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Moon Express Signs Launch Contract For Possible First Private Lunar Landing
MarkWhittington writes: According to a story in Space.com, Moon Express, one of the leading contestants in the Google Lunar X Prize competition, has made a giant leap toward its goal of being the first private group to land on the moon. The company has signed a contract with Rocket Lab, a new launch company based in New Zealand, for five launches of its upcoming Electron rocket. The first two launches will take place in 2017 and will be attempts to land the MX-1 lander on the lunar surface in time to win the prize by the current deadline by the end of that year.
No, they won't.
Why? Because first launches *never* happen on time...
"I don't know, therefore Aliens" Wafflebox1
"launch company based in New Zealand,"
Isn't New Zealand a bit far south to be taking advantage of the spin of the earth for launching rockets?
At least for the moon you want to be closer to the equator I thought
Maybe they're planning to collect?
This will NOT happen. As well, it will be many many many years before man sets foot on Mars (lack of compelling reasons, money, technology...)
If you want news from today, you have to come back tomorrow.
Uhhhh.. but, there's nothing there to 'destroy'? It's a dead, airless dustball. It's not even geologically active. It's literally there for us to do whatever we want to with it. So long as nobody screws with it's orbit around the Earth, it's all good.
Are YOU using the TOOL, or is the TOOL using YOU? Think about it!
The mighty private innovators and job creators took 60 years to just try to *imitate* what government did over half a century ago, and that's only because the innovators copy what was done before??
All glory capitalism! Boo to socialism!
The Federal Government only funded the project. Douglas, Boeing, Chrysler, North American, and many other companies actually did the development and manufacturing.
The biggest difference between then and now is that back then, the government was willing to spend just about anything that it cost to make it happen, and had the purse to do so. Now, non-government entities, be they public companies, private companies, nonprofits, whatever, do not have the financial resources of the Federal Government, so they're trying to scale what we previously did fast an expensively to something that's not as fast to develop, but is a lot more affordable.
Do not look into laser with remaining eye.
So what? It's an airless, lifeless dustball. There's no 'environment' to protect. Also, anything left behind was left behind because it would require fuel to return it all to Earth, and that just wouldn't have made any sense.
Are YOU using the TOOL, or is the TOOL using YOU? Think about it!
I'll be shocked and astounded if this actually ever takes place.
A Moon shot is a hell of trick to pull off, even getting into orbit is beyond the capability of most countries, let alone transit to the Moon.
Space travel is hard; it's expensive, it's complex, and space is probably the most unforgiving environment imaginable.
Color me skeptical; I don't think this is going to happen via private industry for another 20 to 50 years at the very least.
I'd be overjoyed to be wrong, though! :)
Just cruising through this digital world at 33 1/3 rpm...
No, 400,000 people can say they worked on something that went towards Apollo. If you worked an injection molder making the light switches in the cafeteria where engineers ate, then you can say you worked Apollo.
That seems limited - it shows a lack of vision. They need to THINK BIG.
I think the company should be called Planet Express. I even have some thoughts regarding what their ships might look like.
#DeleteChrome
Trading Places is a documentary to some.
I feel like I am watching a real life play out of Rocket Ship Galileo sometimes.
If Slashdot were chemistry it would look like this:Cadaverine
Corporations aren't yet allowed to go door to door with guns to take your money
Patience. Give President Trump some time.
SJW's don't eliminate discrimination. They just expropriate it for themselves.
The last probe we sent spotted a whale just laying out on the surface! That's free gold for the taking if we send whalers there!
SJW's don't eliminate discrimination. They just expropriate it for themselves.
Oh hey there AC, I found a picture of you on the Internets!
http://bitsocialmedia.com/wp-c...
Now please go play somewhere else, the adults are trying to have a conversation, k?
Are YOU using the TOOL, or is the TOOL using YOU? Think about it!
Again, corporations don't have free speech rights because "they are people". The Supreme Court ruled the people who make up the corporations maintain their free speech rights when participating in the corporation.
In other words, Congress doesn't get to create a group of people called a "corporation", then strip The People of their free speech rights as a cost of participation.
The money buys almost exclusively advertising, which is the "press" part of the First Amendment, the means of mass production and distribution of speech, which governments used to outlaw independent of speech directly, to control opposition to their power.
(-1: Post disagrees with my already-settled worldview) is not a valid mod option.
This would be a much more exciting posting if they were contracting with a company who had already made successful launches.