The aerospace newspaper Space News recounted an exchange that took place at the International Astronautical Conference in Jerusalem, Israel recently that proved to be cringe-worthy for observers of space policy. During a panel discussion at the conference, European Space Agency’s new director-general, Johann-Dietrich Woerner presented an idea he has been touting for some time called a “moon village.†The idea is that various countries would come together to establish a lunar base, each bringing in “their special ideas, their special competence.†The moon village would be a center of science and commerce, developing techniques for resource management and testing technology...
