At the end of May 2023, China's manned lunar landing mission has been launched, and it is planned to achieve the first manned lunar landing by 2030.
【China's Manned Moon Landing Concept】
This plan has also aroused an enthusiastic response from Russia, which formally ratified the relevant agreement on the joint establishment of an international lunar research station between China and Russia at the end of November.
At the beginning, this may have been Russia's last chance.
China and Russia join hands to explore the moon
The plan is divided into three steps, but it is not too far away, and it can be completed around 2035 at the earliest.
Step 1,
In fact, China has already made significant achievements at this stage, for example, the mainland's Chang'e-5 successfully made a soft landing on the moon in 2020 and returned to Earth with collected samples.
The project has been hailed as the most complex and difficult mission in China's space history, symbolizing China's great progress in space technology.
At the same time, according to the plan, Chang'e-6 is expected to be launched in 2024 to collect more samples on the far side of the moon and strive to achieve the goal of 2,000 grams.
In the field of exploration of the moon, it can be said that apart from the former Soviet Union and the current United States, no country can compete with China.
Considering China's tremendous development achievements in the field of space, the first phase is expected to be completed around 2027.
The second phase begins
This is the equivalent of building a space station-like structure on the surface of the moon, which scientists call the lunar module.
From this stage onwards, the preparatory conditions for China's manned lunar landing program are initially ripe, and it is only necessary to wait for a suitable time.
After China's manned landing on the moon, it will further increase the number of lunar modules to ensure the steady progress of the project.
This is very different from the original manned moon landing in the United States, which is more of a practical value.
China, on the other hand, pays more attention to the exploration of the scientific research value of the moon.
It is believed that this will cause greater repercussions than the moon landing in the last century, and more and more countries and organizations are willing to participate in it in the later period to jointly promote human progress.
From the third stage, China also intends to:
The ultimate goal is to establish a site on the moon that can be used for scientific research, with manned space in the short term and stable operation in the long term.
Broad prospects for Sino-Russian cooperation
First of all, it can greatly increase the international voice of the two countries and enhance the prestige and credibility of national scientific research projects.
[Beautiful ideas for the research station]
Secondly, China's economic and technological base, as well as Russia's extensive experience, will become the "cornerstone" of the lunar research station, making the project feasible to a considerable extent.
Finally, the joint construction of a lunar scientific research station by China and Russia is also conducive to breaking the monopoly of Western countries led by the United States in lunar exploration.
In the late stage of the space struggle between the United States and the Soviet Union in the last century, the two countries realized the practical value of developing the moon.
Because the earth's resources are limited, human greed is unlimited, we cannot rely on the earth's only resources to feed countless generations of future generations, and the development of extraterrestrials is an inevitable trend.
In this area, whoever prioritizes breakthroughs will be able to occupy a more advantageous position in future development.
Obviously, the United States has the upper hand in this space hegemony that has lasted for decades.
After the collapse of the Soviet Union, the United States tried to exclude China and Russia and other countries, and enjoyed the lunar resources alone, in order to maintain its hegemony in the world.
The United States completed the manned lunar landing program at the end of the 60s of the last century, why did they not continue it?
In fact, the whole program is aimed at realizing the human exploration of the moon and preparing for the flight and exploration of the planet.
Although the United States did a good job, it was found that the so-called Apollo program did not create real value, and the long-term drag on the US finances forced them to halt the project.
In the end, the project has been delayed until today because the United States wanted to regain the relevant plan, coupled with the collapse of the Soviet Union, which made the United States lose its sense of competition and crisis.
[Part of the Apollo Program]
The United States thought that it had monopolized lunar exploration technology, but it did not expect China to catch up and achieve surprising achievements.
If the joint construction of a lunar scientific research station by China and Russia can be completed, the two countries will have a greater initiative in the future, and China is estimated to be a "superpower" by then, and Russia will also get out of the crisis.
There are no more missed opportunities
In addition, you may wonder again that China has its own economy and technology.
Such an idea is actually one-sided, because such a super-large project as a lunar scientific research station is extremely difficult to do, even in China.
If we do it ourselves, we may be able to do it, but it will take decades or more, and there will be a lot of uncertainty if the cycle is too long.
On the one hand, Russia has inherited the rich experience in the field of aerospace during the Soviet era, and in many respects it has more say than we do.
On the other hand, Russia's achievements in the field of astronautics are not low and can help each other.
Originally, a person would have to work for 50 or even 100 years, but now
At the same time, for China and Russia, this is a mutually beneficial and win-win situation, so why not do it?
Now that China is "poised to start" its plans to build a lunar research station, this ride can accommodate a lot of people, and there will be no "regret medicine" if you miss it.
Resources:
[1] China News Network: "Chang'e-5 Team Wins the Laureus Team Award" of the International Academy of Astronautics
[2] Lunar Exploration and Space Engineering Center, China National Space Administration: China's Lunar Exploration and Deep Space Exploration