LunaCorp was a company headed by David Gump, and established in 1989 and based in Arlington, Virginia. It was designed around a privately funded mission, using Russian technology, to put a rover on the Moon. The goal of the company was to fund the mission by the entertainment value of having customers drive the rover. The program's advisor was Dr. Buzz Aldrin.

In 1995, the company intended to have two rovers on the moon by 1998. Gump also proposed sending back live visuals and movement data that could be translated into an amusement park ride. He hoped to recoup one-third of the rovers' cost by selling the ability to control its rovers to theme parks and science museums.

After producing no tangible results the company was dissolved in 2003.

References

  • LunaCorp press release (2000) from Space Frontiers.org
  • Snapshots of LunaCorp History, 2007.
  • Interview: LunaCorp and Orbital Outfitters , Daily Spaceflight News, 15 December 2010.