The space race has always been a sensitive issue and until the last few decades a possibility only for the United States. However, China has shown interest in participating in these surveys, which raises doubts about the real intention behind it.
The last manned mission took place in 1972, and since then the moon has become a research space, in which man has only had contact through spacecraft and satellites. People haven’t stepped on the moon for a while.
But it seems that this reality is about to change.
The Chinese Space Program
In recent decades, China has been investing massively in economic development. Thus, being the second most powerful nation in the world, it has opened doors in many structural sectors of the world, and this applies to the space race as well.
In this context, China’s space research sector has developed at an accelerated pace. The forecast is that by 2030 China will send manned rockets. The argument is to open up a new space for research and exploration for humanity.
The US, however, shows apprehension with this movement. NASA administrator Bill Nelson claims that care needs to be taken with China’s space research, as the intention behind it would be a military operation.
According to him, China wants a kind of domination of the moon, so the advance of the space program would represent a warning for the international community to take a position in order to prevent this.
The United States understands that China might want to use its space capacity to fight disputes with other states. This could mean the deprivation of knowledge and resources acquired from other citizens of humanity.
Chinese intentions
China took a stand on American claims that there would be a military program. According to China’s foreign affairs spokesman Zhao Lizian, the US allegations are baseless and even irresponsible.
According to him, China understands that there is no possibility of space domination, and that the space program has the only reason to evolve research and resources for the benefit of all humanity. He calls China’s efforts in outer space “normal and reasonable.”
Also according to Zhao Lizian, China tries to promote a shared future in outer space for all humanity. Thus, the idea of a military program would be unwarranted, as the nation is vehemently opposed to weaponry in the universe.
Manned missions and expectations for the future
Both China and the United States aim to send manned missions, that is, to put people on the Moon by 2030.
The possibilities of this actually happening are mainly linked to the availability of technology. For now, only the United States has demonstrated that it has the resources to do so.
However, China’s space program is increasingly proving that it is second to none. The Chinese have declared intentions to set foot on the moon within this decade.
Thus, the constant disputes for the first place in development in the world between China and the United States find in the space race a point of convergence. As militarily powerful as both countries are, and as much as they declare a desire to be superior to each other, great care must be taken when it comes to the Moon.
The Moon is a satellite of the Earth and, by definition, belongs to everyone and no one. The domination of the Moon, mainly in a military nature, is a sensitive issue that belongs to all the citizens of humanity.
The best to hope for is that the two nations will actually see each other as terrestrial citizens, willing to unravel the lunar mysteries for the benefit of all humanity. Reproducing the environments of war and destruction in outer space will most likely bring about the same negative effects already known inside planet Earth.
Perhaps this is the much-desired opportunity for cooperation between the two nations, in which the great potentials of both are added to create a new reality for the whole world.