Great Galactic Voyage: Accuracy Happy Hours

As our probe rockets out beyond the Earth’s exosphere, the Great Galactic Voyage has begun! Our destination lies well beyond the Solar System, but first we’re going to try having a look at all the other planets within it. Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune… phew, that’s seven fly-bys to make, and although our probe moves very fast, it doesn’t have infinite fuel. Space navigation is a matter of utmost precision, using just the right amount of fuel and balancing it against the gravitational effects of local celestial objects. Careful and efficient maneuvering will get you where you want to go; if you’re not careful, you’ll wind up slingshotting in the wrong direction, unable to correct without wasting more energy!

So how swiftly but accurately can you make your way around the whole Solar System, then out beyond the Oort cloud? Will we get to spot each and every planet? You’ll have two chances to try! All times are EDT:

Session 1 – 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM on 6/21
Session 2 – 10:00 PM to midnight on 6/21

Swag (generously sponsored by @susi): Most accurate player completing at least 20 cubes wins 1 pack of glow-in-the-dark stars and 1 NASA style iron-on Eyewire patch! Second and third place each also win patches.

HQ will bestow typical Happy Hour bonuses for your work during each of those time frames, but there’s more than that to earn! Check your in-game notifications to see the full accuracy bonus breakdown.

Mentors: You are still allowed to mentor people during these time windows. Please just use your best judgment as to whether someone is asking you for basic newbie help vs. trying to have you boost their accuracy on cube after cube.

Scythes: Please avoid scything during these time windows. Even though accuracy for this will be retroactively calculated, we would prefer to go with accuracy based on players’ raw tracing. By the time this challenge is scored, don’t worry, admins will have corrected consensus as needed.

Artwork by Daniela Gamba
(Image source: NASA)