Money is tight in the federal government, so the Obama administration nixed a proposed $150 billion manned NASA flight back to the Moon. The backup plan: A robot who’s willing to make the trip for $450 million.

The New York Times reports the robo-Neil Armstrong mission will send a C-3PO looking humanoid Skynet Terminator to the Moon, where it might just begin planning to build more of its kind and plan an invasion of our planet.

Dubbed Project M, the initiative has cost $9 million so far. The original hopes were to get robotic feet on the Moon by 2012, but the date is now up in the air, as plan hasn’t yet been given the green light.

Does the robot idea sound cool to you? What would you like NASA’s next big exploration mission to be?

NASA’s Quest to Send a Robot to the Moon [New York Times]

Want more consumer news? Visit our parent organization, Consumer Reports, for the latest on scams, recalls, and other consumer issues.