Topic for July. 4. ( Thur )

[Alex !]

Exploration of the Moon, China vs Us Moon War

-what are China’s ambitions and why is the US so concerned?

China's Chang'e-6 mission had successfully returned, bringing 1,935.3 grams of soil and rocks, the first-ever from the far side of the Moon. The Chang'e-6 mission marks the first time that humans have returned samples from the Moon's far side.

The far side of the Moon is the lunar hemisphere that always faces away from Earth, opposite to the near side, because of synchronous rotation in the Moon's orbit.

This mission is expected to improve understanding of the Moon's evolution while also accelerating peaceful exploration and utilization of lunar resources.

The worsening rivalry between the world’s two most powerful countries that has in recent years spread across the world, has now extended beyond the terrestrial, into the realms of the celestial.

As China has become deeply enmeshed in strategic competition with the US – while edging towards outright hostilities with other regional neighbours – Washington’s alarm at the pace of its advancement in space is growing ever-louder.

The physical exploration of the Moon began when Luna 2, a space probe launched by the Soviet Union, made a deliberate impact on the surface of the Moon on September 14, 1959. Prior to that the only available means of exploration had been observation from Earth. The invention of the optical telescope brought about the first leap in the quality of lunar observations. 

Galileo Galilei is generally credited as the first person to use a telescope for astronomical purposes; having made his own telescope in 1609, the mountains and craters on the lunar surface were among his first observations using it.

NASA's Apollo program was the only program to successfully land humans on the Moon, which it did six times. The first landing took place in 1969, when Apollo 11astronauts Buzz Aldrin and Neil Armstrong left scientific instruments and returned lunar samples to Earth.

The Chinese Lunar Exploration Program also known as the Chang'e Project (Chinese: 嫦娥工程; pinyin: Cháng'é Gōngchéng) after the Chinese Moon goddess Chang'e, is an ongoing series of robotic Moon missions by the China National Space Administration (CNSA).

China's Chang'e-4 spacecraft successfully landed on the far side of the moon in 2019 accomplishing a worldwide first in lunar exploration. China brought a capsule full of lunar soil from the far side of the moon down to Earth on Tuesday last week achieving the latest success in an ambitious schedule to explore the moon and other parts of the solar system.

The sample, retrieved by the China National Space Administration's Chang'e-6 lander after a 53-day mission, highlights China's growing capabilities in space and notches another win in a series of lunar missions that started in 2007 and have so far been executed almost without flaw. "Chang'e-6 is the first mission in human history to return samples from the far side of the moon.

The United States appears to be very wary of whether China will take the lead in lunar exploration based on this achievement. The reason the United States and China are engaged in a power struggle over the moon is because lunar resources are considered the best strategic resource of the 21st century. This is seen as a signal that the race to develop space resources is in full swing.

The far side of the moon is known to be rich in helium 3, an element that is difficult to obtain on Earth. Helium-3 can be used as a raw material for nuclear fusion power generation instead of tritium. 1g of helium 3 emits energy similar to 40 tons of coal.

The American space exploration company ‘Interlun’ also released an analysis showing that more than 1 million tons of helium 3 is buried under the surface of the moon. This is the amount that humanity can use as an energy source for 10,000 years.

It is believed that the moon's surface contains large amounts of rare earth elements such as scandium and yttrium, as well as iron and magnesium. Rare earth elements, which have the property of transmitting heat and electricity well, are a key resource used in making semiconductors and displays.

The far side of the moon, where China collected samples, is a ‘young region’ that is relatively less affected by the solar wind. The samples brought by Chang’e 6 are likely to have been less deteriorated, so when analyzed under a microscope, it is clear what substances are present. We will be able to obtain very accurate results about whether it exists on the moon.

Once the outlines of the resources existing on the moon are revealed, the era of the ‘moon economy’ is expected to begin in earnest. The lunar economy means that economic profits are generated by the creation of lunar residents. China is preparing to build a lunar base .

The reason each country is competing to build a lunar base is because it could become a key space for procuring necessary resources before humanity migrates to Mars. Scientists are anticipating an Earth-Moon-Mars economy that produces resources on the Moon and transports them to Mars.

The US and China are indeed in a race, but it’s not to simply set feet on the moon like during the cold war. Rather, it’s to find and control resources, like water. It’s a race for who has better technical capabilities. China is quickly catching up. The pace of Chinese technological development is the threatening element [to the US].

Generally speaking China wants to be first so they have the right to dominate and monopolise the resources. If you have the resources in your hand then you have a huge advantage in the future of space exploration. The Americans however, “are not so interested in owning the moon because they’ve been there.

They know it’s not really a habitable place, they are more interested in Mars. So for them the Lunar Gateway is sort of a gas station for the journey to Mars.

The real challenge in space is not just about reaching a specific milestone, like planting flags or collecting rocks; it is about establishing a sustainable, resilient presence in an incredibly challenging environment. This is a test against our own abilities.