Law firm Schilling, Zutt & Anschütz supports team Part-Time Scientists
Berlin, 18. April 2011.
The German Google Lunar X-Prize team „Part-Time Scientists“ has gained another partner. The law firm Schilling, Zutt & Anschütz, with offices in Frankfurt and Mannheim, will support the team in all legal matters on their difficult route to the moon. “The decision to support the Part-Time Scientists’ team arose out of interest in the project itself, but most notably out of respect of the immense task that lies ahead for the team. We are glad to be on board,” says Dr. Thomas Nägele, partner at Schilling, Zutt & Anschütz.
Particularly issues in contracts with suppliers and the delicate patent laws necessitate professional legal advice. According to team leader Robert Böhme, „the aerospace sector is a particularly difficult sector for a startup to gain a foothold in. One has to navigate many legal intricacies in different legal frameworks, both domestic and international. This is why we are glad to have gained a strong and experienced partner in Schilling, Zutt & Anschütz.”
The ambitious Team Part-Time Scientists, consisting of over 100 members from Germany, Austria and other countries, has been working on research and development of components for an unmanned lunar mission since June 2009. At least year’s Berlin Air Show the team publicly presented two prototypes of their moon rover “Asimov Jr”. The first model of their lander was presented in December of 2010 at EuroMold. According to the mission plan, the lander and rover will be launched into Low Earth Orbit by a private provider. From there the lander will carry on independently to the moon and deliver the rover to the surface. The rover will then transmit images and video in HD resolution back to Earth; also — which was not possible during the Apollo missions — it will send the first SMS and email from Earth’s satellite.
The $30 million Google Lunar X-Prize (GLXP) was created in 2007 by the X-Prize Foundation, with the goal of creating lunar exploration missions that are at least ninety percent privately financed. There are currently 29 teams from 17 countries in the competition. A $20 million grand prize will be awarded to the team that fulfils all requirements of the GLXP on or before December 31st 2015. If a publicly funded mission completes a similar mission first, the prize is reduced to $15 million. With this competition, Google wants to advance private space exploration missions, as well as create more advanced and cost-effective solutions for the space industry.
Contact for the Part-Time Scientists:
Sven Wehlan
Part-Time-Scientists GmbH
Kaulsdorfer Str. 13A, D-12621 Berlin
