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Mining the Moon | US & China Battle for Cosmic Resources | Science Scope
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The world's superpowers are preparing to do battle. They're assembling armies, but not on earth. They're fighting over territory on the moon.
In this lunar landscape, the rules of engagement are laid out in the 1967 Outer Space Treaty. The U.S. and China have signed it. It says no nation can claim sovereignty over any part of the moon. But that doesn't stop them from mining the moon for resources. In fact, the treaty encourages it. Here's what it says. The exploration and use of outer space, including the moon and other celestial bodies, is not subject to national appropriation by claim of sovereignty, by means of use or occupation or any other means. That's pretty clear. You can't own the moon, but you can take stuff from it.
And what's more valuable than rare earth minerals? They're used to make chips and batteries and all kinds of other high tech stuff. So everyone wants them. And we mean everyone. Russia wants in on the action too. It sent a spacecraft to the moon in 2020 to search for resources. India wants to set up a moon base by 2030. Japan is talking about a moon village. And private companies are also eyeing the moon's mineral wealth.
But let's talk about the two front runners here, the U.S. and China. Both launched their first moon missions in the 1950s. In 1959, the Soviets launched Luna 2, the first spacecraft to reach the moon. Two months later, the U.S. launched its first lunar probe, Pioneer 4. Since then, both nations have bounced back and forth between cooperation and competition over the course of five decades.
During the Cold War, the U.S. and the Soviet Union raced to beat each other to the moon. The Americans won that race. But the competition didn't end there. Both sides continued to launch probes to the moon. The Soviets landed the first spacecraft on the moon in 1970. It was called Luna 9. It sent back the first close-up photos of the moon's surface. The U.S. followed suit with the first American spacecraft to land softly on the moon in 1971. It was called Surveyor 3.
In the 1970s, NASA and the Soviet space program began sharing data and even some technology. But after the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union, the U.S. found itself without a rival in the space race. NASA's budget was repeatedly cut during the 1990s and early 2000s. It wasn't until 2003 that China became the third nation to independently launch a human into space. Four years later, China began its own lunar exploration program. It was called the Chang'e program after the Chinese moon goddess. In 2013, China landed its first spacecraft on the moon. It was called the Jade Rabbit.
So now the U.S. and China are the only two nations with spacecraft on the moon. And they're not alone. India's Chandrayaan 3 mission is scheduled to arrive at the moon in late July. Russia's Luna 25 is due to arrive around the same time. All three nations will be landing near the moon's south pole where NASA believes there could be vast stores of water ice. It's the new frontier in the race for the moon.
Whoever controls the moon will control the future of space exploration. They'll be able to mine the moon for resources, launch new satellites and most importantly, set up a permanent human presence there. So who will it be, America, China or someone else entirely? Let us know what you think in the comments.

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