Science China wants moon base and space ants

[Debi]

China Wants A Moon Base And Space Ants

China could build an army of robotic ants to retrieve samples from asteroids as part of an ambitious plan for a new era of space exploration.

The country's lunar exploration director Liu Jizhong said in a speech that ant-like devices would be more flexible than rovers.

He also outlined plans to put a lander on the far side of the Moon and put satellites in place to explore the satellite's poles.

Because there may be water ice at these poles, the operation could eventually allow for the development of a Lunar base.

He said: "When exploring the unknown, we should not just follow others. China should be more creative."

Senior engineer Lin Yilu added: "If China expands the range of its lunar exploration, such as exploring the south and north poles and the far side of the moon, it needs a constellation of satellites covering different areas of the moon's surface."

Mr Liu also came up with a proposal for a heavy-lift vehicle with a payload of 100,000kg to help establish the base, a payload far in excess of current standards.

When complete, Elon Musk's Falcon Heavy will be able to lift just over half that weight.

In a speech reported by Chinese state news agency Xinhau, Mr Liu said also wants his team to explore faster propulsion techniques to deliver deep-space probes in shorter times.
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Well, at least SOMEBODY wants to go back to the moon......

 

[Debi]

OH! And lookee here! So does the EU and Russia!!! (Looks like everybody's going but us!)

EU and Russia plan new mission to the moon - Unexplained Mysteries

Space agencies from both countries are hoping to work together to eventually build a lunar settlement.
In preparation for such an undertaking the space agencies are first planning to launch several robotic missions designed to assess whether there is enough water and other raw materials available on the lunar surface to make oxygen and fuel.

"We have to go to the Moon," said Prof Igor Mitrofanov of the Space Research Institute in Moscow.

"The 21st Century will be the century when it will be the permanent outpost of human civilization, and our country has to participate in this process."

Unlike during the space race however when Russia and the US competed against one another, all future endeavors in this area will focus a lot more heavily on international co-operation.

"We have an ambition to have European astronauts on the Moon," said Bérengère Houdou of the European Space Research and Technology Centre. "There are currently discussions at international level going on for broad cooperation on how to go back to the Moon."

The first robotic mission, which will be called Luna 27, will aim to study in detail the moon's south pole which scientists believe could be an ideal place for a future manned settlement.

"The south pole of the Moon is unlike anywhere we have been before," said Dr James Carpenter, ESA's lead scientist on the project.

"The environment is completely different, and due to the extreme cold there you could find large amounts of water-ice and other chemistry which is on the surface, and which we could access and use as rocket fuel or in life-support systems to support future human missions we think will go to these locations."

 

[Mokey]

I think I'm in the minority when I say I don't care for people trampling all over my precious moon. It's sacred to me.