Media Platforms Design Team In 1959, America’s space program lagged behind the Soviet effort—and PM wasn’t picking the United States to reach the moon first. “The way things are going at present, the men who emerge to put the first footprints into the ancient lunar dust will not be Americans,” wrote contributor Dan Posin, a nuclear physicist and leading scientific commentator. Today, a different space race is underway. The goal is still to reach the moon, but this time the competitors are private teams scrambling to nab a $20 million purse. (See “How to Win the Lunar X Prize.”) There’s one other difference: no astronauts. The next tracks on the lunar surface will be made by a robot. —Emily MasamitsuRELATED STORIES• COVER STORY: How to Win the Google Lunar X Prize• PLUS: Lunar X Prize Plans from First 10 Contenders• PM NEWS: NASA Opens Arms to Commercial Spacecraft• GLENN REYNOLDS: Who Owns Real Estate on the Moon?• PODCAST: Private Space Debate & Open-Source X Prize• COMPLETE COVERAGE: Space News, Analysis, Pix & More
