NASA Lucy Mission: Create Your Own Time Capsule To Follow The Spacecraft's Journey

Looking for a way to participate in NASA's Lucy mission? The team behind Lucy is inviting people to join the spacecraft on its journey by building their own time capsules.

NASA has been creating innovative ways to get people involved in its all-important missions. The agency released an interactive graphic novel, titled "First Woman: NASA's Promise for Humanity," last month to inspire the Artemis generation of space explorers.

NASA on Monday invited people to participate in an upcoming mission, this time to follow the Lucy spacecraft on its 12-year mission to observe one main belt and seven Trojan asteroids. The team behind the Lucy mission has asked people to create their own time capsules, just like the one on the Lucy spacecraft, which is scheduled to launch on Oct. 16.

The time capsule on the spacecraft comes in the form of a plaque that contains messages for future travelers. It was installed on the spacecraft in July and contains words of wisdom, joy and inspiration for those who may find it in the future.

It has messages and quotes from people like Carl Sagan, Martin Luther King, Jr., Amanda Gorman and even the members of the Beatles, whose song "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" inspired the spacecraft's name. It also contains a depiction of the Solar System on the day of its anticipated launch.

Create your own Lucy time capsule

Those who prepare their own time capsules need not have to create their own plaque, of course. They can just store their memories, whether it's a photo of a pet, a favorite pair of sweatpants, or even a letter to yourself, in a simple box or container.

"What objects, sounds, ideas, or words will serve as memories for you and your family to look back upon as Lucy carries out its mission into the next decade?" the agency said.

The point is to send to space some significant items that would spark the memories of this period of time. And as the mission pushes through in the coming decade, people can look back at their time capsules during Lucy's important milestones and even add new items to it.

"At each of the Lucy mission milestones and asteroid encounters, we'll be taking a trip down memory lane, and invite you to join us," NASA said. "Peek back in your #LucyTimeCapsule. How have you changed? How has the world changed? What has stayed the same? Where will you be for the next milestone?"

People can share their time capsules on social media using #LucyTimeCapsule.

"If a post catches our eye, we may re-share it on our social media accounts," the agency noted.