Falcon 9 heading for Moon in 2013?

On Feb 8, 8:00*pm, gaetanomarano wrote:
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ALL the Press have already put apart the TRUE STORY of the
"""Google""" Lunar X Prize .......http://x.co/GqFF
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anyhow, there are some problems to win this prize
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one Falcon-9 costs up to $56 millions but we must add the costs of the
rover, the lander and the Earth Departure Stage (the last two not yet
developed) for a total price of $65-70 millions (or much more)
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but the winner will have only $20 millions (or only $15 millions) and
the second team only $5 millions
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so, ALL the 21 GLXP teams and, most important, their funding sources,
must be ready to LOSE up to $50M (for the winner) or up to $65M (for
the second place team) and up to $70M each for ALL the 19 teams that
will arrive as 3rd and after the 3rd in this race
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so, the TOTAL amount funded and LOST by the 21 teams and their funders
will be of up to $1.4 billions!!!
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of course, the teams that understand to be unable to win, should stop
to run before they launch the rover with a $56M Falcon-9, but, the
total money LOST to develop all the rovers, landers and EDS, could
anyway be of over $300 millions!!!
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also, if two-three of the GLXP teams already have the technology and
the funds to develop, build and launch their rovers, that means that,
up to 18 of the 21 GLXP teams ALREADY ARE TODAY OUT OF THE RACE, then,
this is NOT a TRUE moon-race where all competitors have the SAME
chances to win!!!
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well the entire purpose of the race to to spur innovation, low cost
launchers and all sorts of out of the box thinking.....

the prize money is just a enticement, because the base costs are so
high....

In article 26c95bc9-f15f-43da-968c-d10023de6940
@q14g2000vbf.googlegroups.com, says...

add nuclear fuel and the rover could run 24/7 and the waste heat would
help keep it warm during nights

And suddenly you've driven the cost so high, it's not affordable
anymore. Brilliant!

Jeff
--
" Solids are a branch of fireworks, not rocketry. :-) :-) ", Henry
Spencer 1/28/2011

(Rick Jones) wrote:
In sci.space.history Pat Flannery wrote:
Carrying Astrobotic Technology Inc.'s rover:
http://www.spaceref.com/news/viewpr.html?pid=32670

"with the robot narrating its adventure while sending 3D video" I
wonder if it will sound like the falling Whale in Hitchiker's Guide to
the Galaxy...

I will be sorely disappointed if it doesn't complain about the pain
in all the diodes down its left side, like a robot should.

--
djb@ | Dan Birchall - Observation System Associate - Subaru Telescope.
naoj | Views I express are my own, certainly not those of my employer.
..org | Oh wicked, bad, naughty, _evil_ Dan! He is a _naughty_ person.