Lunar Xprize

The Google Lunar Xprize was not won by the final deadline in 2018.

The Xprize was to be $30 million in prizes designed to inspire pioneers to do robotic Lunar space transport on a budget.

http://www.googlelunarxprize.org/

Grand prize ($20 million), private teams (with no more than 10% in government funding) must:

  • Land a robot safely on the Moon

  • Move 500 meters on, above, or below the Moon’s surface; and

  • Send back HDTV Mooncasts for everyone to enjoy

….and this must all be completed before the December 31st, 2015 deadline!

XPRIZE and Google have incorporated Milestone Prizes into the Google Lunar XPRIZE in order to reward teams who achieve key milestones on their way to ready their subsystems for launch.

The 20th Oct 2014 Milestone Prizes contenders were :

Astrobotic

Moon Express

Indus

Part Time Scientist

Hakuto (Since the end of the Xprize is now iSpace of Japan, iSpace still have plans to work on the moon by 2020)

Three rocket providers had been contacted

SpaceX - Falcon 9 with possible launch Oct 2015 (did not happen as SpaceX had problems)

India ISRO - PSLV-XL rocket

China - China Great Wall Industry Corporation CGWIC of a Long March 2C launcher - June 2015? (Never happened)

SpaceIL

Hope to land their rover 'Beresheet' on the moon on 11th April 2019(was 31 Dec 2017)

they are an Israeli group with a powerful team and backers.

The Xprize is now finished, yet SpaceIL launched 22nd Feb 2019 although they will not get a Xprize.