Australian Space Agency calls on public to help name lunar rover

The Australian Space Agency is calling on the public to suggest and ultimately decide a fitting title for the Australian-made, semi-autonomous rover.

The rover will launch as part of a future Artemis Mission to the moon by NASA, where it will be used to collect lunar soil.

Two consortiums, AROSE and ELO2, are working on prototypes with one to be selected for the mission.

It's expected the locally designed and built rover will go to the moon by as early as 2026.

Multiple suggestions in response to the news shared by the Agency on X, formerly Twitter, were variations of "Rover McRoveface".

This is a tribute to the sensation of 'Boaty McBoatface', the name picked by the public for a British polar research vessel in 2016.

A trend began and was picked up in Australia with a Sydney ferry dubbed 'Ferry McFerryface' in 2017.

It was renamed the following year however, as it was revealed the moniker was a captain's pick by NSW Transport Minister Andrew Constance and not one of the names voted for by the public.

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The Australian Space Agency's naming competition is open until October 20 with individuals and schools encouraged to enter a name with a brief explanation on its website.

While the names will be ultimately judged on creativity, other factors for consideration are names that are short and identifiable, inspirational, without acronyms and unique so as not to be confused with existing names.

The Agency will then shortlist four entries and put them to a public vote.

The winner will be declared on December 6 at the 16th Australian Space Forum in Sydney.