Moon Mission: Hakuto robot rover undergoes testing in Japan ahead of lunar travel

Hakuto's PFM3 pre-flight model underwent testing in Tottori Sand Dunes, Tottori Prefecture. <br /><br />Hakuto's privately developed rover is scheduled to be launched from Earth by SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket and then deployed onto a lunar orbit. Once landed on the moon's surface, the rover is set to travel more than 500 metres (1,640 feet) on autopilot while bypassing craters and rocks. The rover is also to capture so-called mooncasts, high-resolution, 360-degree images of the lunar surface, which the researchers say the rover will then send back to Earth. The device will compete with other rovers in Google Lunar XPrize competition. <br /><br />COURTESY: RT's RUPTLY video agency, NO RE-UPLOAD, NO REUSE - FOR LICENSING, PLEASE, CONTACT http://ruptly.tv<br /><br />RT LIVE http://rt.com/on-air<br /><br />Subscribe to RT! http://www.youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=RussiaToday<br /><br />Like us on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/RTnews<br />Follow us on Twitter http://twitter.com/RT_com<br />Follow us on Instagram http://instagram.com/rt<br />Follow us on Google+ http://plus.google.com/+RT<br />Listen to us on Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/rttv<br /><br />RT (Russia Today) is a global news network broadcasting from Moscow and Washington studios. RT is the first news channel to break the 1 billion YouTube views benchmark.