Elon Musk's SpaceX to launch Dogecoin-funded DOGE-1 satellite to the Moon
Elon Musk’s rocket company SpaceX has announced that it will launch "DOGE-1 Mission to the Moon" in the first quarter of next year.
Dogecoin, which started as a joke and then became a high-yield cryptocurrency thanks to Elon Musk, is now going to the Moon — literally.
SpaceX has announced that it will launch "DOGE-1 Mission to the Moon" in the first quarter of next year. The entrepreneur tweeted that the company’s new satellite will be called Doge-1, and that the mission will be funded by Dogecoin.
“SpaceX launching satellite Doge-1 to the moon next year. Mission paid for in Doge. 1st crypto in space. 1st meme in space. To the mooooonnn!!” Musk wrote in a tweet.
Geometric Energy Corporation further shared that 'DOGE-1 Mission to the Moon' is the first-ever commercial lunar payload in history paid entirely with DOGE. Geometric Space Corporation (GSC) will collaborate with SpaceX to launch a 40kg CubeSat as a rideshare on a Falcon 9 lunar payload mission in Q1 2022.
The payload will obtain lunar-spatial intelligence from sensors and cameras on board with integrated communications and computational systems.
"Having officially transacted with DOGE for a deal of this magnitude, Geometric Energy Corporation and SpaceX have solidified DOGE as a unit of account for lunar business in the space sector," said Geometric Energy's CEO Samuel Reid.
SpaceX Vice President of Commercial Sales Tom Ochinero added that the mission will demonstrate the application of cryptocurrency beyond Earth orbit and set the foundation for interplanetary commerce.
The statement added that DOGE has proven to be a "fast, reliable, and cryptographically secure digital currency that operates when traditional banks cannot" and is "sophisticated enough to finance a commercial Moon mission in full".
"It has been chosen as the unit of account for all lunar business between SpaceX and Geometric Energy Corporation and sets precedent for future missions to the Moon and Mars," it added
POINTBLANK LLC, Mimir Solutions, and Iteration Syndicate (ITS) will collaborate with Geometric on software and hardware design for the mission.
The announcement came on Monday after Dogecoin showed high volatility over the weekend. The crypto has given almost 10,000 percent returns in the month of May and recovered late Sunday evening after a dramatic fall on Saturday.
Founded in 2013 by software engineers Billy Markus and Jackson Palmer, Dogecoin is an open-source peer-to-peer cryptocurrency.
Edited by Saheli Sen Gupta