NASA’s work involves exploring the unknown in air and space, innovating for the benefit of humanity, and inspiring the world through discovery. NASA-owned social media channels are limited public forums that NASA sets up with the purpose of educating, informing, and inspiring people of all ages and backgrounds through communication about the agency’s work.

Stay on topic. The comments about a post should deal with NASA’s institutional work and to the specific topic at hand. If your comment is not relevant to the post or to NASA’s work, please post it as a discussion topic elsewhere. Failure to do so may result in your comment being removed.

Please keep it “G-rated.” The content on NASA’s social media channels must be appropriate for everyone, including the teachers, schoolchildren, and families who often visit to learn about NASA and its work. Please be considerate of other users of this forum by refraining from posting vulgar, sexually explicit, drug-related, abusive, offensive, violent, threatening, or harassing language that impedes or disrupts NASA’s educational mission. Failure to do so may result in your comment being removed.

Please do not submit comments including AI-generated media on NASA’s social media channels that portrays NASA personnel or the work that NASA does, or that incorporates content generated by NASA. This restriction includes AI-generated media that portrays the NASA insignia, logos, seals, and other official U.S. Government identifiers. That type of AI-generated content may impede or disrupt NASA’s educational mission and the purpose of NASA’s social media channels.

If your comment has been removed, you may submit an appeal to hq-social@nasa.gov.

NASA uses social-networking applications, including non-government websites and web-based tools, to connect and provide information to individuals inside and outside NASA.

The term “social media,” also referred to as social networking, Web 2.0, or Gov 2.0, describes media designed for dissemination over websites through social interaction, and created using highly accessible and scalable publishing techniques. Social media focuses on the ability of people to collaborate and share information online. It is an enabling platform for web-based communities of interest, collaboration, and interactive services. Through social media, people or groups can create, organize, edit, comment on, combine, and share content of mutual interest.

This privacy statement covers all of NASA’s current, authorized social media websites and applications that are functionally comparable with substantially similar practices across each website and application. This includes those owned by NASA or by a third-party on NASA’s behalf. 

Many third-party social media websites and applications collect personally identifiable information (PII) (e.g., name, date of birth, age, etc.) to establish a user account and/or to build a user profile for registration or other purposes. NASA does not have access to this data and does not directly or indirectly collect, maintain or disseminate PII from individuals who interact with authorized third parties or NASA controlled social media websites or applications. NASA encourages users to consult the representatives of any third-party controlled and operated service provider to be informed of the PII collection and maintenance policies on these social media websites prior to providing it.

Upon registration, users select a level of interaction and elect a level of visibility they want to have through the use of these social media websites or applications. Users may place comments, messages, and other information on the websites’ public spaces. The extent of any PII revealed by the user is completely at his or her discretion and as such cannot be fully characterized. At times, users may voluntarily provide contact information, such as an e-mail address which may or may not identify the individual, for NASA personnel to use in requested follow-up activities. Where possible, NASA strongly discourages the posting of PII and reserves the right to purge PII of which we become aware and to the extent possible, as it does not meet our posting standards. 

NASA does not intend to solicit, collect, maintain or disseminate PII or information covered under the Privacy Act of 1974 from individuals who interact with these authorized social media websites and applications, and will prepare a separate analysis for any social media use that raises distinct privacy risks from those covered by this statement. 

Using these third-party sites does not constitute an endorsement by NASA or any of its employees of the sponsors of the sites or the information or products presented on the sites. Additionally, please be aware that NASA’s Web Privacy Policy may not be available on third-party sites and applications.

These terms and conditions apply to all NASA campaigns.

When submitting your image(s), video(s), music, or other material to NASA, you confirm to NASA that:

• The photograph, video or music was produced by you (i.e. your original work). Submissions should be original works created solely of the submitter that reflect the individual’s unique creativity, intellectual effort, and artistic choices, and should not use generative AI tools.
• The contents of the image or video do not infringe the copyright or any other right of any third party.
• The content is appropriate for everyone, including the teachers, schoolchildren, and families who often visit to learn about NASA and its work.
• You are either more than 18 years of age, an emancipated minor, or possess legal parental or guardian consent. In any case, you affirm that you are over the age of 13.
• By submitting an image of an individual you represent and warrant that such individual agrees NASA may use such individual’s name and likeness in connection with NASA’s use of the image hereunder.
• Your photos and videos must comply with the terms of service for the site you are using (e.g. Instagram, Meta, X, etc.)

By participating in the campaign, participants grant the U.S. government a royalty-free, worldwide, perpetual, non-exclusive license to reproduce, display and distribute entries, in whole or in part, in any media now existing or subsequently developed, for any educational, promotional, publicity, exhibition, archival, scholarly and all other governmental purposes, and to have or permit others to do so on the government’s behalf.

NASA will use reasonable efforts to mark any photograph reproduced by NASA with a photographer credit as feasible. NASA will not be required to seek any additional approval in connection with such uses.