Team Indus, the only Indian entrant in the Google Lunar Xprize, has been awarded $1 million for meeting significant milestones in developing a lunar landing system. The Bangalore-based team was one among the five finalists that was selected to compete for Milestone Prizes, which amounted to $5.25 million.
The Milestone Prizes were awarded in three categories – imaging, mobility and lander systems – out of which Team Indus was competing for prizes in imaging and lander systems. Apart from the Indian startup, two US teams – Astrobotic and Moon Express, were awarded $1 million each for their development of lander systems.
Other teams to be awarded Milestone Prizes include:
In order to win the Milestone Prizes, teams had to demonstrate (via actual testing and analysis) the working of both hardware and software to overcome key technical risks of landing a spacecraft on the moon. The proper functioning of landing, mobility and imaging systems will be key in the success of the $30 million Google Lunar Xprize mission.