FILE - This Monday, Dec. 17, 2018 file photo shows the SpaceIL lunar module on display in a special "clean room" where the spacecraft is being developed, during a press tour of their facility near Tel Aviv, Israel. It’s on track to land on the moon April 11. On Thursday, March 28, 2019, the XPrize Foundation announced it’s offering a $1 million Moonshot Award for a successful lunar landing. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)
March 28, 2019 - 12:10 PM
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - An Israeli team aiming to land a spacecraft on the moon in two weeks can now expect more than glory if it works. How about a cool $1 million?
The XPrize Foundation announced Thursday it's offering a $1 million award for a successful lunar landing.
Israel's privately financed spacecraft Beresheet — Hebrew for "In the Beginning" — launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida, last month. It's on track to land on the moon April 11, which would make Israel only the fourth country to successfully pull off a lunar landing.
SpaceIL, the Israeli non-profit behind Beresheet, made the final cut in the $20 million Google Lunar XPrize competition, which ended last year without a winner. The new award was inspired by SpaceIL's perseverance.
News from © The Associated Press, 2019