World first mission to moons south pole

World's first mission to the Moon's
south pole announced
(Phys.org) —The world's first mission
to the South Pole of the Moon was
announced today by the International
Lunar Observatory Association (ILOA)
and Moon Express, Inc. The private
enterprise mission will be both
scientific and commercial, and will
deliver the International Lunar
Observatory (ILO) to the Moon's
South Pole aboard a Moon Express
robotic lander, establishing
permanent astrophysical observations
and lunar commercial
communications systems for
professional and amateur
researchers.
Moon Express will also utilize the
mission to explore the Moon's South
Pole for mineral resources and water.
Lunar probes have provided
compelling evidence of mineral and
volatile deposits in the Moon's
southern polar region where energy
and resources may be abundant.
The ILO, with its 2-meter dish
antenna, will be the world's first
instrument to conduct international
astrophysical observations and
communications from the lunar
surface, providing scientific research,
commercial broadcasting and
enabling Galaxy 21st Century
education and "citizen science" on
the Moon. The announcement was
made during a NASA Lunar Science
Institute conference at NASA Ames
Research Center in Mountain View,
California.
"The ILO will demonstrate the value
of the Moon for scientific study of
the Galaxy, Moon, Earth, Sun and
Stars," said Steve Durst, founder and
director of the ILOA and Space Age
Publishing Company. "We are a
global consortium of scientists,
educators, entrepreneurs and
visionaries who seek to establish a
scientific presence on the Moon
followed by human exploration and
eventual settlement." Space Age
Publishing Company, ILOA's
commercial affiliate, intends to
broadcast its Space Calendar weekly
and Lunar Enterprise Daily via the
ILO. ILOA expects that the South
Pole mission could take place as
early as 2016 and contribute to
humanity's growth as a multi-world
species.
Moon Express is the mission partner
in the venture, providing the lunar
lander , mission architecture and
operations. The company was
unveiled in August 2010 as a
commercial lunar resource company
and is partnered with NASA for its
lunar lander development. Moon
Express will send a series of robotic
missions to the Moon in support of
science, commerce and exploration
starting in 2015.
The International Lunar Observatory
is destined for a Malapert Mountain
site near the Moon's South Pole for
Galaxy / astronomy observation and
communication
"We are very excited to our
announce that our second Moon
mission will be to the lunar South
Pole to deliver the International
Lunar Observatory and to prospect
for resources," said Moon Express
CEO Dr. Robert (Bob) Richards. "The
mission will provide a historic landing
in an unexplored region of the Moon
that may harbor some of the greatest
resource deposits in the solar
system."
Earlier this year on May 25th, ILOA
and Moon Express unveiled the ILO
precursor instrument that will fly to
the Moon in 2015 aboard the
inaugural Moon Express mission.
Details of the "ILO-X" flight
instrument hardware are available
here. The ILO-X instrument was on
public display and actively
demonstrated during the Singularity
University / Fox Studios "Backstage
Pass to the Future" event on June
1st, 2013 in Los Angeles.
The ILO and its precursor will have
an internet-based access and control
system and will be the first private
space telescope to operate from the
lunar surface, available to
researchers, educators and the
general public through the internet,
allowing the world to access Galaxy /
astronomical images from the surface
of the Moon and creating a new
model of "citizen science" public
participation and international
collaboration.
Provided by Moon Express, Inc.