Stars Wars director JJ Abrams reveals his next project will follow a REAL space battle: Moon shot will document Google’s $30m X-prize contest to send rovers to the moon

Having mastered fictional renderings of spaceflight, 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens' director J.J. Abrams has turned his attention to a real space drama, with a series of Web-based documentaries about a Google-backed race to the moon.

Produced by Abrams and directed by documentary filmmaker Orlando von Einsiedel ('Virunga'), the series chronicles some of the 16 teams vying for $30 million in prizes for landing and operating a privately developed robotic spacecraft on the moon before Dec. 31, 2017.

'The teams ... range from Silicon Valley tech experts, to hackers in Germany, to IT specialists in India, to a father and son (working) in a spare bedroom in Vancouver,' the X Prize Foundation, which organized the competition, said in a statement.

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J.J. Abrams nine-part series, called 'Moon Shot,' offers an overview of the Google Lunar X Prize contest

So far only the government-run space programs of the United States, the former Soviet Union and China have landed spacecraft on the moon.

Abrams' nine-part series, called 'Moon Shot,' offers an overview of the Google Lunar X Prize contest and follows individual members from several of the teams, according to X Prize spokesman Eric Desatnik.

Each film is seven minutes long. 

The entire series debuts on March 15 on Google Play and on March 17 on YouTube. 

In addition to his work on the latest 'Star Wars' movie blockbuster, Abrams' directing credits include the first two films in a reboot of the 'Star Trek' big-screen franchise.

Google paid for the documentary project, a partnership of Abrams' production company Bad Robot and Epic Digital. 

Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

The $30 million prize is aimed to 'incentivise space entrepreneurs to create a new era of affordable access to the moon and beyond.'

'More than half of the world's population has never had the opportunity to view a live transmission from the lunar surface,' say the organisers.

The prize aims to create a new 'Apollo' moment for this generation and to spur continuous lunar exploration.

In order to win this money, a private company must land safely on the surface of the Moon, travel 1,640ft (500 metres) on its surface, and send two signals back to the Earth.

The Google Lunar XPrize, which started off with more than 25 teams, is currently in its final round, and a decision on funding is due to be made in 2016. 

It is one of 13 competitions sponsored by the California-based X Prize organization to stimulate technological developments that address a wide-range of environmental, social and medical challenges.

Audi gave an excited audience the first views of its moon rover earlier this year, as the German car manufacturer debuted the concept vehicle at an auto show in Detroit.

The outing marks the first public appearance since the car firm revealed its plans to develop a lunar rover last July.

The rover (pictured) is powered by an adjustable solar panel that captures sunlight and directs it to a lithium-ion battery. It feeds four electric wheel hub motors. A head at the front of the vehicle carries two stereoscopic cameras as well as a scientific camera that examines materials. 

The vehicle has been built with a German group of engineers, known as the Part-Time Scientists, as part of the Google Lunar XPrize contest.

According to the engineering team behind the rover - one of only 16 remaining groups in the contest - Audi has helped it to perfect a 3D-printing process to manufacturer the vehicle from titanium and aluminium.

With a $30 million (£20.8m) prize for the winners, the Lunar XPrize competition was set up to 'incentivise space entrepreneurs to create a new era of affordable access to the moon and beyond.'

In order to scoop the prize, a privately-funded team has to place a robot on the moon's surface, explore at least 1,640ft (500 metres) and transmit high-definition video and images back to Earth.

Speaking to The Verge, Robert Böhme, boss of Part Time Scientists, said: 'It's really hard to justify a lunar mission now, even if you get it down to $30 million.’

He added: ‘We want to focus so much on science, we want to show that there is the value. There is value that you can take away from being on the surface of the moon.

'It's important to show what could be done.'

A working party of ten Audi employees from different technical departments is assisting the Part-Time Scientists.