SpaceX just launched an Israeli mission toward the moon. If successful, it would be the world's first private lunar landing.

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On Thursday night, SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 rocket carrying the first-ever private moon mission.

SpaceIL, a nonprofit organization based in Israel, designed and built the 1,322-pound lunar lander called "Beresheet," which means "in the beginning" the first words in the Bible .

SpaceIL started as a Google Lunar XPrize team and is backed by South African billionaire Morris Kahn.

If the Beresheet mission survives a weeks-long trip to the lunar surface, it will make Israel the fourth country ever to pull off a moon landing.

SpaceX, the rocket company founded by Elon Musk, just launched the first private lunar lander in history.

Whether or not the mission successfully lands on the moon's surface in about two months, the effort will carry lasting significance to Israel and the country's nascent space industry.See the rest of the story at Business InsiderNOW WATCH: What living on Earth would be like without the moonSee Also:Bird poop and dust could seriously complicate Elon Musk and SpaceX's latest plan to reach MarsElon Musk says SpaceX is developing a 'bleeding' heavy-metal rocket ship. Making it work may be 100 times as hard as NASA's most difficult Mars mission, one expert says.A 1.37 billion border-security deal might save SpaceX's launch site in Texas, where Elon Musk hopes to fire off moon and Mars rocketsSEE ALSO: 'This is more than just a landing': Why China's mission on the far side of the moon should be a wake-up call for the world

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