Google Lunar X Prize of $30 mil draws 29 competing teams- including one from little Israel

Israel Aircraft Industries officially launched the Space IL Project, which is competing for the Google LunarX Prize aimed at generating interest among space explorers in safely landing an unmanned vehicle on the surface of the moon. 

Team-member, Haviv Rettig Gur, representative of the Jewish Agency, tells DemoCast that Space IL, conceived a year ago, is the brainchild of three young engineers - Yariv Bash, Kfir Damari and Yonatan Winetraub, and operates as a not-for-profit enterprise.

Aside from creating a vehicle to reach the moon, the team’s main purpose is to encourage and advance scientific education. IAI Chairman Dov Baharav characterized Space IL as an outstanding example of new initiatives with extraordinary challenges. The IAI as a leader in Israel’s space industry is proud to be part of the project he said, and is eager to strengthen education in space technology.

Prizes totaling $30 million will be distributed to those teams whose vehicles travel at least 500 meters along the surface of the moon and transmit images and data back to earth. Israel is among 29 competing teams. Find out more at Space IL's website. (Story by Scott Jacobs. Greer Fay Cashman also contributed to this report).