The Lunar Explorers Society is an organisation dedicated to achieving permanent presence of

human Humans (''Homo sapiens'') are the most abundant and widespread species of primate, characterized by bipedalism and exceptional cognitive skills due to a large and complex brain. This has enabled the development of advanced tools, culture, ...

ity on the

Moon The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It is the fifth largest satellite in the Solar System and the largest and most massive relative to its parent planet, with a diameter about one-quarter that of Earth (comparable to the width of ...

. The Society is open to all people in the world with an interest in

lunar exploration The physical exploration of the Moon began when ''Luna 2'', a space probe launched by the Soviet Union, made an impact on the surface of the Moon on September 14, 1959. Prior to that the only available means of exploration had been observation ...

. It hopes to bring the best of humanity to the Moon, and to bring the benefits of the Moon to all people on

Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's surfa ...

. The last human mission to the Moon was in 1972, and though the first exploration efforts provided a huge scientific return, no further human

exploration of the Moon The physical exploration of the Moon began when '' Luna 2'', a space probe launched by the Soviet Union, made an impact on the surface of the Moon on September 14, 1959. Prior to that the only available means of exploration had been observatio ...

has been done. However, several robotic lunar exploration missions have been conducted since the beginning of the 1990s. These missions fuelled the desire to return to the Moon among many lunar enthusiasts, and this was the background for the establishment of the Lunar Explorers Society in 2000. The founding members saw the need for an organisation where the members could share knowledge, join forces and pursue their ultimate goal: To establish a permanent human presence on the Moon to the benefit of all people on Earth.

Objectives

*To support the establishment of a permanent human presence on the

*To promote international cooperation between scientists working with Lunar exploration by providing a neutral platform for their discussions *To raise awareness of what could be achieved by returning to the Moon through educational and outreach activities *To promote the peaceful and fair use of the resources available on the

, to the benefit of mankind

The Young Lunar Explorers Award

The Young Lunar Explorers Award is presented to a candidate who has been instrumental in promoting lunar exploration among young lunar explorers once per year, at the annual International Conference on the Exploration and Utilisation of the Moon (ICEUM). The awards have been given to the following winners: *2008: The

Google Lunar X Prize The Google Lunar XPRIZE (GLXP), sometimes referred to as Moon 2.0, was a 2007–2018 inducement prize space competition organized by the X Prize Foundation, and sponsored by Google. The challenge called for privately funded teams to be th ...

Foundation *2007: The Lunar Explorers Society *2005: The SSETI Express team *2004:

International Space University The International Space University (ISU) is dedicated to the discovery, research, and development of outer space and its applications for peaceful purposes, through international and multidisciplinary education and research programs. ISU was f ...

(ISU)

History

The Lunar Explorers Society was founded 14 July 2000, during the 4th International Conference on the Exploration and Utilisation of the Moon (ICEUM4). There
the 156 ICEUM4 participants
signed the founding declaration of the Lunar Explorers Society. The International Lunar Exploration Working Group (ILEWG) has supported the Lunar Explorers Society since the beginning

External links

Lunar Explorers Society web site

Moon Society

Lunarpedia
{{Use dmy dates, date=July 2019 Exploration of the Moon Space advocacy organizations Scientific organizations established in 2000