- Japan's Sole Representative Team in Moon Exploration Project"HAKUTO" to Release Promotional Online Video Depicting Cockroach's Journey to Moon; Video on YouTube on June 4 -

ispace inc., which manages the Japanese"HAKUTO" team in the"Google Lunar XPRIZE" contest aimed at landing a private craft on the moon by 2015, has released an eye-popping online video featuring the humble cockroach (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QeW5O6GGOtM) as you've never seen it before! The video will be available to watch on YouTube from midnight on June 4 (Japan time), which happens to mark "Insect Day" in Japan.

Photo: http://prw.kyodonews.jp/opn/release/201406041119/

The two-minute video begins with a cockroach struggling in a trap before it surprisingly rises into the night sky, taking the trap with it, all the way up to the surface of the moon. While the video's content is certainly unconventional, its message is straightforward - that the moon holds an attraction for all kinds of animal species, and in fact the prehistoric cockroach has a far longer connection with the moon than us humans, having been on earth for millions of years.

HAKUTO is the only team from Japan competing in the"Google Lunar XPRIZE," an international contest to achieve the first landing of a privately operated craft on the surface of the moon. To win the contest, one of the 18 competing teams must land their craft safely on the lunar surface before traveling at least 500 m and sending back two "Mooncasts" to Earth, all before the end of 2015. In recent years, the idea of lunar exploration has faded from the public consciousness. Now though, along with the other teams, HAKUTO aims to capture the imagination of the world and reignite people's passion for lunar exploration. The "Google Lunar XPRIZE" is hopefully just the first step for HAKUTO in its continuing space exploration efforts.

This unique online video should help the team to get even more recognition for its pioneering efforts internationally as well as in Japan. Check out the video at the link above and spread the word! Also, for the latest news on HAKUTO, visit the team blog on the "Google Lunar XPRIZE" website (www.googlelunarxprize.org/teams/hakuto/blog/).