A British-led not-for-profit organisation plans to send a probe to the moon within ten years to explore the possibility of setting up a permanent human base on the lunar surface.
The Lunar Missions Trust, an independent consortium which has been endorsed by eminent scientists including Professor Brian Cox and the Astronomer Royal Lord Rees, will hope to raise £500m from public donations for the project, the BBC reports.
In exchange for pledges of £3 upwards members of the public will have the opportunity to place photos, text or their DNA in the lander which will bury itself in the moon's surface.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
"Anyone in the world will be able to get involved for as little as just a few pounds. Lunar Mission One will make a huge contribution to our understanding of the origins of our planet and the moon," said David Iron of the Lunar Mission Trust, who is leading the project.
According to the trust's website, the mission's objectives include "the advancement of education and research in the fields of space science, engineering and technology and promotion of the applications thereof". It adds: "We want to ensure that a meaningful, substantial and inclusive global legacy is gained from the success of Lunar Mission One; a legacy of global education, public engagement in science and future space exploration."
The first four-week round of fundraising aims to raise £600,000 from the web-based crowd-funding platform Kickstarter.
The project has so far raised £19,000 from members of the public who can get behind the project with a small donation of no more than £3, place a photo, song or short video in the spacecraft's digital 'memory box' for £60, meet the team for £300 or have their name inscribed on the lander for £3,000.
In a short video promoting the mission, Professor Brian Cox said: "Lunar Mission One is not just about going to the moon and drilling a hole into it and analysing what the moon is made of and finding out where it came from, it generates inspiration, it is educationally valuable and it generates huge economic benefits here on earth."
Continue reading for free
We hope you're enjoying The Week's refreshingly open-minded journalism.
Subscribed to The Week? Register your account with the same email as your subscription.
-
India hoping to be fourth country to reach Moon after Chandrayaan-3 launchSpeed Read Rocket aiming to set its lander Vikram down near Moon’s little-explored south pole
-
Reader favourites
Speed Read A selection of short but sweet features from across The Week magazine
-
Home Office worker accused of spiking mistress’s drink with abortion drug
Speed Read Darren Burke had failed to convince his girlfriend to terminate pregnancy
-
In hock to Moscow: exploring Germany’s woeful energy policy
Speed Read Don’t expect Berlin to wean itself off Russian gas any time soon
-
Were Covid restrictions dropped too soon?
Speed Read ‘Living with Covid’ is already proving problematic – just look at the travel chaos this week
-
Inclusive Britain: a new strategy for tackling racism in the UK
Speed Read Government has revealed action plan setting out 74 steps that ministers will take
-
Sandy Hook families vs. Remington: a small victory over the gunmakers
Speed Read Last week the families settled a lawsuit for $73m against the manufacturer
-
Farmers vs. walkers: the battle over ‘Britain’s green and pleasant land’
Speed Read Updated Countryside Code tells farmers: ‘be nice, say hello, share the space’
