Application Deadline for Orion Spacecraft Water Landing Test #NASASocial

Registration opened on Thursday, July 28, 2016. For U.S. citizens active on social media, the deadline to apply is 11:59 p.m. EDT on Tuesday Aug. 2, 2016. All social media accreditation applications will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

Begin Application

Avid social media users are invited to apply for one of 30 NASA Social credentials to see NASA test a mission scenario of an Orion spacecraft and its crew splashing down in the Pacific Ocean after a deep space mission. The spacecraft has been undergoing a series of water impact tests to help engineers understand how to best protect the crew and spacecraft when they return to Earth from deep space missions. The test is currently targeted for 3:30 p.m. EDT on Thursday, Aug. 25, at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. The social media event will start at 8 a.m. and end after the drop test occurs.

NASA Social participants will have the opportunity to:
* Witness a high-fidelity Orion test article, coupled with the heat shield from Orion’s first flight in space and enclosed with test dummies in spacesuits, drop into NASA Langley’s 20-foot-deep Hydro Impact Basin
* Tour NASA Langley facilities
* See one of the places where astronauts like Neil Armstrong trained to land on the moon
* Meet subject matter experts working on the Orion spacecraft to help enable NASA’s journey to Mars
* Meet fellow space enthusiasts who are active on social media

Users on all social networks are encouraged to use the hashtags #NASASocial and #JourneytoMars. Updates and information about the event will be shared on Twitter via @NASASocial, @NASA_Orion, and @NASA_Langley and via posts to Facebook and Google+.

NOTE: Cost of attendance at #NASASocial events is free, but participants are responsible for all costs associated with travel, lodging, transportation, meals, etc.