Top of page

Category: U.S. Poet Laureate

Wide shot of a rocket lifting off, with clouds of smoke and fire at its base, headed into a crystal blue sky.

NASA and the Library Send Poetry into Space

Posted by: Brett Zongker

NASA's Europa Clipper has set sail for a moon of Jupiter to explore the possibilies of life. Launced last week, the craft carries a metal vault plate inscribed with the poem “In Praise of Mystery: A Poem for Europa,” by Ada Limón, the national poet laureate. NASA, Limón and the Library invited people worldwide to sign on to the poem and send their names to space with it on a microchip. More than 2.6 million people did so. Their names, alongside the poem, are aboard the Clipper for a six year journey to Europa.

Image of an ornate clock showing 2:05 with sculpted male figures sitting on each side of the clock face

Harjo, Library Honored by Native American Tribal Association

Posted by: Brett Zongker

The Association of Tribal Archives, Libraries, and Museums has presented one of its most significant awards to the Library and former U.S. Poet Laureate Joy Harjo for “Living Nations, Living Words,” Harjo’s signature project during her 2019 to 2022 term. Harjo, the first Native American to hold the nation’s poet laureate position, was honored with …