Wirefly X PRIZE Cup Announces Judges for Northrop Grumman Lunar Lander Challenge on October 20-21

Business Wire, Oct 18, 2006

Six Judges With a Combined 200 years of Space Flight Experience Will Decide Who Wins the $2 Million Northrop Grumman Lunar Lander Challenge presented by NASA Centennial Challenges; The Challenge Requires a Vehicle to Simulate a Trip Between the Moon's Surface to Lunar Orbit, and Back to the Lunar Surface

LOS ANGELES -- The X PRIZE Foundation announced the names of the official judges for the $2 million Northrop Grumman Lunar Lander Challenge presented by NASA Centennial Challenges. The Northrop Grumman Lunar Lander Challenge will take place at the Wirefly X PRIZE Cup in Las Cruces, New Mexico on October 20-21. The Wirefly X PRIZE Cup is the world's first space show and the only annual event where the entire family can see the next generation of spaceships up close and in the sky. Tickets are available at www.xprizecup.com for the event, which takes place from 7am - 4pm on both days.

Not since the Apollo program has mankind had a working vehicle capable of landing on the moon. If we are to go back, both NASA and its industrial partners need a system that is robust and relatively inexpensive. Spectators and judges will watch as different vehicle designs compete to see which one will be the next generation lunar lander. To win the challenge, a rocket-propelled vehicle with an assigned payload must take-off vertically, climb to at least 50 meters, fly for a pre-determined minimum amount of time and land vertically on a target that is approximately 100 meters from the takeoff point. The vehicle must then fly back to the original pad under the same guidelines and land on the original launch pad. The six judges will decide which team will win the $2 million prize presented by NASA Centennial Challenges.

The 2006 Northrop Grumman Lunar Lander Challenge judges are:

Ed Bock, Retiree and Former Manager of the Atlas program and of the Lunar Resource Utilization for Space Construction Study. Bock, who retired in 2000 after 39 ' years devoted mostly to the Atlas space launch vehicle, was responsible for 40 consecutive successful launches of Atlas in five years. During his time with Atlas, Bock designed support equipment for Atlas missions with experimental lifting body reentry vehicles from Vandenberg AFB. Bock was a manager for the NASA Lunar Resource Utilization for Space Construction Study, the Shuttle/Centaur Program Office, and the Tomahawk Cruise Missile.

Richard C. Dunne, Consultant to Northrop Grumman Corporation. Dunne, who worked in public affairs at Northrop Grumman prior to his consulting position, was responsible for the company's state and local governmental activities and liaison with regulatory agencies. He joined Grumman in 1959 and was involved in the development of the company's highly successful Gulfstream corporate aircraft. He subsequently joined American Airlines during their transition into the jet era, returning to Grumman in 1965.

Bill Gaubatz, former head of the DC-X rocketry program. Gaubatz is a pioneer and leader in program and concept developments that have impacted national programs and policies, leading the way to today's Personal Spaceflight Industry. Gaubatz is the Executive Vice President of the X PRIZE Foundation and the co-founder and President of SpaceAvailable LLC, a company creating virtual space adventures for science centers, museums, and theme parks. At McDonnell Douglas, he originated and managed the development of the Delta Clipper reusable spaceplane system concept. His efforts and those of his team had major impacts on US space programs and policy and on initiating today's fledgling Personal Spaceflight industry.

John Herrington, Shuttle Astronaut and VP of Rocketplane. In 2002, Herrington flew for nearly 14 days on STS-113 Endeavour, the sixteenth Shuttle mission to visit the International Space Station. He has logged over 3,800 flight hours in over 30 different types of aircraft. He began his career at the Navy, where he was designated a Naval Aviator in March 1985. At the Navy, Herrington was designated a Patrol Plane Commander, Mission Commander, and Patrol Plane Instructor Pilot. Following completion of his first operational tour, Herrington then returned to as a Fleet Replacement Squadron Instructor Pilot. He graduated from test pilot school in 1990 and continued to perform various flight test assignments in the Navy until he was selected by NASA in April 1996.

S. Pete Worden. Center Director for NASA's Ames Research Center. Prior to becoming the Director of NASA's Ames Research Center, Dr. Worden was a Research Professor of Astronomy, Optical Sciences and Planetary Sciences at the University of Arizona where his primary research direction was the development of large space optics for national security and scientific purposes and near-earth asteroids. He is a recognized expert on space issuesCoboth civil and military and he served as a scientific co-investigator for two NASA space science missions. Dr. Worden retired in 2004 after 29 years of active service in the United States Air Force, where, among other things, he was Director of Development and Transformation for the Space and Missile Systems Center, Air Force Space Command, Los Angeles Air Force Base, CA. Dr. Worden entered the Air Force in 1975 and throughout the 1980s and early 1990s, he served in every phase of development, international negotiations and implementation of the Strategic Defense Initiative.