This teenage girl broke world records to send a message to her father in space

Terry Virts served in the Air Force and obtained degrees in mathematics and aeronautical engineering — and it made him the perfect candidate for NASA. He became an astronaut in 2000. But his family understandably missed him. When he went on a mission to the International Space Station, his daughter Stephanie decided to team up with Hyundai to see if they could get a message to him in space.

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Using a fleet of 11 cars and a lot of planning, the team spelled out the words “Steph <3’s U” in Nevada’s Delamar Dry Lake. The note covered an incredible 59,808,480.26 square feet and was visible to Virts while he was in space while serving as the commander of Expedition 43. The message was so big, that it was placed in the Guiness Book of World Records as the largest ever tire track image. A little over two months later, Stephanie could give her dad the message in person: after being gone for a-199 day mission, he was finally home with his family.

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