First person to send a robot to the Moon, award $ 200 million Google-Google Moon-IT news First person to send a robot to the Moon, Google Awards $ 200 million

Summary: conditions: when the robot after the landing on the Moon, it needs to travel 500 metres and HD videos will be taken back to Earth.

Commitment in a speech to Congress on May 25, 1961, President Kennedy: I believe that the United States would put a man on the Moon in 10 years and his safe return. That was when the peak of the cold war, United States and the Soviet Union to extend the cold war to become the first country to put humans on the Moon's surface. On July 20, 1969, at Kennedy after the President's space exploration plans to ask Congress for funding for the 8th year, the United States National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Apollo 11th successful moon landing. United States Astronaut Neil Armstrong (Neil Armstrong) and Buzz Aldrin (Buzz Aldrin) set foot on the Moon successfully, completing the first manned moon landing feat.

Since then, 10 people leave footprints on the Moon's dusty surface, including the Apollo 17th astronauts last walked on the Moon in 1972-Eugene Cernan (Eugene Cernan). In the wake of this golden age, international space agencies, lunar exploration is considered to be cost-effective.

Until last year, the Chinese year of the rabbit, the implementation of a three-month exploration of the lunar surface missions. Now, Google to the Moon in March called on the private sector to participate in international innovation contest for the return to the moon.

Google Lunar x Prize aims to inspire enthusiasm for lunar exploration. First team to put robots on the Moon's surface will receive a 200 million dollar big bonuses.

But if you want to receive a final bonus from Google, not just moving a robot on the moon would be good. The team also need to do some research and development projects. When the robot after the landing on the Moon, travel 500 meters before it needs to be on December 31, 2015 and HD videos will be taken back to Earth.

Encouraging innovators

"Competition and innovation, Google Lunar x-Prize, some of the world's brightest and most talented people come together, this will accelerate the private sector into a new space. ”

"This award will facilitate enterprises increase investment in cutting-edge technology, research and development, promoting lunar exploration. This will reduce barriers to commercial exploitation of the Moon and moon-related industry, forming a new economic focus.

The awards it has been 7 years from the date of its promulgation. There are 18 teams participating in the competition. In order to receive the bonuses (only 10% is funded by the Government), the team still working tirelessly, design and build their own modules. Now these innovators into the test from the international stage.

United States Astrobotic announced John Thornton, Chief Executive of the company involved in the competition, said: "the Google Lunar x prize is a catalyst, it compels us to set up a company. But the award is not our ultimate goal. We hope to become like UPS and FedEX to a long-term sustainable business, shuttling cargo between Earth and the Moon company.

Astrobotic worked with students at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to develop through the dead Lake (Lacus Mortis) Landers and Rovers. suspicious pits the team wished to explore the Moon's surface, looking for links between large cave network under the Moon's surface.

Dead Lake tour

Thorton said: "we believe that the right way to settle the Moon is under the Moon's surface. In the Moon's surface could hold up under small residence with breathability. These settlements may form a natural protection from small meteorites and radiation. ”

"So let the surface of the Moon sustain life forms much easier. Will this have on the Moon game rules for radical change in the future. It is our mission to the Moon for the first time: how to explore the Moon's surface pits, preparing for a future settlement. ”

Astrobotic team will be at the end of 2015, that is, just before the contest deadline, publishing research results. As part of the bonus funding strategies, Astrobotic will be presented with the award of competitors has embarked on the second phase of the competition.

Rabbit on the Moon?

Other teams participating in the competition tools are designed to reach the lunar surface Moon Express. The Moon Express comes with a funnel, can run in rock-the rugged lunar surface.

The company's Outreach Coordinator Brad Kohlenberg says, "when you're on the Moon's surface, you will only one-sixth of the Earth's surface gravity, there is no air resistance, but we can bring them to our advantage. Now we have designed an aircraft auto-landing spacecraft. "In addition, he said, games like this give us the opportunity to develop potential resources, but also to encourage people to participate in the cause. ”

"It is to reproduce what we mean by ' Apollo effect '," he said. The "during the Apollo program, we inspired a generation of children's creativity. These people grow up to join the respective industry, founded his own company, some become billionaires, it is their investment in space exploration company. We have Virgin's Richard Branson, Elon Musk---us all these people are called "orphans of Apollo"---these people think when they grow up they will go to College and then have a chance to explore space, but later realized that the space program has to stay away from them. So now they are using their own resources for investment in space projects to realize their childhood dreams. "