Google sponsors an exciting challenge to reconquer the Moon and
bring interesting data from there. "Private companies from
around the world will compete to land a privately funded robotic
rover on the Moon that is capable of completing several mission
objectives, including roaming the lunar surface for at least 500
meters and sending video, images and data back to the Earth."
The prize is $30 million and the intention is to revive the
interest for exploring the Moon. "The Moon is a stepping stone
to the rest of the solar system and a source of solutions to
some of the most pressing environmental problems that we face on
Earth – energy independence and climate change. Already,
governments from around the world recognize the importance of
lunar exploration, and national space agencies from the United
States, Russia, China, India, Japan, and the nations of Europe
plan to send probes to the Moon in the coming decade." Google
teamed up with the X PRIZE Foundation, well-known for the Ansari
X PRIZE, a competition t