The stunt escalation on YouTube may have reached new heights with Mark Rober’s offer to snap anyone’s selfie with the planet Earth using a satellite he’s launching into orbit with the help of Google and T-Mobile.
If you tell Rober where you live, he claims that he’ll take the selfie while the satellite is located over your city, and he’ll tell you exactly when the photo is going to be taken, so you can go outside and technically get in the shot twice. The satellite is scheduled to be launched by SpaceX in January 2025 (aboard the Transporter 12 mission), and is set to start taking selfie photos a few months after that.
Yes, it’s a total gimmick, and while Rober and T-Mobile are advertising the opportunity as “free,” I regret to inform you that there are some strings attached. You’ll need to subscribe to CrunchLabs, which offers engineering-build kits for kids, to get the free code for the satellite selfie. (CrunchLab subscriptions run between $25-$80 annually, depending on the selected package.) Existing T-Mobile subscribers can also get a free code via the T-Life app, and Google Pixel customers are being offered codes as well.
Codes can be redeemed starting December 3rd at spaceselfie.com. You’ll be directed to upload your selfie, after which you’ll receive an email allowing you to track when your selfie will be taken.
Rober has a whole YouTube video explaining the mechanics of the selfie-taking satellite. There are actually two cameras and two Google Pixel phones mounted on either side of the satellite for redundancy, and the whole thing is powered by an expansive solar array, sending energy to a 120Wh battery pack.
This actually creates a unique problem for the satellite, which needs to be facing at least three different ways for solar energy collection, selfie taking, and the sending and receiving of pictures — with no propellors or thrusters to help change positions. To solve this, Rober’s team installed a flywheel inside the satellite to help it change positions depending on which action it’s performing. Pretty smart.
https://www.theverge.com/2024/11/29/24309059/earth-selfie-satellite-mark-rober-youtube-spacex-tmobile