It had been rumored for several months, but it was not until a few days ago that officials from the China National Space Administration (CNSA), the country’s national space agency, confirmed to the media the joining of forces with Russia with the aim of creating a research station on the Moon that would complete its basic infrastructure in 2035.
“We are intensely engaged in the negotiations and we have basically reached a consensus . It is very possible that the agreement will be signed as soon as possible this year,” Wu said during a press conference, referring to the intergovernmental agreement that the two nations will officially sign.
In fact, the Russian ambassador to China, Andrey Denisov, himself said that the agreement on the creation of the station “is almost ready and will be signed very soon” .
What will this season be like?
The Chinese-Russian lunar station will compete with NASA’s Lunar Gateway, a small space station that will orbit the Moon as part of the space agency’s Artemis Mission, which aims to put the first woman and first person of color on Earth. lunar surface by 2024 (although this date is likely to be pushed back).
The station, which will serve as a research center, will have different phases: the first, would be developed until 2025 ; at which point one or more construction sites will be selected, the International Lunar Research Station (ILRS), its lunar base, will be designed, and several missions will be sent to the Moon to demonstrate soft-landing technology. Cargo and equipment will be transported to the lunar surface via unmanned ships. The second phase, from 2026 to 2030, would be made up of joint operations, such as delivering lunar soil samples to Earth and testing technologies for the ILRS command center. The third phase would run until 2035, at which point the ILRS center will be ready for multidisciplinary research activities, according to the CNSA. Both countries aim for the lunar base to be ready for manned visits in 2036 . In this year, the scientific work and the construction of the base could already begin. The plan will require a sustained injection of cash and political will over many years to succeed.
The initial construction phases of ILRS will involve the creation of power systems, a communication network and life support technology for the lunar research center that will include lunar exploration and observation.
The Russian agency, Roscosmos, distanced itself in January 2021 from previous interest in collaborating with NASA’s Lunar Gateway program, for which they had signed an informal joint statement in 2017. Finally, they will not collaborate with the United States, but with China.
Although it is a collaboration between Russia and China, the latter stated that they are open to any country joining the alliance: “We welcome the broad participation of international colleagues,” according to Wu Yanhua, director of the China National Space Administration.
As a curiosity, in its 20-year history, no Chinese citizen has ever been aboard the International Space Station, operated by five space agencies: NASA (USA), Roscosmos (Russia), JAXA (Japan), ESA ( Europe) and CSA (Canada). ). As a result, China last year began construction of its own space station, called Tiangong, which means “heavenly palace,” and is scheduled to finish it in 2022.
