The Europa Clipper will go into space with thousands of first and last names engraved, and maybe yours, too

NASA

The Europa Clipper probe will study the chemical composition of Jupiter's moon, which could potentially harbor life.

Space – What if your name was found on one of Jupiter's moons? This is what NASA offers with ” Message in a bottle The principle is simple: everyone can participate Via this link And write the first and last name. It will be engraved on the Europa Clipper spacecraft that will go into space.

More precisely, the latter must travel approximately 2.9 billion kilometers during its journey to Jupiter's moon, Europa. The initiative began on June 1 and has so far collected at least 2,320,963 signatures around the world. It is possible to join the adventure until December 31, as the Europa Clipper probe is scheduled to leave in 2024.

NASA

The Europa Clipper project refers to the merchant ships “clippers” that were characteristic of the second half of the nineteenth century and the beginning of the twentieth century.

The poem and the competition between countries

We know on NASA's dedicated page that the probe will also carry a plaque inscribed with a poem, In Praise of Obscurity: An Ode to EuropeWritten by poet Ada Lemon, who worked on launching the campaign Message in a bottle.

On the site it is also possible to monitor the number of signatures for each country in real time. Currently, the United States has the largest number of signatures, 658,701, followed by India with 413,161 signatures. France has “only” 23,074 signatures, in contrast to its neighbors Italy (58,258), Germany (50,293) and especially Great Britain (131,738).

Search for life

Clearly, this mission isn't just about sending names into space. Its goal is to determine whether Jupiter's moon Europa has favorable conditions for some form of life to flourish. This satellite is actually one of the most dangerous candidates that could potentially harbor life form within the solar system.

Research has already proven that it contains a liquid and salty ocean beneath its frozen surface. Its composition is also close to that of our oceans. Europa is also moved by active tectonics (like our continents) and is home to geysers, possibly the result of underwater volcanoes.

Although the panorama is not particularly attractive, these conditions are favorable for the emergence of life forms. Therefore, the probe to be sent should make it possible to study the chemical composition of the subglacial ocean there in more detail.

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