Two years from now NASA's newest spacecraft will be launched to Mars, but right now it is still missing one crucial detail: a mission logo. That's where you come in.
The Mars Surveyor 2001 mission is sponsoring a contest to pick its new logo to illustrate the orbiter, lander and rover that will be the next visitors to Mars. "The logos can be done individually for the orbiter, lander and rover or incorporate all three aspects into one design. They can be any shape and color, and may include the spacecraft, the planet Mars, and/or the surface of Mars," said Cathy Davis, Mars Exploration Program outreach coordinator at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA. "Anyone can enter. The designs must be eye- catching and should avoid small details that would be missed in a large format. Be creative!"
The 2001 orbiter will be launched from California's Vandenberg Air Force Base -- the first launch of a planetary spacecraft from the west coast of the United States. A few weeks later the lander and rover will launch together from Cape Canaveral, FL. The lander will touch down near the Martian equator, carrying a spare Mars Pathfinder rover, a robotic arm and several other science instruments, including three that will return data in support of eventual human exploration.
Entries for the logo contest are due June 30, 1999. Winners will be announced August 2.
Mail entries to: Mars Outreach, Mail Stop 264-380, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, 4800 Oak Grove Drive, Pasadena, CA 91109. Entries may be emailed to catherine.l.davis@jpl.nasa.gov. Questions about the contest can be directed to Davis at (818) 354-6111.
The winner(s) will be acknowledged with a picture and biographical information posted by JPL on the Mars Surveyor 2001's web site, and "will receive the prestige of seeing their creations on the spacecraft, products and documents," Davis said.
JPL reserves the right to modify the winning designs to correct errors and/or to guarantee conformance with JPL graphics standards. Designs will be judged on style and content. Decisions of the judges are final. Designs become the property of JPL, and will not be returned.
More information on the Mars Surveyor 2001 mission is available at JPL's Mars missions web site at http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/ .
JPL manages the Mars Surveyor 2001 mission for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, DC. JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology.
818-354-5011