MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Moon Express Inc has become the first private company in the US history to get a permission to send a spacecraft to the Moon, the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said in a statement Wednesday.
"On July 20, 2016, the FAA made a favorable payload determination for the Moon Express MX-1E mission. The FAA has determined that the launch of the payload does not jeopardize public health and safety, safety of property, US national security or foreign policy interests, or international obligations of the United States," the statement read.
Up to this point only government agencies were allowed to send spacecraft beyond the Earth's orbit. According to the 1967 international treaty on space dubbed the Outer Space Treaty, the United States is responsible for the space flights carried out by US non-governmental organizations.
