Google Lunar X Prize |
Google Lunar X Prize |
Mar 28 2008, 08:53 PM
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Solar System Cartographer Group: Members Posts: 10229 Joined: 5-April 05 From: Canada Member No.: 227 |
Am I completely out of it, or is there no GLXP thread on here? I couldn't find one. Anyway, things are moving on it, so I thought we ought to have one.
For the record, I just turned down my second invitation to join a team. I'm staying as an interested observer on this - for now, anyway. There is a forum at the GLXP site as well as team info. There are a lot of people with half-baked ideas of how to go about it. The real professionals are not doing much on the forum, just working behind the scenes. At LPSC two weeks ago, Bob Richards of Odyssey Moon invited people to propose instruments to carry on their rover - targeted to a pyroclastic deposit, probably Rima Bode or Sulpicius Gallus. And I see they have now signed an agreement to carry Celestis's lunar burials to the Moon. Richards will be here next week, and I'll be spending some time with him. This whole thing is going to be interesting. Phil -------------------- ... because the Solar System ain't gonna map itself.
Also to be found posting similar content on https://mastodon.social/@PhilStooke Maps for download (free PDF: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/comm...Cartography.pdf NOTE: everything created by me which I post on UMSF is considered to be in the public domain (NOT CC, public domain) |
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May 8 2008, 07:57 PM
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#2
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Solar System Cartographer Group: Members Posts: 10229 Joined: 5-April 05 From: Canada Member No.: 227 |
"I still don't see how it can be done without huge amount (say $80m) of corporate charity"
I know what you mean. But they don't regard it as charity. I confess I don't know that this is possible, but the major teams are looking at ways to earn that money. Astrobotic had links with the old Lunacorp, and has some of the same plans for selling video and other content as entertainment. Odyssey Moon issued a request for Information in March to get ideas for science instruments they could carry, and NASA's Missions of Opportunity guidelines have just been changed (as I understand) to allow Discovery Program money to fund instruments on commercial missions. So they are looking at sources of income to recoup their costs. To my mind the Odyssey Moon plan looks more realistic - though the time needed to make it all happen might delay the landing too much for the prize. Astrobotic has to raise the money up front and then hope to recoup it by selling content - which might be hard to do. Some other teams have plans that do seem to rely on charity. Those, I think, will not get off the ground. But the antigravity team might get off the ground. I can't see anything holding them back. Phil -------------------- ... because the Solar System ain't gonna map itself.
Also to be found posting similar content on https://mastodon.social/@PhilStooke Maps for download (free PDF: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/comm...Cartography.pdf NOTE: everything created by me which I post on UMSF is considered to be in the public domain (NOT CC, public domain) |
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