How To Engage 18-25 Year Olds Into Space Exploration. Making Space Mission Rock!
- Paper number
IAC-07-E1.5.04
- Author
Ms. Lucia Soto, Polytechnic University of Madrid, Spain
- Year
2007
- Abstract
For the "general public", and very particularly to the 18 to 25 year olds, space exploration is seen as a foreign business, something that has nothing to do with them. This makes that age group not follow at all, not support, not care for the space missions. There is a very pressing necessity to engage this age group in particular as they are the youngest voting group, and the next line of politicians (fund holders), engineers and scientists. To achieve this, Space Exploration Programs should come in a multichannel and interactive way. My proposal is to carry out Space Exploration with the same Marketing Framework a Rock Group carries it. For example, let's say "Exploring Mars" by the ESA, NASA, … is equivalent to your favourite Group. There are different missions, i.e. Album releases, which interest more or less to the public (measurable by the number of Google research entries for example) equals to album charts. The Real Time videos are equivalent to concert,Fan groups, blogs, Live Spaces for the stars are made too for the scientists, engineers... where people can relate to them. Following all this Rock Group analogy there are Special Logos for each mission designed by Top Artists, Posters, Year Calendars, a whole set of merchandising, so that people "can have a bit of their favourite mission". Videogames for the ultimate consoles (X-Box, PSP,...)and Computer games can be designed, enabling everyone's fantasy of getting into the skin of an astronaut, of feeling what it would be like living in Mars... Another idea is to create a Soundtrack (created by famous singers, rock stars) for each mission, releasing a couple of singles with video clips (filmed by prestigious directors), to enter the world of MTV and other music channels. There should be CD release of the Soundtrack and DVDs of the whole Mission, just as Artists release DVDs of their World Tour, where there could be featured all the different stages of the Mission, from design to launch, shown in a NON-scientific, NON-engineering way (this does not exclude other more rigorous documents). It should show the people involved in the project, from the scientists, engineers, mechanics, show people with a name, and their account of the experience, the feelings, the stress… Guided visits to the places involved in the process are organised, web chats with the principal heads of the project, a gossip corner can be created in the main web page to keep people's curiosity coming back… Another point is advertising the missions in advanced (2 years to a couple of months before launch and reaching destination), to make young people expectant of the success/failure of the mission, instead of learning about the mission on the newspapers. In summary, make this age group Connect with their Favourite Stars.
- Abstract document