Sports Drink Being Sent to the Moon

Astronauts of the future may find themselves playing "kick the can" on the moon, but only after they quench their thirst with some refreshing Pocari Sweat, of course.

Japanese company Otsuka Pharmaceuticals announced Thursday that they plan to be the first to put a sports drink on the Moon, sending a can of powdered Pocari Sweat along with the "dreams of children" to the Moon by 2015.

According to a company press release, the 2009 discovery that there is free-flowing groundwater far beneath the surface of the Moon inspired this unusual promotional stunt.

"Otsuka hopes that one day youths interested in space will live out their dreams, collect the DREAM CAPSULE, and drink the POCARI SWEAT mixed with the water found on the moon," the company wrote.

The "dream capsule," a sealed titanium time capsule, was reportedly designed by experts to endure the harsh environments of the Moon, which shift from extremely hot to extremely cold temperatures as the rotation of the natural satellite exposes its different faces to the Sun.

According to Otsuka, the time capsule - which will be shaped like a Pocari Sweat Can - will contain numerous hand-written messages from children interested in space travel, in addition to the sports drink mix. Messages can also be sent to the capsule in an app the company is releasing that supposedly will only work if your Smartphone is "aimed towards the Moon during a moonlit night."

Unfortunately for thirsty future moon men, they will only be able to get their hands on the sports drink and some reading material if they happen to have one of the 120 "dream rings" designed to unlock the can-shaped time capsule. These rings were given away to the children who wrote the capsule's messages, according to the company.

The Lunar Dream Capsule Project, which will carry the time capsule to the Moon, is scheduled to launch in October 2015 from Florida, making it the first privately funded mission to the Moon.