Send your name to Mars!

NASA rover finally bites the dust on Mars after 15 years

FILE - This illustration made available by NASA shows the rover Opportunity on the surface of Mars. The exploratory vehicle landed on Jan. 24, 2004, and logged more than 28 miles (45 kilometers) before falling silent during a global dust storm in June 2018. There was so much dust in the Martian atmosphere that sunlight could not reach Opportunity's solar panels for power generation. (NASA via AP)

FILE - This photo released Thursday, Feb. 5, 2004 made by one of the rear hazard-avoidance cameras on NASA's Opportunity rover, shows Opportunity's landing platform, with freshly made tracks leading away from it. Opportunity rolled about 11 feet on Thursday, the first day it has moved since it left the lander on Saturday. Engineers commanded Opportunity to turn slightly during the drive, to test how it steers while rolling through the martian soil. (NASA/JPL via AP)

FILE - This composite of March 2015 photos made available by NASA shows a shallow crater called Spirit of St. Louis, about 110 feet (34 meters) long and about 80 feet (24 meters) wide, with a floor slightly darker than surrounding terrain. The rocky feature toward the far end of the crater is about 7 to 10 feet (2 to 3 meters) tall, rising higher than the crater's rim. (NASA/JPL-Caltech/Cornell University/Arizona State University via AP)

This Jan. 5, 2016 photo made available by NASA shows the tool turret at the end of the the Opportunity rover's robotic arm on the southern side of "Marathon Valley," which goes through the western rim of Endeavour Crater. (NASA/JPL-Caltech via AP)

This March 22, 2016 photo made available by NASA shows the shadow and wheel tracks of the Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity just after a drive on a slope above Endeavour Crater. The image has been rotated 13.5 degrees to adjust for the tilt of the rover on a hillside. (NASA/JPL-Caltech via AP)

This October 2017 photo made available by NASA shows an enhanced-color view of ground sloping downward to the right in "Perseverance Valley," seen by the Opportunity rover on Mars. The textures may be due to abrasion by wind-driven sand. (NASA/JPL-Caltech/Cornell University/Arizona State University via AP)

This image sent by NASA's Opportunity rover on Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2015 shows a view from atop a hill on Mars. (NASA via AP)

This composite of May 2017 photos made available by NASA shows "Perseverance Valley" which just on the other side of the dip in the crater rim as seen by the Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity, in preparation for driving down into the valley. (NASA/JPL-Caltech via AP)

This March 31, 2016 photo made available by NASA shows a dust devil in a valley on Mars, seen by the Opportunity rover perched on a ridge. The view looks back at the rover's tracks leading up the north-facing slope of "Knudsen Ridge," which forms part of the southern edge of "Marathon Valley." (NASA/JPL-Caltech via AP)

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By Rick Couri

NASA is sending a rover flight to the Red Planet in 2020. They want you to be part of it. On the web page NASA 2020, the agency writes;

"As we get ready to launch this historic Mars mission, we want everyone to share in this journey of exploration," said Thomas Zurbuchen, associate administrator for NASA's Science Mission Directorate (SMD) in Washington. ‘It’s an exciting time for NASA, as we embark on this voyage to answer profound questions about our neighboring planet, and even the origins of life itself.’

The opportunity to send your name to Mars comes with a souvenir boarding pass and "frequent flyer" points. This is part of a public engagement campaign to highlight missions involved with NASA's journey from the Moon to Mars. Miles (or kilometers) are awarded for each "flight," with corresponding digital mission patches available for download. More than 2 million names flew on NASA's InSight mission to Mars, giving each "flyer" about 300 million frequent flyer miles (nearly 500 million frequent flyer kilometers).

Good luck, we’re not sure if there will be snacks on the flight.

From now until Sept. 30, you can add your name to the list and obtain a souvenir boarding pass to Mars here.