NASA awards $500,000 to develop moon-mining tech

[Judi Lynn]

By Mike Wall about 5 hours ago

Use of lunar resources such as water ice is key to establishing a sustainable human presence on the moon, NASA says.


NASA is doling out a big chunk of change to help make moon mining a reality.

The space agency has awarded a total of $500,000 to 13 different teams via its Break the Ice Lunar Challenge, a competition designed to nurture the development of moon-mining technology.

The extraction and use of lunar resources such as water ice is a key priority for NASA, which is working to establish a permanent human presence on and around the moon by the end of the decade through a program called Artemis.

"Expanding the pool of ideas for excavating lunar resources safely and responsibly requires new technology development," Monsi Roman, Centennial Challenges program manager at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, said in a statement Wednesday (Aug. 18), when the Break the Ice awards were announced.

More:
https://www.space.com/nasa-moon-ice-mining-challenge-awards

[brush]

1. Hmmm? 500k divided among 13 groups is relative chump change.

Is that figure right?