The MAVEN mission to Mars: Creating pathways for connecting to science

While science literacy rates in the U.S. have recently increased, overall levels remain remarkably low. There are opportunities for the public to learn about science and to engage directly with real-life practitioners. It is the responsibility of EPO professionals to provide these opportunities and to assess the effectiveness of each platform. At the University of Colorado's Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP), we utilize a diverse, well-tested approach to introducing the public to science and giving scientists access to the broadest possible audience. This poster will focus on NASA's MAVEN mission to Mars to highlight the many avenues through which we introduce rather complex science concepts to the public. Through the use of social media outlets, crowdsourcing activities, public lectures, and interactive question and answer and video sessions, MAVEN scientists are capitalizing on recent excitement surrounding Mars science and the public's fascination with the search for life to bring the science of the mission directly to a variety of audiences. Our EPO professionals are using cross-platform, transportable content to maximize exposure for the mission, while minimizing time and effort. In doing so, we are creating pathways for two-way interactions between our audience and mission experts and building a community that will join us in the MAVEN journey and its important discoveries.