A Little Red Swedish House Is Heading To The Moon

Swedish artist Mikael Genberg has been hoping to put a toy red house on the Moon for 25 years. His dream moved a step closer to reality on January 15, 2025. On that day, his "Moonhouse" set off for the Moon aboard a SpaceX rocket with the Resilience lunar lander built by the Japanese company ispace.

The lander is expected to reach the Moon in about four months. Once there, a rover will transport the miniature house to a sunlit area in the Moon's northern hemisphere. If successful, Moonhouse will become the first artistic structure on the lunar surface.

Made of aluminum, Moonhouse has undergone extensive testing to ensure it can endure the journey to space and remain intact in its new environment. Its red exterior paint is space-certified and durable enough to withstand the harsh conditions on the Moon. Genberg had initially hoped to send a much larger structure. But the high cost of transporting it to space led him to create a palm-sized version instead.

Genberg first thought of the unusual project in 1999. The artist was inspired by Sweden's role in building the first European lunar probe. Over the years, his red structures, resembling classic Swedish cottages, have been seen on treetops, underwater, and even on the Great Wall of China. In 2009, a Swedish astronaut also carried one to the International Space Station. However, it took the artist 25 years to fulfill his dream of landing it on the Moon.

"I've been working with the symbol as an artist for years and years," Genberg said. "...but it was all about narrowing in towards this ultimate piece of art, putting a house on the moon."

Resources: theMoonhouse.se