A 9-year-old boy applied to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) “planetary protection officer” position Thursday in the hopes that he could protect Earth from aliens — and he got a response from NASA.
“My name is Jack Davis and I would like to apply for the planetary protection officer job,” the fourth-grader wrote in a letter. “I may be nine but think I would be fit for the job. One of the reasons is my sister says I am an alien also I have seen almost all the space and alien movies I can see.”
“I have also seen the show Marvel Agents of Shield and hope to see the movie Men in Black. I am great at video games. I am young, so I can learn to think like an Alien,” he added.
Dr. James L. Green, the director of NASA’s planetary science division, responded to the boy’s letter saying that the position is “very important work.”
“We are always looking for bright future scientists and engineers to help us, so I hope you will study hard and do well in school. We hope to see you here at NASA one of these days!” Green’s letter says.
Davis also received a phone call from Jonathan Rall, NASA’s planetary research director, to “congratulate him on his interest in the position,” according to a NASA press release.
Business Insider reports that the full-time role, which is listed on USA Jobs, pays up to $187,000 a year and has been a position at the space agency since 1967.
NASA said the job promotes “the responsible exploration of our solar system by preventing microbial contamination” even though it “may not be in real-life what the title conjures up.”
The agency is accepting applications for the position until August 14.
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