Carnegie Mellon University is setting its sights on launching its own space command center to time with the upcoming lunar exploration trips it's involved with later this year.
CMU’s Moonshot Mission Control is being built across two rooms within the Gates Center for Computer Science. Upon its completion, the equipment found throughout the command center will be used by the Earth-based crews for CMU's upcoming Iris and MoonRanger missions, with the former set to commence this year aboard North Side-based Astrobotic Technology's lunar lander and the latter set to touch down on the moon in 2023.
"Carnegie Mellon is going to the moon, and building and outfitting Moonshot Mission Control is critical to success," University Founders Research Professor in the Robotics Institute William “Red” Whittaker said in a university blog post. "The culmination of many years and countless hours of work by hundreds of individuals has brought us to a pivotal moment in the history of the university and space exploration. As CMU launches two rovers over the next two years, we will lead the way."
A crowdfunding campaign to help launch the command center and fill it with the necessary equipment has since begun.
To encourage participation, one of CMU's rovers will carry the names of every donor to the moon should they donate any amount up to $100. Additional incentives are available to those who donate more than $100 toward the campaign, which is looking to reach $80,000 in funds in addition to supplemental sponsorship or other gift donations.
CMU's Moonshot Mission Control joins the Moonshot Museum — operated by the nonprofit Astrobotic Foundation, which works in partnership with the Astrobotic — in trying to become operational before NASA's first-ever commercial launch to the moon, which will feature Astrobotic's Peregrine Lunar Lander and the CMU's Iris rover alongside it when the NASA rocket launches sometime in the second half of this year.
