The Earth has seemingly become too small for Deutsche Post’s logistics pillar DHL. Now, the package delivery company targets the Moon, transporting letters, keepsakes or instruments to the 384,400 kilometers distant natural satellite of our planet. The first capsule is scheduled to land on the Moon’s surface in just more than a year’s time from now.
Taurus Littrow Valley North, Rock 45. This might become the first mail address on the Moon receiving a DHL parcel coming from Earth. However, the transports will be offered only one way and
presumably without money back guarantee for the sender and also without a fixed running time.
MoonMail
People eager to send their pictures, a greeting card or some mementos to “Rock 45” or any other preferred lunar crater, valley or mare are welcome to do so. This might trigger a rush because
goods shot to the Moon will most likely survive their senders, making them immortal in a way. “We expect great demand once this new service is available,” CargoForwarder Global was told by a DHL
manager.
The “MoonMail” announcement was made during Berlin’s recent air show ILA and some attendees might have thought of a joke at the beginning of the project’s presentation. But they soon realized
that it is meant absolutely seriously. “As a matter of fact we want to stimulate people to engage in outer space affairs and encourage them to take part in exploring the universe,” states DHL’s
spokesperson Dan Mc Grath.
Gateway to the Moon
DHL is one of the partners pushing the project forward and making it known worldwide. The others are Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania-based Astrobotic Technology and Airbus Defence and Space, the world's
second largest space company. The Airbus unit will contribute initial engineering support to Astrobotic through a Memorandum of Understanding, as the company advances its lunar lander design to a
preliminary design review. Bart Reijnen, Senior VP of On-Orbit Services & Exploration of Airbus Defence and Space stated: “we regard Astrobotic as the front runner in commercial lunar
transportation services. With our signed Memorandum of Understanding we have now the opportunity to assess options to further strengthen this cooperation and to become a true partner in the
global endeavor to provide a commercial gateway to the Moon.”
‘Peregrine’ Lunar Lander
The DHL Group will become the "Official Logistics provider for Astrobotic's First Mission to the Moon." DHL will provide logistics services for Astrobotic's spacecraft and its customer payloads,
making sure that all materials for the new lunar lander as well as the 'space freight' will arrive safe and on time to begin their journey to the Moon,” said Arjan Sissing, Senior Vice President,
Global Brand Marketing, Deutsche Post DHL Group. He went on to say: “DHL was founded in 1969, the year of the first moon landing. Today, we are excited to be embarking upon this incredible
venture into the next era of logistics - beyond Earth and to the Moon.”
According to Astrobotoc, their multifaceted spacecraft called “Peregrine” Lunar Lander can transport a payload of up to 265 kilograms. It will be powered by an Aerojet Rocketdyne propulsion
system. During orbit and landing, the Peregrine lander employs cameras, inertial measurement units (IMUs) and technology that measures distance by illuminating the target sight with lasers to
ensure a delivery within 100 meters of the intended location.
To leave Earth and reach the Moon’s orbit, the trio intends to cooperate with Elon Musk’s private SpaceX project, using one of the company’s advanced rockets.
Heiner Siegmund
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