Categories: Astronomy

Send Your Sweetie An Out-Of-This-World Valentine

Happy Valentine’s Day from the Pluto New Horizon’s mission! Click to download a high resolution pdf file you can print out. Credit: NASA

Still looking for the right card for your sweetheart this Valentine’s Day? Why not do it in cosmic proportion by getting NASA on your side?  The tender-hearted folks at agency may have just what you’re looking for.

The staff at the New Horizons mission headquarters offers two valentines this season that play off Pluto’s heart-shaped, icy plain Tombaugh Regio. While the temperature there hovers around 400 below,  you’re guaranteed a 98.6° smile when your sweetie opens the card and sees your love reflected in glittering nitrogen ice.

Mars has a lot of heart (s)! Click to select and send your Valentine a Red Planet-themed e-card. Credit: NASA

Pluto not your thing? Select from 12 different Mars e-card love greetings at this NASA site and blow your partner away in a Martian dust devil of love. Many of the heart-shaped features depicted on the cards are genuine features and include collapse pits, craters and mesas.

Click to pick from 8 different valentines at the OSIRIS-Rex asteroid mission site. Credit: NASA

Even the asteroids send their saucy wishes. Check out the delightful series of valentines from the upcoming OSIRIS-Rex sample return mission to 101955 Bennu, slated to launch in September this year and return a sample of the carbonaceous asteroid to Earth in 2023. If you go this route, I’d complement the card with a meal heavy on edible carbonaceous material at your partner’s favorite restaurant.

Happy Valentine’s Day! Spread the love for a happier planet.

Bob King

I'm a long-time amateur astronomer and member of the American Association of Variable Star Observers (AAVSO). My observing passions include everything from auroras to Z Cam stars. I also write a daily astronomy blog called Astro Bob. My new book, "Wonders of the Night Sky You Must See Before You Die", a bucket list of essential sky sights, will publish in April. It's currently available for pre-order at Amazon and BN.

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