This Indian Startup will be the first privately funded company to land a rover on Moon
Advertisement

Advertisement
TeamIndus, an aerospace start-up based out of Bangalore is going to be the first privately funded company in the world to land a rover on moon and it’ll be done with the help of former ISRO scientists who have worked on projects like Aryabhatta and Chandrayaan-1.
From an IT job to being a space-tech entrepreneur
“Rahul Narayan (Co-founder) was working at an IT firm and he then saw this wallpaper of Google Lunar X Prize (GLXP) on a desktop. The first thing he did was find out what it was and then call the GLXP office to find out which Indian team was in the competition. Fortunately, there was no one and then at the moment he registered. Quit his job and started pursuing this,” said
For an engineer working at an IT firm leaving his job to pursue his dreams has always been a risky venture. Guess what? Risk takers get rewards. He then took this company to a point where
Advertisement
The Google Lunar XPRIZE was launched in September 2007. The competition offers a total of US$30 million in prizes to the first privately funded teams to land a robot on the Moon that successfully travels more than 500 meters and transmits back high-definition images and video.
The Spacecraft

The lightest UAV sent on moon was by China, which was nearly 150 kgs. The spacecraft we’re making will carry a 20-kg payload, of which 10 kg will be allotted for commercial use. Yes, they took it to another level (from 150 kgs to 20). “Additionally there are a lot of complications in making an aircraft, we have to take care of temperatures, we have to land on the right spot decided at that moment, right wheels to travel on the surface of moon etc. But we’ve been doing good under the guidance of ISRO experts and our young and enthusiastic colleagues.Of which some of them have left their previous jobs,” said Sheelika.
AI enabled Rover
Advertisement
The rover will be tapped with AI enabled software which will decide where to land at moment. “We looked at all the data from NASA and Russian mission and we found a spot called Mare Imbrium. When the system reaches the surface it has to make decision anonymously. Because it’s moving at a speed of 1.7 kms/sec we needed to have AI in the system. So we collaborated with Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics(LASP), University of Colorado, which is older than NASA.,” said Sheelika
Investment
When asked about how much they need to build a rover and successfully execute the requirements, Sheelika stated that the total sum required is US$70 million and currently they’re in a process to raise another round of US$10 million.
Advertisement
Unlike millennials, GenZ employees don’t want to quit but want fewer working hours
IIT Bombay and JSW Group to establish a technology hub for steel manufacturing
Realme 9i 5G Review - 5G Upgrade With Cosmetic Changes
Top 5 automatic cars under ₹10 lakh in India
India's demand for the yellow metal rises 43% in Q2: World Gold Council