Thursday, December 15, 2016

Trip to the Moon could be available by 2026

Via coventrytelegraph.net by Laura Hartley

You may think we are on a different planet when we tell you this, but in just 10 years, you might be able to holiday on the moon.

A private company called Moon Express who was founded in 2010, hopes to send people to the moon by 2026.

The company was founded by billionaire entrepreneur Naveen Jain and is planning to launch its first unmanned orbital mission next year.

So far, Moon Express is the only private company to be granted permission (under US law) to leave Earth and land on the moon.

It was given the go-ahead by the US Federal Aviation Administration in August in a move that could open up the space race to new levels.

They say it will team up with another private company, Elon Musk's SpaceX, to send people there.


"It's very complimentary as a matter of fact…Elon will build the rocket and we do the rover," Jain said.

"Essentially, he lays the cables and we do the last mile."

SpaceX has previously explained that its mission is to colonise Mars to help humans become a multi-planet species.

But before that happens, Jain says we need to be ready to take a honeymoon for real.

He told CNBC: "Mars is absolutely the right place to be ultimately .

"But (the) moon is the first training ground and the first stepping stone. At the end of the day, we would rather be a lunatic three days away than be a Martian six months away.

"So I really believe the problems living on the moon are similar – the high radiation, vast temperature difference – and if we can solve that problem on the moon we can easily go on living on Mars after."

But, just like taking a trip on Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic, a holiday with Moon Express is going to be costly.

Jain reckons ticket price will be $10,000 (£7,925) and he says the flight won't be any more strenuous than taking a flight from San Francisco to Sydney.

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