Name Rosetta mission's landing site – competition rules
By entering the competition you agree to the following:
By submitting a proposal, the applicant gives permission to ESA to publish their name, and gives to ESA all the rights to use the proposal for the purposes outlined in this announcement and for purposes related to ESA communications. By submitting a proposal, the participant declares that it is their own work and is not copied from any other original work. ESA bears no responsibility for verifying the authenticity of the proposals.
Disclaimer
ESA bears no responsibility for any delay or loss of entry. The rules may be updated or added to without notice, reflecting any questions we receive to clarify rules. Dates may change due to unforeseen events outside our control. The competition is run on a best-effort basis.
How can I enter the competition?
What language does the proposal have to be in?
How many times can I enter the competition?
Are there any restrictions on the proposed name?
Will this be an official IAU approved name?
What is the closing date?
Who will choose the winner?
When and how will the winner be announced?
Will I receive a notification that my entry has been received?
Can I enter via social media?
If I have a problem with my entry, or a question about the competition, whom should I contact?
Can I win if I live outside of Europe?
I don’t speak English, can I still enter?
How old do I have to be to enter?
I work at ESA, NASA, or a Rosetta mission partner agency: can I still enter or win?
What does the prize of a trip to the landing event actually mean?
If I win the prize of the trip to the landing event, how will it be organized and is there anything I need to consider?
What are the timings of the landing event?
If I won a prize in previous Rosetta mission competitions, can I still enter or win?
How can I enter the competition?
To enter the competition you must complete an online entry form (see URL’s below) with the following information: the name that you are proposing for Site J and the reason you chose this name, as well as your name, email address, and country of residence. Proposals from participants under the age of 18 must be submitted by parents or guardians.
Enter the ESA competition here: http://sci.esa.int/rosetta-competition/
Enter the DLR competition here: http://registrierung.cdonline.de/philaenc/register
Enter the CNES competition here: www.cnes.fr/rosetta-concours
Enter the ASI/INAF competition here: http://www.asi.it/it/news/dai_un_nome_al_sito_j
What language does the proposal have to be in?
You can submit your entry in any European language.
How many times can I enter the competition?
Only one entry per person is permitted.
Are there any restrictions on the proposed name?
You can propose any name you like, but it cannot be named after a person, dead or alive. Mythological names with a commonly-known symbolic meaning will be considered. Any entry deemed obscene in any language or offensive on religious, racial, gender, political, or other grounds will be declared ineligible, without appeal or recourse.
Will this be an official IAU approved name?
There is a well-established process for naming features on Solar System bodies, which is organised by the International Astronomical Union (IAU). However, the usual naming conventions for regions/features on Solar System bodies, whereby the names must follow rules that have been agreed by the IAU, do not apply to comets where the appearance of regions/features may change significantly over short periods of time. As such, the name of the landing site is not IAU approved, but will be the name adopted by ESA and its mission partners for all future reference to the landing site.
What is the closing date?
Entries will be accepted until 23:59 GMT on 22 October.
Who will choose the winner?
Entries will be collected by ESA and the national agencies running the competition, and put forward to the jury, comprising members of the Philae Steering Committee, to select the overall winner.
When and how will the winner be announced?
The overall winner will be announced on 3 November via an article on ESA’s main Rosetta web page at www.esa.int/rosetta and via ESA’s social media channels.
Will I receive a notification that my entry has been received?
You will receive confirmation by email that your proposal has been received.
Can I enter via social media?
No, you must enter via one of the competition URLs, but please do join the conversation on social media. On Twitter we will be using the hashtag #NameJ to promote the competition.
If I have a problem with my entry, or a question about the competition, whom should I contact?
Please use the competition email address: Rosetta.Competition@cosmos.esa.int
For questions regarding the national competitions run by CNES, DLR, and ASI, please check the details provided on their competition pages.
Can I win if I live outside of Europe?
The top prize can only be awarded to participants who are a citizen of or a permanent resident of an ESA Member State, an ESA Cooperating State, an EU Member State, or the United States of America.
ESA Member States: Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. Canada takes part in some projects under a Cooperation agreement.
ESA Cooperating States: Cyprus, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Slovak Republic, and Slovenia.
EU Member States: http://europa.eu/about-eu/countries/
I don’t speak English, can I still enter?
Yes, but please note that communications about the competition on our ESA social media channels and on the main ESA website will be in English. The event at ESOC on 12 November will also be predominantly in English.
How old do I have to be to enter?
You must be at least 13 years old on 16 October 2014 to enter. If you are under 18, by entering the competition we assume that you have permission from your parent or legal guardian.
I work at ESA, NASA, or a Rosetta mission partner agency: can I still enter or win?
While they may submit proposals for names, ESA, NASA or partner space agency staff members and contractors working on site at these establishments, and their immediate families residing with them, are not eligible to win.
What does the prize of a trip to the landing event actually mean?
Your prize entitles you to join VIPs, media, and other guests to follow the landing of Philae live at ESA’s Space Operations Centre (ESOC) in Darmstadt, Germany. This is currently due to take place on 12 November. An ESA representative will meet you and other competition winners at a pre-determined time on the landing day and will be on-hand to show you around and answer any questions. There will be a dedicated area at ESOC where you can sit and watch on screens and/or listen to live talks from mission experts during the day. Entry will only be granted to ESOC if you bring valid identification – a passport or an identity card is essential. There is ground-floor access for wheel-chair users.
If I win the prize of the trip to the landing event, how will it be organized and is there anything I need to consider?
Once the winner has been selected they will be contacted by ESA. The prize will be a grant of up to 1000 Euros if you are travelling within Europe, or 1500 Euros if travelling from the U.S, that you can claim back upon presentation of receipts. You must be able to provide your bank account details to receive the grant. The grant is redeemable against travel to and from Darmstadt, Germany, and up to 2 nights accommodation only; all other expenses (e.g. food, additional nights stay) are at your own expense. Refreshments will be offered as part of the media event on 12 November. It will be your responsibility to book and pay for travel and hotels in the first instance and to arrange visas and travel insurance as required. We will provide guidance on where to stay and how to get to ESOC. If you are under 18 and are being accompanied by an adult, then we will provide an additional grant of the same value to cover the cost of the travel/accommodation of the accompanying adult, along with additional access to ESOC, upon presentation of valid identification. The prize is for one person only (unless you are under 18); it is non-transferable and it is not possible to request entrance for additional guests.
What are the timings of the landing event?
A programme of the day’s media events will be made available soon but you can count on it being a full day event. Rosetta will release Philae at 08:35 GMT/09:35 CET on 12 November, landing about seven hours later. The one-way signal travel time between Rosetta and Earth on 12 November is 28 minutes 20 seconds, meaning that confirmation of the landing will arrive at Earth ground stations at around 16:00 GMT/17:00 CET. First images from the surface of the comet are not expected until later that evening.
If I won a prize in previous Rosetta mission competitions, can I still enter or win?
You are welcome to enter, but if you or a family member already won a top prize in a previous Rosetta competition, entitling someone to attend the landing event, then you are not eligible to win this competition.
