China plans Moon base for 2010

New Scientist ^ | 20 May 02 | Will Knight

[aculeus]

China's ambitious space plans have been extended to building a base on the Moon starting in 2010, a Chinese space official has said. Before that the fledgling space power aims to complete a number of manned missions into space and to establishing an orbiting "space laboratory".

In a lecture in Beijing during China's National Science week, Ouyang Ziyuan, chief scientist with China's Moon programme, outlined the country's bold space strategy.

"China is expected to complete its first exploration of the moon in 2010 and will establish a base on the moon as we did in the South Pole and the North Pole." China Daily quotes Ziyuan as saying. He did not say whether China's mission to the Moon would be manned.

James Oberg, a veteran of the US space programme and an authority on manned space flight, says China is unlikely to send astronauts to the Moon.

"They don't have the budget or the technology," Oberg told New Scientist. "Their whole approach has been remarkably cautious. Robot missions make much more sense." But Oberg believes China could feasibly construct a small space station.

China has so far completed three unmanned test flights with its Shenzhou spacecraft and intends to place the first Chinese astronaut in space by 2005. This would make China only the third nation to achieve the feat, after Russia and the US.

Twelve people have been selected to become China's first generation of "taikonauts" and are undergoing training.

[Aggie Mama]

Well, the first question to ask would by why? The answer, I think, is not "to test the limits of our knowledge."

[GingisK]

If you'd ever seen a Chinese train or a Chinese domestic airliner, you'd assume that any space hardware built by the Chinese would merely make a new crater in the moon.

[Oldeconomybuyer]

Clinton/Gore turned Jiang's space program into a regular JFK.

[Hacksaw]

On the way there, they will accidentally wreck into the space shuttle and try to blame it on the hot dog American pilot.

[B Knotts]

All our base are belong to them?

[chilepepper]

This is great news. This will push the US (and particularly NASA) out of their lethargy and we may start to get some space action at last after 30 years of doing much less than we could be doing.

In fairness to NASA, the US public had lost interest in space but perhaps now we can use the national security angle again, with a Chinese base having the same threat as the Sputnik did in 1957...

[r9etb]

Oberg's a sharp guy, and he's probably correct.

FWIW, he correctly predicted that for ISS the Russians would experience the very financial and schedule difficulties that they ended up having.

Still, if we grant the premise that the Chinese want to do this, there's no technical or economic reason for them to do so. It'd all be about stature.

But again, Oberg's correct. It would take a tremendous amount of logistics to support a moon base (not just moon landings). It's highly doubtful that they could actually support one any time soon.

[Mr. Bird]

They don't have a blue water navy, but they think they can colonize the moon? Talk about denial....

[Ed_NYC]

China's first and last attempt!

[crypt2k]

The United States must not allow the Red Chinese a free hand to establish a human presence in space. We must preempt thier efforts by establishing outposts at strategic locations (north and south poles of the moon, Mars) ahead of them.

[TADSLOS]

"Bejiing, the Clinton has landed"

"That's one small step for espionage, and one giant leap for Democratic Fundraising"

[Don Myers]

There are a lot of folks in here who would love to have whatever the Chinese are smoking these days.

[Post Toasties]

Yes. It won't do to simply sit back and deride China's efforts.

[Enemy Of The State]

haha..they better just concentrate on getting a man into space first...then we can ship them all to the moon!

[Enemy Of The State]

I think the answer is that they are just looking for more places to put all their people...1.4 billion and growing..

[skeeter]

They don't have a blue water navy, but they think they can colonize the moon?

Sure beats the alternative...

I say go for it, Jiang.

[Cachelot]

They don't have a blue water navy, but they think they can colonize the moon? Talk about denial....

If they can colonize the moon, they won't need a blue water navy. Nor will they need a big armoury of missiles, or for that matter, much in the way of warheads.

Set up a few necessary structures on the moon (with some defenses), and you can control things pretty well. The chicoms may well see this as rewarding enough to override any smalltime economic objections... err.. reality.

[OBAFGKM]

"If you'd ever seen a Chinese train or a Chinese domestic airliner, you'd assume that any space hardware built by the Chinese would merely make a new crater in the moon."

...he posts, using countless high-tech components manufactured in China. ;-)