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Team 08-0033: Myra S. Barnes, Intermediate School 24

The Google Lunar X-Prize competition requires private companies to build a "Moon Rover."  The rover must be able to master several basic tasks:

  1. A "soft landing" on the surface, followed by a mooncast detailing arrival.

  2. Traverse a distance of at least 500 meters.

  3. Transmit a second near real-time digital mooncast consisting of:

         a. high-resolution, 360° panoramic views of the lunar surface

         b. self-portraits of the rover

         c. high-definition videos of the rover's journey across the lunar surface

         d. transmission of a previously earth-based cached set of data

Accomplishment of the above tasks by December 2012, will result in a cash prize of $20 million.  Accomplishment of these tasks after this date will result in lower cash prizes.  In addition, there are optional tasks that will increase the cash amount of the prize.  These additional tasks are:

   1. traverse further than 5,000 meters

   2. imaging man-made artifacts from previous lunar missions

   3. discovering water-ice

   4. survival through a lunar night (approximately 14.5 Earth days)