Yahoo News First privately funded spacecraft ‘is about to land on the moon’
Only three countries have ever landed a spacecraft on the moon: America, Russia and China.
But that could be about to change, as a washing-machine-sized, privately funded Israeli spacecraft approaches the moon.
The Beresheet space probe aims to touch down tomorrow, two months after launch, with a landing planned for Thursday, near the moon’s Sea of Serenity.
It’s aiming for a landing site a few hundred miles east of the Apollo 15 landing site, and the landing will be live-streamed by SpaceIL, the Israeli nonprofit behind the mission.
SpaceIL said on Tuesday, ‘Beresheet entered a circular orbit of 200 km above the moon and will circle it once every two hours
Read More
Blind Second World War veterans find love aged 97
Richard Cole, last WWII Doolittle Raider, dies in Texas
The craft will be armed with instruments to measure the moon’s magnetism, says Oded Aharonson who is heading the mission’s science team.
He said, ‘Lunar magnetism has been an enigma for decades. It is a privilege to be part of this mission that’s taking one more step towards solving it.’
