Twitter & NASA: Meet the Martians
This has been a big week for Twitter. And no, I'm not talking about this weeks multiple outages stemming from its stratospheric growth spurt. I'm talking about the NASA Phoenix Lander and its Tweets from the Red Planet. NASA, using the Twitter handle MarsPhoenix, has been sending updates and findings from the Mars mission.
According to a NYT article, NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory is using Twitter along with other Web 2.0 technologies like Facebook, blogging and YouTube as a way to get Americans interested in science and space exploration.
"Most twitterers use the service to send up-to-the-second news about the minutiae of their lives to friends, but Rhea Borja, a member of Ms. McGregor’s team, sees it as a way to spread NASA news to twentysomethings. “To reach a new generation of folks,” said Ms. Borja, a thirtysomething." (via NYT)
Utilizing technologies that appeal to Gen Y students is a great way to introduce them to STEM careers and tap into their digital learning styles. The MarsPhoenix "tweets" are facinating, humorous and thrilling.
All the tweeting aside, if you stop and think about the technology behind this mission and how far away Mars really is ---it's just downright mind blowing.
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