Hello, old friend - Part 1

The Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum held their first Tweet-up, led by co-curator and former NASA astronaut Mike Massimino, who is also the museum's senior advisor for space programs.

It was held in Intrepid's Space Shuttle Pavilion, which also houses the prototype orbiter Enterprise, so the 25 attendees could (and did) get , a behind the scenes tour of  not only their new Hubble@25 exhibition, but also of the shuttle itself.

But first... what the heck is a Tweet-up, anyway?

Tweet-ups, also known by NASA as Tweetups, are a way for enthusiasts to share what they learn on various social networks, not just Twitter. (NASA now calls them Socials.) They include Instagram, Facebook, Flickr, YouTube, and blogs such as this.

Think about such events as formal citizen journalism. NASA, the federal government's largest user of social media, has this to say:

NASA Social is a program to provide opportunities for NASA's social media followers to learn and share information about NASA's missions, people, and programs. NASA Social is the next evolution in the agency’s social media efforts. Formerly called NASA Tweetup, NASA Social program includes both special in-person events and social media credentials for individuals who share the news in a significant way. This program has brought thousands of people together for unique social media experiences of exploration and discovery.

That's it. If you use Twitter or Facebook in your everyday life, this is an extension of those Tweets and posts. I was already a Facebook user but didn't think much of Twitter until my work, first as a reporter and then as an web producer, got me to use it. It's an art crafting a succint and informative thought (and maybe also a picture) into just 140 characters. And then to see others either "favorite" that thought or share it with others across the world, literally, well... that's just mind-blowing.

For this Tweet-Up I also used Twuffer, a program which allows one to schedule Tweets in advance. Check-in for the Intrepid event began at 6, with the event itself running from 6:30 to 8 p.m., so I used Twuffer to give followers some background about Hubble and Enteprise (newest Tweets are on top, oldest at the bottom).

And with that... let's take a look at the actual Tweet-up itself!