paragraph to a 500-word essay. 
The Gravity Recovery And Interior Laboratory (GRAIL) mission is designed to create a gravity map of the moon, using two spacecraft that orbit the moon at very precise distances. The mission will enable scientists to learn about the moon's internal structure and composition, and give scientists a better understanding of the moon's origin. Accurate knowledge of the moon's gravity could also be used to help choose future landing sites on the moon.
GRAIL's student-run MoonKAM cameras will provide close-up views of the lunar surface, taking tens of thousands of images and sending them back to Earth.
Contest Deadline is: Friday, Nov. 11, 2011
Questions should be sent to: grailcontest@jpl.nasa.gov

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