Russia and China begin construction of a space station in orbit around the Moon, simultaneously with the construction of the base on the surface.
The Russian space agency Roscosmos recently announced that it plans to launch the Luna-25 mission to the Moon in July 2023, raising alarm in the US about Russia’s real plans that appear to be preparing a military base for a space war with the West.
Moscow and Beijing have signed a memorandum of cooperation from March 2021, for the creation of military bases on the Moon with “several” scientists. The plan will include multiple research missions at all levels, with versatile staff and scientists of every specialty.
Both the United States and Moscow and Beijing have decided to pour a lot of money into an increasingly militarized arms race in space, which some experts believe is bringing the possibility of a third world war closer.
Scenarios and information speak of laser weapons but also cyber weapons that could shoot down the enemy’s satellites.
Russia reportedly wants a base for its killer satellites away from Earth bases, with truly unprecedented plans. Also, the Moon has extremely rare metals, and is the first planet to have human settlement in some years.
The Russian mission in the summer of 2023
Moscow, reviewing its Soviet space heritage, is preparing for all these reasons, a new series of missions to the moon. The first of these missions, called Luna 25, is scheduled to launch in October, ending a 45-year drought of Russian space missions. Russian scientists want to study the water trapped below the surface in permafrost. Russia has been preparing the Luna-25 mission for more than seven years.
The Russians decided to go bold, choosing a landing site on the Moon that no other country had done. This is the south pole of the Moon, equipping the Russian spacecraft with a sampling arm and an array of instruments to test soil samples.
The lander is to land near the Boguslawsky Crater. Special systems will conduct chemical and spectral analysis of the surrounding area to try to detect lunar water.
If the mission succeeds, it would be a major achievement for all of humanity. The Russian invasion of Ukraine “killed” any possible cooperation with the US and the EU and prompted cooperation with China, in programs of a military nature on the surface of the Moon.
Thus, the future of Russian space science now depends primarily on Luna-25. Over the past decade, other countries new to planetary exploration have developed their technical expertise and built on it.
China and India are carrying out increasingly sophisticated lunar missions before completing successful missions to Mars on their first attempt. The United Arab Emirates flew an impressive mission to Mars that benefited from substantial American help.
The Russians, having three decades of planetary mission failures, want not just to succeed, but to lay the groundwork for an extraterrestrial military base. China also currently has more missions to the Moon planned for 2025 and 2026, and one of them is supposed to go to the Moon’s south pole.
