It was bound to happen sooner or later. A NASA astronaut has become the first person to check-in to a social-networking service from space.
Commander Douglas H. Wheelock of Expedition 25 checked into the International Space Station on Friday, unlocking the new NASA Explorer Badge. He used Foursquare's mobile site aboard the ISS's orbiting laboratory, NASA said.
"You are now 220 miles above Earth traveling at 17,500 mph and unlocked the NASA Explorer Badge," the badge notification said. "Show this badge and get a free scoop of astronaut ice cream."
"Check-ins from around the world have been cool, but this blew my mind! We're psyched to partner with NASA to help users explore the space program and the universe," Dennis Crowley, chief executive and co-founder of Foursquare, said in a statement.
"We are very grateful to JESS3 and NASA for making this all happen. In the near future, explorers on earth who visit space-related places can also unlock the badge while learning about NASA history and the space program," Eric Friedman, head of business development at Foursquare, wrote in a blog post.
Wheelock's check-in is part of partnership between NASA and Foursquare to connect its users to the space agency. When Wheelock returns, users back on earth can check-in and earn the NASA Explorer Badge at places like the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in Florida, the space shuttle Enterprise inside the McDonnell hangar in Virginia, the U.S. Space and Rocket Center in Alabama, and more. Details are available on Foursquare's NASA page.
A customized NASA homepage will also provide official tips and information about the nation's space program in locations throughout the United States.
"When Expedition 26 docks later this year, we'll be excited to welcome Commander Scott Kelly to the ISS, where he'll be competing for perhaps the most elusive mayorship on Foursquare," Friedman wrote.
Wheelock left for the ISS on June 15 and assumed command of the orbiting laboratory and Expedition 25 on September 22. During his time in space, he and astronaut Tracy Caldwell Dyson conducted three spacewalks to replace a faulty cooling pump module on the station's backbone, known as the truss, NASA said. Wheelock, Dyson, and crew members are also working on more than 100 microgravity experiments in human research, biology and biotechnology, physical and materials sciences, technology development, and Earth and space sciences.