AWESOME: Israel to Break Several Records with Space Mission

Israel is set to become a major player in Space Exploration!

By Nosson Shulman: Licensed Tour Guide of VIP Israel Tours & Authentic Virtual Tours (click here to check out his free trailer videos)

Israel (a country so tiny one can barely see it on a map) is no stranger to innovation, breaking records and achieving many “firsts”. Once again Israel is set to become a world leader, this time in space exploration!

Controlled moon landings of spacecrafts are extremely rare. Only three countries (Russia, the US, and China) have been able to accomplish this feat. Israel isn’t simply aiming to be the fourth country to realize this goal, but is also aiming to break new barriers. SpaceIL (Israel’s version of NASA) is planning to land two separate aircrafts on the moon, something that has never been done. Once in space, the two crafts will separate from the mothership and land in two different spots, one being the dark side of the moon (a feat only accomplished by China’s Chang’e 4 Probe).

The two spacecrafts will also be the smallest lunar landers in history at only 120 Kilograms (265 pounds) each. Half of the weight is fuel. The mothership itself will remain in space for 5 years, orbiting the moon in order to serve as a platform for educational science activities via remote connection, allowing students in Israel and abroad to study and observe deep-space research.

This is SpaceIL’s second attempt to land on the moon. The first attempt was in 2019 (amongst great fanfare) with the “Beresheet” aircraft. It successfully entered the moon’s orbit and was mere kilometers from landing, when an unexpected technical glitch caused the main engine to fail and subsequently crash into the moon. However, that mission was by no means a failure. Beresheet was the only privately funded lunar initiative to successfully make it into the Moon’s orbit, and did so on an unprecedented low, shoestring budget of $100 million (just a fraction of what it usually costs).

This craft (dubbed Beresheet 2) is expected to be launched in 2024 with the same privately funded budget as its predecessor.

Nosson Shulman is a journalist and Licensed Tour Guide in Israel specializing in Biblical tours. To allow tourists to experience Israel during the Corona era, he created the new hit Israel tour video series which brings Israel to the home of viewers by simulating actual tours. To check out his free sneak preview tour videos, click here. To view sample tour itineraries or to inquire about private tour opportunities with a personalized itinerary on your next trip to Israel, click here.