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Picking up on several comments:

>> $25M seems like a VERY small budget for such an operation, doesn't 
>> it?

> $25M is NOT a budget.  It's an AWARD.

The two may converge.

John Carmack, the current primary contender for this challenge has 
half a chance of doing it for $25M as an incremental amount on his 
present program.

>> I think that 25E6 $ would pay for the rear left wheel hubcap on a 
>> moon bot in
>> the spirit of Spirit (or miniature Lunokhod). Any realistic review 
>> of the known
>> moon programs from the past would show that very clearly.

Apollo was in the $50 Billion range all up. Meaure that in any eras 
dollars you wish as it's somewhat hard to tie down exactly what should 
be attributable.

So at about 0.05% of the total Apollo budget, placing a rover on the 
Moon sounds like a bit of a challenge. And it is. Which is the idea. 
But it's possible that John, or others, will succeed.

FWIW it cost the best part of $US30M to win the $US10M X Prize. Having 
Paul Allen fund a lot of it didn't hurt.

$25M left wheel hubcaps are in the same realm as $70,000 (or whatever) 
toilet seats. If it's non government and the guy directing the work 
directly and writing most of the software is also paying the bills 
then it won't HAVE hubcaps, and the wheels will come from the same 
place as many of his other hardware supplies already come from. Viz -

                http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McMaster-Carr

> They would also show its impossible to build a sub orbital rocket 
> that
> can ferry 3 people to 100+km twice in a week for $20M. Although as I
> seem to recall it was actually done.

Not, I imagine according to Faux TV :-)

FWIW Armadillo is *probably* about to win the $2M Northrop Grumman 
Lunar Lander Challenge October 26-28 Holloman Airforce Base, New 
Mexico - BE THERE!
Seems appropriate in the circumstances. They crashed one of their two 
landers recently but the remaining one has already exceeded the 
challenge requirements. If it can repeat it on the day ... .
        http://space.xprize.org/lunar-lander-challenge/

Attached - Armadillo Aerospace's Pixel in flight.





        Russell


*probably* -

Hey, this is rocketry.
Probably means (as in all other areas) a value greater than 50%.



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