The worsening rivalry between the world’s two most powerful countries, which has swept the globe in recent years, has now extended beyond the terrestrial, to the celestial realm.
As China With the US deeply mired in strategic competition – while moving towards outright hostility with other regional neighbors – Washington is becoming increasingly concerned over the pace of its progress in space.
Beijing has made no secret of its ambitions Recent spate of successful space missions Showed that the government’s rhetoric is backed by technological progress.
on Friday, China launches a robotic spacecraft On a round trip to the far side of the Moon, in a technically demanding mission that will pave the way for the inaugural Chinese crewed landing and a base on the Moon’s south pole. Chang’e-6 Its goal is to bring back samples from the part of the Moon that is permanently away from Earth.
Earlier this week, Shenzhou-18, Beijing’s latest crewed spacecraft mission to the Tiangong space station, was developed after China pulled out of the International Space Station. space station.
Along with three taikonauts, a live fish, dubbed the “fourth crew member”, was among the crew. The zebrafish are part of an experiment to test the feasibility of a large closed ecosystem, consisting of fish and algae, to help people live in space for long periods of time.
But the collection of moon samples and the feasibility of zebrafish are not the only focuses of China’s space sector.
The pace of China’s ambitions has left the government’s main rival, the US, concerned about Beijing’s geopolitical intentions. NASA Has called for a new “space race”.
Last week, NASA head Bill Nelson said that the US and China are indeed in a race to return to the Moon, and he fears that China wanted to make territorial claims,
He told US legislators, “We believe that much of their so-called civilian space program is a military program.”
There are concerns over China’s development of counter-space weapons, including missiles that can target satellites, and spacecraft that can pull satellites out of orbit.
“At the geopolitical level, China’s space ambitions raise questions about whether it can pursue its regional and domestic political and military interests,” says Dr. Svetla Ben-Itzhak, deputy director of the West Space Scholars Program at Johns Hopkins University. How can we take advantage of our space capabilities?
Gen. Stephen Whiting of U.S. Space Command told reporters last week that China’s advances were “cause for concern,” noting that the number of spy satellites in orbit has tripled in the past six years.
‘It’s the wild, wild west’
The US and China are indeed in a race, but it’s not like the Cold War just to get a foothold on the moon, says Kazuto Suzuki, a professor at the Graduate School of Public Policy at the University of Tokyo. Rather, it is to find and control resources such as water.
“It is a race of who has better technical capabilities. China is rapidly catching up. The pace of Chinese technological development is a dangerous element [to the US],” He says.
Suzuki says that international agreements do not permit national appropriation of resources on the Moon, but in reality “it’s the wild, wild west”.
“Generally speaking, China wants to be in first place, so they have the right to dominate and monopolize resources. If you have the resources you will have a huge advantage in the future of space exploration.
The US and China are leading the development of separate space station programs for the Moon. The US-led Artemis program includes plans for a “Lunar Gateway”, a station orbiting the Moon as a communications and housing center for astronauts, and a scientific laboratory.
However, Suzuki says, “Americans are not so much interested in owning the Moon as in having already been there”.
“They know it’s not really a habitable place, they’re more interested in Mars. “So for them, Lunar Gateway is like a gas station for the trip to Mars.” If the Artemis program can obtain water from the Moon, it could be processed to make rocket fuel from hydrogen and oxygen.
In contrast, China and Russia announced joint construction plans in 2021 a shared research station On the surface of the moon. He said the International Lunar Research Station (ILRS) would be open to any interested international parties. However, the US is unlikely to be one of them given its poor relations with both China and Russia.
Suzuki says the China-Russia station should “function like a research station in Antarctica”, which is within the rules of international space treaties. “But if it turns out to be a station basing their territorial claims on them, it’s against the rules.”
The US is gathering allies to ensure that China does not win the space race. Earlier this month, shortly after China announced its intention to land a man on the Moon, US leader Joe Biden and his Japanese counterpart Fumio Kishida agreed to partner with Japan – China’s historical rival – on NASA’s Artemis mission in 2028. – Promised to send an astronaut to the Moon. And again in 2032.
But China is also gathering allies. It has partnerships or financial stakes in projects in the Middle East and Latin America, and has about a dozen international members for the ILRS.
But Ben-Itzhak says there is some overlapping membership. Also, “No faction has initiated exclusionary practices so far, which is promising”.
Ben-Itzhak says the US and China are indeed engaged in a race, but that the term is “in the context of the complex, nuanced dynamics, diverse and growing number of actors and initiatives currently emerging in the space, and there is no clarity it shows.” The ultimate goal is in sight”.
“The real challenge in space is not just about reaching a specific milestone, like planting flags or collecting rocks; It is about establishing a permanent, resilient presence in an incredibly challenging environment. “It is a test against our own abilities.”
Additional research by Chi Hui Lin