Digital Assets

SpaceX, GEC to Launch DOGE-1 Mission to The Moon

Published May 10, 2021

Sal Hassen

Geometric Energy Corporation (GEC) announced yesterday that it’s collaborating with SpaceX to launch the first-ever commercial lunar payload paid entirely with the cryptocurrency DOGE.

Expected to take place in Q1 of 2022, the DOGE-1 Mission to the Moon will use the Falcon 9 rocket to take a 40 kg cubesat as a rideshare that will capture lunar data.

With the meteoric rise in its price, DOGE, or Dogecoin, has been a hot topic lately. Moreover, SpaceX founder Elon Musk is one of the crypto’s strongest supporters.

Commenting on the unique transaction, GEC’s Chief Executive Samuel Reid said: “Having officially transacted with DOGE for a deal of this magnitude, Geometric Energy Corporation and SpaceX have solidified DOGE as a unit of account for lunar business in the space sector.”

GEC also announced that the two companies will be using DOGE for “all lunar business.”

SpaceX VP of commercial sales also weighed in on the mission, stating: “This mission will demonstrate the application of cryptocurrency beyond Earth orbit and set the foundation for interplanetary commerce.”

DOGE

DOGE is an open-source digital currency based on a popular internet meme. The price of the digital coin seems to receive a positive push every time Elon Musk tweets about it. After SNL announced Musk’s appearance on Saturday Night Live, DOGE received another push, going above $0.6 for the first time. However, after his appearance on the show, calling Dogecoin a “hustle,” the price of the coin dropped by over 30%.

SpaceX

Founded by Elon Musk, SpaceX is a Hawthorne-California-based private spaceflight company that launches satellites into orbit and delivers cargo and crew to the International Space Station (ISS). The company launched 26 rockets last year, including a mission carrying its first astronauts to the ISS. The majority of SpaceX’s 2021 missions have carried the Starlink satellites. (Starlink is a satellite network created to provide low-cost internet to remote locations.)

Falcon 9

SpaceX’s workhorse rocket, the Falcon 9 took it first flight in 2019. The most recent flight of the rocket took place yesterday. According to SpaceX, Falcon 9 was used to launch a full stack of 60 Starlink internet satellites into orbit. The flight was also noteworthy for the fact that it was the 10^th launching and landing attempt of the booster, B1051.

GEC

GEC is a Calgary, Alberta-based IP, logistics, and manufacturing company. The company started with a focus on renewable energy but has expanded into space, software, and other industries. GEC currently has four subsidiaries: Geometric Space, Geometric Medical, Geometric Gaming, and GeometricLabs. GEC will collaborate with Mimir Solutions, POINTBLANK, and Iteration Syndicate (ITS) for designing the hardware and software and hardware for the DOGE-1 project.

GEC last month announced its CubeSat RideShare Program. The first mission of the program will launch next year aboard a SpaceX and include deployment of a 12 x 6U CubeSat adapter plate into low Earth orbit. According to Ried, the purpose of the rideshare program is “to lower the cost barrier for startups and smaller budget launches, especially those that help to fulfill our company’s mandate of transforming civilization for the better.”