Breaking Ground’s Comment on ispace Mission 1
Breaking Ground Lunar Resources Trust is a pioneering organization that aims to advance the sustainable management of resources on the Moon. One of the ways in which Breaking Ground is achieving this goal is through partnerships with private companies that plan to land on the Moon and extract lunar regolith. Breaking Ground is working to buy samples of the regolith collected by these missions to test innovative and representative management policies for lunar resources.
The recent ispace lunar mission, Hakuto-R Mission 1, was a significant milestone in lunar exploration. The mission marked the first time that a private company and a space agency collaborated on a lunar mission, and it was an important step towards achieving the goal of sustainable lunar exploration and lunar resources utilization. Although the mission did not achieve its final milestone, ispace achieved its interim milestones and came very close to achieving a successful lunar landing, which is a significant achievement in and of itself.
This mission was of special interest to Breaking Ground. ispace is one of three companies that were awarded a contract with NASA in December 2020 to sell lunar regolith samples to the agency. The importance of this contract marks the first time that NASA has purchased samples of extraterrestrial material from a private company. Further, Japan had issued ispace a license for commercial space resources extraction, the first such license ever granted. These developments represent important steps towards private sector involvement in space exploration and resource utilization. They are also a crucial step towards achieving the goal of creating a sustainable lunar economy. A sustainable lunar economy will not be just about extracting resources from the Moon, but also about managing those resources in a sustainable and responsible manner. As such, ispace’s contract with NASA to sell lunar regolith samples is a crucial step towards that goal as it represents the beginning of a commercial market for lunar resources.
NASA’s one of a kind regolith contracts were the source of inspiration for the creation of Breaking Ground. Breaking Ground is building on this precedent from NASA and ispace to propose the next iterative step: instead of having a partnership between a private company and a governmental agency, Breaking Ground is creating partnerships directly between private entities to promote a spectrum of solutions to manage lunar regolith in the most sustainable and equitable way possible.
Further, Breaking Ground's mission is closely aligned with the goals of ispace, as the organization aims to advance the sustainable use of lunar resources. Through its partnerships with private companies, Breaking Ground aims to test management policies for lunar resources, which is essential for creating a sustainable lunar economy. The recent ispace mission and its collaboration with NASA highlight the potential for private sector involvement in space exploration and resource utilization.
As we look towards the future of space exploration, it is clear that partnerships between government entities and private companies, as wel partnerships between private entities will play a crucial role in achieving these goals. Breaking Ground Lunar Resources Trust is at the forefront of this development, and its partnerships with private companies are a testament to the organization's innovative approach to lunar resource utilization in order to promote a sustainable lunar economy.