Lunarez

the metaverse space agency

Lunarez mission

The Lunarez team has been formed to design and launch innovative space ventures, and is investigating the possibility to participate in the Google Lunar X PRIZE by successfully landing a privately funded craft on the lunar surface and surviving long enough to complete the mission goals of roaming about the lunar surface for at least 500 meters and sending a defined data package, called a “Mooncast”, back to Earth.

Technology
Image: Vision for Space Exploration, agi

The lunar craft (rover) and its subsystems (power, processing, AI, landing, roaming on ground, communications) will be designed and built by Lunarez using advanced and cost-effective technologies. The team is currently developing a preliminary mission design. Some mission components may be outsourced, perhaps to one or more of the Preferred Partners like Space Exploration Technologies (launch) and the SETI Institute (telecommunications).

Technology
Image source: Controlling the NXT using a mobile phone

In the early design and rapid prototyping phase we plan to make systematic use of technologies like consumer robotics (Lego Mindstorms NXT) and desktop manufacturing (3D printing, or fabbing). These technologies, which will soon have an impact comparable to that of personal computing in the 80s, will permit all members of the Lunarez Society actively participating in development of the mission hardware and software by designing, building, exchanging and testing conceptual prototypes.

Technology
Image source: Reprap

Of course the actual lunar craft will have to be manufactured as space hardened and qualified hardware, but we believe much of the design work and early prototyping can be supported by “popular” technologies available to and affordable by hobbyists. This will provide unique crowdsourcing opportunities and show that the distributed, global open source model can be exported beyond software development to actual engineering.

Posted by G.P. on 12/22/07
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