The dearMoon project, the much-awaited world’s first civilian circumlunar voyage which included Big Bang’s T.O.P and Steve Aoki, has been canceled. 

In 2022, Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezama announced the selection of the crew members for the dearMoon project. 

The dearMoon project entailed a mission of a spacecraft going around the moon and returning to earth. 

The dearMoon crew and fligh plan (dearMoon) 

Those who were selected were T.O.P from South Korea, Steve Aoki from the US, Yemi A.D. from Czech Republic, Rhiannon Adam from Ireland, Tim Dodd from the US, Karim Iliya from the United Kingdom, Brendan Hall from the US and Dev D. Joshi from India.

The two backup crew members were Kaitlyn Farrington from the US and Miyu from Japan. 

However, in a notice on June 1, it was announced that the project has been canceled. 

“In 2018, Yusaku Maezawa announced dearMoon, the world’s first civilian circumlunar voyage aboard SpaceX’s space vehicle, Starship. The plan had included artists from around the world who would participate in the project to share the invaluable experience in space with the rest of the world. Arrangements were being made with SpaceX to target the launch by the end of 2023,” the notice stated. 

It added, “Unfortunately, however, launch within 2023 became unfeasible, and without clear schedule certainty in the near-term, it is with a heavy heart that Maezawa made the unavoidable decision to cancel the project. To all who have supported this project and looked forward to this endeavor, we sincerely appreciate it and apologize for this outcome.”

“Although dearMoon is cancelled, Maezawa and dearMoon crew members will continue to challenge themselves in their respective fields. We will hold deep respect for SpaceX as they continue to venture into uncharted territories, while we ourselves will move on to the next challenge,” it said. 

On X, Maezawa said, “I signed the contract in 2018 based on the assumption that dearMoon would launch by the end of 2023. It’s a developmental project so it is what it is, but it is still uncertain as to when Starship can launch.” 

He added, “I can’t plan my future in this situation, and I feel terrible making the crew members wait longer, hence the difficult decision to cancel at this point in time. I apologize to those who were excited for this project to happen.”

The dearMoon crew (dearMoon)