Tuesday, August 25, 2009

X Prize Foundation Names Three Lunar Lander Teams

Playa Vista-based X PRIZE Foundation now has three teams competing for its Northrop Grumman Lunar Lander Challenge, the competition which pits teams against an effort to develop a possible lunar lander, the group said today. According to the organization, there is $1.65 million in prize money remaining for its challenge, which is being managed by the X PRIZE Foundation for NASA. The three teams are Armadillo Aerospace, Masten Space Systems, and Unreasonable Rocket. Armadillo is out of Texas, Masten Space Systems is based in Mojave, and Unreasonable Rocket is a team from Solana Beach. The competition is designed to accelerate technology development around vertical take-off and landing rockets, which could be used for a future lunar lander.