SpaceIL, which aims to land the first Israeli spacecraft on the moon, has received a $16.4 million grant from the Las Vegas-based Adelson Family Foundation, Israel Hayom reports.

The grant will help fund construction and testing of the unmanned spacecraft, which is competing for the Google Lunar X Prize, and also will be used to teach young Israelis about the project. In addition to the grant from the Adelson Foundation, the organization has received support from businessman Morris Kahn and the Schusterman Family Foundation, as well as the Israel Space Agency, Israel Aerospace Industries, Bezeq, Tel Aviv University, and the Weizmann Institute, among others.

"Sheldon and I are very excited to be supporting SpaceIL in an effort to land the first Israeli spacecraft on the moon," said Dr. Miriam Adelson. "As an Israeli-born physician and scientist, I am especially proud of the positive impact the pursuit of this goal will have on the next generation of young Israelis, and frankly all young people, as it serves as an important example of the role science and technology continue to play in our everyday lives and across the world."