Bitcoin Fortune available to everyone, but it’s going to be a long ride

A company called LunarCrush wants to send bitcoin to the moon by engraving a password to a crypto wallet on its rover, which will be launched to the moon’s south pole. Gizmodo reports that later this year, a SpaceX rocket will carry the Mobile Autonomous Prospecting Platform, also known as the MAPP Lunar Rover rover, to the moon, landing it there for a thankfully more scientific purpose than pulling cryptocurrency pirates into literal orbit: bringing the Internet to the moon. fleet. The plan for the mission is to test mobile communication signals on the lunar surface, as part of an effort to establish the first 4G network in space.

The rocket that brings bitcoin to the moon was designed by Lunar Outpost, which has made physical payload space and sponsorship opportunities available on its lunar lander for some time, and has also attempted to commoditize space by selling NFTs. While this arrangement may be a way to help fund the mission now, crypto values ​​fluctuate wildly, so the 62 bitcoins in the wallet, currently reported to be worth $1.5 million, could be worth or—ahem— skyrocket at the time of launch, let alone by a future date when someone can get to the moon to retrieve the password. Of course, for the currently incredibly imaginative goal to be cost-effective, bitcoin must become the most valuable investment there is.

As Gizmodo reports, LunarCrush CEO Joe Vezzanni said the bitcoin launch to the moon was planned as a way to encourage innovation in space by creating an “unattainable goal.” We think the real unattainable goal may be to save cryptocurrencies from their association with environmental irresponsibility, unpredictable instability and financial crime, but any effort to promote space travel is a good thing, right? LunarCrush certainly hopes so as it works to bring wi-fi to our nearest neighbor in our solar system.

It may sound almost as useless as putting bitcoin on the moon at first blush, but it serves an important scientific purpose. As NASA continues its push to the moon started by the unmanned Artemis I a few months ago, it wants to improve communication on the lunar surface and between astronauts and mission control, with the 4G network allowing live video streams and real-time communication with Earth. This would be a leap forward in NASA’s ability to communicate with its scientific exploration teams when humans once again set foot on the moon.

Putting bitcoin on the moon may be a minor goal, but we have to admit that it has got us thinking and talking about the real scientific and exploratory purposes of lunar missions. The moon has a lot to share with us, from strange glass beads that may contain water to the ability to grow plants to, as Star Trek predicted, a place to live. We think all the research, exploration and technological advancement involved in reaching the Moon is much more interesting and important than promoting crypto-piracy to ridiculous levels, but if putting bitcoin on the Moon can in any way help scientific efforts, we say go right ahead .