by Reuters and Israel Hayom Staff
SpaceIL reaches deal with California-based SpaceX for a rocket launch, putting it at front of pack of 16 rival teams and on target for blast-off in late 2017 • "The magnitude of this achievement cannot be overstated," says XPRIZE President Bob Weiss.
A model of an Israeli
spacecraft is displayed at a meeting between President Reuven Rivlin and
Israeli space team, SpaceIL, in Jerusalem, Wednesday
|
Photo credit: Reuters |
An Israeli team competing in a race to the
moon sponsored by Google has signed a deal with California-based SpaceX
for a rocket launch, putting it at the front of the pack and on target
for blast-off in late 2017, officials said on Wednesday.
With the deadline to win a $20 million
first-place prize just two years off, pressure is mounting on the 16
rivals from around the world hoping to complete a privately funded moon
landing.
Silicon Valley's Moon Express announced a week
ago that it had signed a contract with Lockheed Martin-backed Rocket
Lab. But Israel's SpaceIL is the first team to have a launch agreement
reviewed, verified and accepted by XPRIZE, the group overseeing the
contest.
"The magnitude of this achievement cannot be
overstated," said XPRIZE President Bob Weiss. "This is the official
milestone that the race is on. ... They've lit the fuse, as it were, for
their competitive effort."
The key hurdle was finding an affordable ride to outer space without government funding, said Eran Privman, CEO of SpaceIL.
Because his team's spacecraft is much smaller
than most competitors -- it looks like a robotic, four-legged table,
about 1.5 meters (4 feet 11 inches) tall and wide -- the SpaceX Falcon 9
launcher can carry 20 small satellites whose fares will help cover
costs, Privman said.
"Other teams are trying to find such solutions," he said.
SpaceX is a private company owned and operated by technology entrepreneur Elon Musk.
Much work remains. SpaceIL must manufacture
hardware to fit the rocket and only then can it be shipped to the United
States, Privman said.
The mission is scheduled for late 2017, just
before the contest deadline. Once exiting the rocket in space, the
Israeli craft will make its journey to the moon.
To win, a privately funded team must place an unmanned
spacecraft on the moon's surface that can explore 500 meters and
transmit high-definition video and images back to earth.
Reuters and Israel Hayom Staff
Source: http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_article.php?id=28739
Copyright - Original materials copyright (c) by the authors.
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