If you’ve ever dreamed of taking a space selfie from high above, former NASA engineer turned YouTuber Marc Rober is working on a new project that will make that dream a reality. Robert created his own SAT GUS satellite, equipped with the necessary equipment to take selfies from space.

Google is one of the partners, and the satellite literally has a Pixel phone stuck in a radiation-proof box. No, it won’t be used for selfies; instead it will be used as a high-resolution screen to display the image in front of the camera.

You can join the project and take your selfie on the Space Selfie website. As part of the process you need to upload an image that will be sent to the SAT GUS satellite. The onboard hardware camera will take a photo of you with the Earth in the background and send it back. SoftBank’s Masayoshi Son will share his vision for AI-powered robots.

The selfie satellite will be launched into space with the Space X Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California (USA). It will join the Transport 12 mission in January 2025 and will start taking space selfies a few months after being deployed into an Earth orbit about 600 km from the blue planet.

You can submit any original selfie image as long as it is kid and family friendly and you own it or have the rights to upload it. This could be a solo photo, a group photo, or a photo of your furry friend.

Space Selfie is currently marketed as “free”, but everything has a price. Some T-Mobile customers can get a free code through the T-Life app on December 3. Select Google Pixel customers are also eligible to receive codes via invitation, as stated on the website (you can follow updates on the @teampixel Instagram account).

Codes are also available for those who want to sponsor a future engineer for $30 or have a CrunchLabs subscription, which typically starts at $30 per box for a three-month plan. CrunchLabs was founded by Mark and offers building kits for kids.

The unique code can be activated on the Space Selfie website, where you will be asked to upload your selfie and an email will be sent to you to track its status. Robert explained that the photo will be taken when the satellite hovers over your city. You’ll be notified when the photo is taken, so you can go out and technically take a selfie twice.

SAT GUS can take approximately 1,000 photographs per day and a limited number of spaces will be available on a first-come, first-served basis. It has two fixed solar panels that provide approximately 120Wh of energy. Robert noted that the Pixel phone has another camera onboard to ensure the selfie project doesn’t get derailed if something goes wrong with the main camera.