On Saturday morning, August 4th, 2007, NASA launched the Phoenix lander to Mars aboard a Delta II rocket. In addition to its payload of eight scientific instruments designed to search for ice in the polar regions of the Red Planet, Phoenix also carries a very special DVD.
The DVD, provided by the Planetary Society, has a collection of art, literature, and sounds, all celebrating humanity’s fascination with the Red Planet. The collection includes the dedication plaque for the Starship Enterprise-D, as seen on Star Trek: The Next Generation. In Star Trek lore, each starship has a commemorative plaque on its bridge, indicating the ship’s name, home port, and other important data. The plaque was designed by series graphic artist Michael Okuda. The plaque says that the Enterprise-D was (or will be) built at Starfleet’s “Utopia Planitia Fleet Yards” on Mars. It is this connection to the Red Planet that earned the image a place in what has been described as the first library to be sent to Mars.
Read the full story at StarTrek.com.
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