????紐特?金里奇（前美國國會眾議院議長——譯注）所設想的在月球上采礦的龐大聯邦計劃可能并非無稽之談。億萬富翁納文?簡也認為在238,855英里之外的太空的確存在著機會。簡是微軟（Microsoft）首批開發人員之一，并創建了網絡內容提供商InfoSpace。月球上不少環形山是由富含金屬的隕石撞擊形成的，簡打算從中挖掘氦-3和鉑。簡的新創企業Moon Express正在制造一臺價值2,000萬美元的月球登陸器（如右圖所示），并計劃于2013年發射。Moon Express與另外25家企業正在爭奪谷歌（Google）贊助的3,000萬美元的Lunar X-Prize獎項。簡表示，氦-3可能成為新的非放射性能量來源。此外，想在發生全球性災難后仍然能夠延續血脈的人只需花費約50美元就可以將自己的DNA儲存到月球上。還可以將全家福或求婚請求投影到月球表面，并將其放到互聯網上。簡說：“月球是少數尚未進行商業開發的處女地之一。”請現在就開始倒計時吧。——Jennifer Alsever
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????Newt Gingrich's idea for a massive federal program to mine the moon may not be totally insane after all. Billionaire Naveen Jain also agrees opportunity exists 238,855 miles away. One of the first Microsoft (MSFT) developers and founder of the web content provider InfoSpace (INSP), Jain wants to dig up the helium-3 and platinum deposited in moon craters by metal-rich asteroids. His startup, Moon Express, is building a $20 million moon lander (right) slated to launch in 2013. His is one of 26 ventures vying to win the $30 million Lunar X-Prize sponsored by Google (GOOG). Jain says helium-3 could be a new nonradioactive energy source. There's more. For about $50, those who want to make themselves immortal in case of global catastrophe can store their DNA there. You can also project a family picture or a marriage proposal on the moon's surface and put it on the web. "The moon is one of the few places left that hasn't been explored from an entrepreneurial aspect," he says. The countdown begins. --Jennifer Alsever |
