Google Lunar XPrize Winner May Come From Asia, Teams From Japan, Israel And India Still In Contention

The Google's Lunar XPrize race to the moon competition now has its five finalists. According to reports, all the five finalists currently in the running to claim the $20 million cash prize from Google managed to get contracts from independent companies to fly them to the moon this year making them the only competitors who have an actual chance to complete the race.

The five teams that are still in contention to win the $20 million grand prize of Google's Lunar XPrize are Synergy Moon, Team Indus, Hakuto, Moon Express and SpaceIL. According to reports, the Google XPrize foundation had already verified that the final five teams do have contracts that entail launching their spacecraft this 2017.

The first team to acquire a verified contract for a rocket to launch their spacecraft is team SpaceIL from Israel followed by California based team Moon Express. Team Indus from India and Hakuto from Japan will be sharing the same rocket to launch their spacecraft. The lunar lander and rover of team Synergy Moon, a group comprised of members from different countries will be carried by a Neptune 8 Rocket currently being developed by Interorbital System.

The main objective of the Google Lunar XPrize is to look for means to minimize the expenses for a spaceflight. This is the main reason why the competing teams are challenged to privately fund their respective space missions.

To be declared the Google Lunar XPrize winner, a team must not only land on the moon safely. The team's vehicle must also be able to travel at a distance not less than 500 meters in the moon's surface. The vehicles must also be able to transmit photos from the surface of the moon and provide "Mooncasts" or live video.

The remaining teams must be able to launch their spacecraft before 2017 ends. The Google Lunar XPrize will also give $5 million to the second placer and other monetary prizes to the other participants.