As China's lunar ambitions take off, it admits it is engaged in a race to the moon with the United States.

“In the historical context of this period, the race to demonstrate superior political force made lunar exploration unsustainable,” the plan states.

“It is foreseeable that in the next 20 to 30 years, the China International Lunar Research Station and the American Artemis program will be competitive in terms of technology and operational efficiency on the same historical stage and geographical location (the south pole of the moon),” he said.

The new plan, “Strategic Concept for Development of Resource Utilization of the International Lunar Research Station,” was drafted under the leadership of Pei Zhaoyu, deputy director of the Lunar Exploration and Space Engineering Center of the CNSA , and published in the Chinese Journal of Astronautics in April. .

“And countries like the United States don’t have a clear advantage in this area. »

Washington has long presented China as a rival in this new race for the moon, viewing the race primarily as a land grab.

“It’s a fact: we are in a space race” NASA chief Bill Nelson said in an interview about China’s lunar ambitions with Politico in January 2023.

“And it is true that we had better be careful that they do not arrive on the Moon under the cover of scientist research. And it’s not impossible that they’ll say, ‘Stay away, we’re here, this is our territory,'” he said.

But China sees the game differently, according to Pei.

02:01

China’s Chang’e-6 lands on the far side of the Moon to bring rock samples back to Earth

Beijing aims to replicate its terrestrial success by building large-scale infrastructure on the Moon. According to the plan, this will help establish technological, industrial and economic advantages to encourage more countries to stop following the United States and join China-led efforts to exploit lunar resources.

“The use of lunar resources is a scientific challenge, a technological driver and an economic reward. Efficiency and benefits will be the primary evaluation criteria, guiding construction, operation and sustainable development,” Pei’s team wrote.

Lunar soil is exceptionally rich in titanium and iron, two metals that can be used to make spacecraft components. China also discovered numerous water molecules in its recently obtained samples, a resource that the Apollo missions had not detected.

These hydrogen and oxygen molecules, trapped in lunar soil particles, indicate the potential presence of up to 270 billion tons of water resources on the Moon, which could be used to produce rocket fuel, water and oxygen for astronauts, Chinese space authorities said on social media. media.

According to the latest plan, China will launch two large spacecraft in the next few years to conduct detailed explorations of these resources and validate key technologies for resource utilization. By 2030, collaborative work between humans and intelligent machines should be achieved on the lunar surface.

Starting in 2035, China plans to “carry out large-scale energy acquisition, large-scale material extraction, and large-scale lunar construction” to realize “engineering applications such as oxygen and oxygen”. water production from lunar soil, collection and extraction of mineral resources, production of metal-based components and construction of buildings on the Moon.

A “lunar resources exploration system covering a large area of several thousand kilometers and a depth of several hundred meters” will also be completed during this period.

China’s Chang’e-6 lunar probe, which made news around the world, was the first human craft ever to land on the far side of the moon when it touched down earlier this month. Photo: Reuters — China’s Chang’e-6 lunar probe, which made news around the world, was the first human spacecraft to land on the far side of the Moon when it touched down earlier this month. Photo: Reuters

By 2045, China’s lunar base will have large facilities such as power plants, factories, scientific research institutes, rocket launch sites, tourist centers and a small underground city.

Chinese resource exploration robots will roam the entire lunar surface. It is estimated that more than half of the investments in the construction and operation of these facilities will come from countries other than China, and economic activities will reach a break-even point. Humans will use this base as a starting point to explore Mars.

“China will become a leader in human deep space exploration activities,” the plan said.

China’s first lunar probe, Chang’e-1, was launched in 2007. Due to lack of experience and confidence, this small two-ton satellite circled the Earth for more than two weeks before heading towards the Moon.

Immediately after the launch, Luan Enjie, then commander-in-chief of the lunar exploration project, told the Xinhua news agency: “China will not engage in any form of lunar competition with any country. »

Yet it took less than 15 years for the balance of space power to change. China has sent a rover to Mars, established the BeiDou satellite navigation system to compete with GPS and deployed the world’s largest Earth observation system. satellite network capable of tracking F-22 stealth fighters.

They also completed construction of an independent space station – something the United States never achieved – and developed the world’s only space station. high orbit communications satellite which can directly connect millions of smartphones on Earth at a distance of 36,000 km.

China’s lunar exploration program has also reached world-leading milestones. Last month, the Chang’e-6 spaceship with grace landed on the far side of the moon, where no other country has gone, and collected rocks and earth. These samples will soon return to Earth.

02:14

China’s Chang’e 6 launches historic mission to collect first rock samples from the far side of the Moon

Although the United States began lunar exploration earlier, due to mission delays and funding limitations, “it lost its absolute leadership position,” Pei’s team wrote.

To counter China’s advances, the US government has entrusted private companies with crucial lunar missions, believing they could build a lunar base more efficiently than NASA. To motivate these private actors, the American Congress adopted a law affirming the principle: “First to explore, first to possess”.

However, the first two private American lunar missions failed. Astrobotic Technology’s Peregrine lunar lander, the first American spacecraft to attempt a moon landing in decades, burned in a failed attempt. Intuitive Machines’ Odysseus lander also encountered technical difficulties and tilted after landing at a higher speed than expected.

THE American Artemis program includes a space station named Gateway orbiting the moon. However, the Chinese space community has greeted the feasibility of this project with skepticism, as the United States has never succeeded in building a complete space station, even in Earth’s orbit.

The US space laboratory Skylab operated for less than a year before crashing, and the core technology for the International Space Station is provided by Russia.

SpaceX Starship has achieved significant success during test flights. Although the giant spacecraft still needs further testing and technological breakthroughs to fly to the Moon, some Chinese aerospace engineers believe it represents the United States’ greatest hope in the race.

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As China’s lunar ambitions take off, it admits it is engaged in a race to the moon with the United States.

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