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African Moon bid falters on funding

Cape Town - An ambitious project to put an African spacecraft on the Moon is sputtering on the launch pad as it struggles to secure an internet crowd-funding lift off.

The Africa2Moon Mission has drawn just $13 000 of the initial target of $150 000 with a countdown of only three weeks left before the appeal closes.

In contrast, a private British moon project - Lunar Mission One - rode the internet crowd-funding phenomenon to reach its target of nearly a million dollars ahead of deadline in December.

The apparent lack of interest may come as little surprise to those for whom Africa conjures up disease and poverty rather than science and space exploration.

But countering that view of the continent is one of the underlying aims of the project by the Foundation for Space Development, which says it will go ahead even if the initial target is not reached.

Scientific coup

"We get a lot of Afro-pessimism," said CEO Jonathan Weltman. "Anything positive, aspirational or leading edge is treated with scepticism.

"But I have faith that Africa can do this, without a doubt."

The non-profit group was co-founded in 2009 by the head of the space lab at the University of Cape Town, Peter Martinez, who is also chair of the South African Council for Space Affairs, the national regulatory body.

The mission is to see an African-engineered rocket take an African-built module to the Moon.

The aim is to inspire wider interest in the study of science and technology among young Africans while stemming the "brain-drain" of highly qualified graduates to the developed world.

The world's poorest continent recently scored a major international scientific coup with the decision in 2012 to build the bulk of the world's biggest telescope in South Africa.

The multi-nation Square Kilometre Array Radio telescope (SKA) will investigate the Big Bang, peek at black holes and uncover new frontiers - possibly even life beyond Earth - by peering further into the universe than ever before.

SKA site bid manager Adrian Tiplady said the telescope project proved "there's definitely the skills and talent out there and a huge amount of interest as well".

The Africa2Moon project "certainly is feasible", he said. "There is the expertise to design, develop and launch such a vehicle."

Apart from Afro-pessimism, a lack of publicity on the project - whose website may have contributed to the funding shortfall.

Some critics have also suggested that the sort of money spent on space exploration could be put to better use on other projects in Africa, such as conquering Ebola and other diseases.

But the planners argue that investment in education is the best way to take the continent forward.

Weltman said the African project is aiming for the moon rather than any other space venture partly because any African child will be able to step outside, look up and share the pride in a successful mission.

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