Audi over the moon

"Part-Time Scientists, full time crazy," is what Audi is calling the engineering team it is supporting to land on the moon.

That's right, as part of the Google Lunar XPRIZE competition, which tasks entrants to develop an unmanned rover to explore the surface of the moon and send back high-resolution images and video in 2017, Audi is confident its four-ringed, four-wheeled quattro rover can get the job done.

Although Audi is not officially entering the XPRIZE comp, the winners of which will score a cool $30 million, the 'Part-Time Scientists' team is being supported by the German brand, whose Munich design studio has made "revisions" to the team's rover, which will now be named the 'Audi lunar quattro'.

So while Lexus has a hover board, Audi is claiming to be the first luxury car-maker with a lunar rover.

"The concept of a privately financed mission to the moon is fascinating," says Luca de Meo, Audi sales and marketing chief. "And innovative ideas need supporters that promote them. We want to send a signal with our involvement with the Part-Time Scientists and also motivate other partners to contribute their know-how," said de Meo, clearly keen for a return on his investment.

If everything goes to plan, the space-faring Audi lunar rover will be launched into space in 2017 and make the 380,000km journey to the moon, which takes about five days.

Constructed mostly of aluminium, the lunar rover hopeful has been tested in Austria and the Canary Islands, to check its hot and cold weather operability. It features an adjustable solar panel that charges a Lithium-ion battery and is propelled by hub motors inside each wheel. Top speed is 3.6km/h.

A pair of stereoscopic cameras and a third 'scientific' camera will capture and examine the moon's surface.

"With Audi we have acquired a strong partner that will bring us a big step forward with its technological and mobility capabilities," said Robert Böhme, founder and head of the Part-Time Scientists.

Good luck to all entrants!