Moon Race 2.0: Why are so many countries and private companies aiming to land on the moon?

The number of astronauts who have walked on the moon has not changed in more than 50 years.

Only 12 people have received this privilege – all Americans – but that number will soon increase. The historic competition between the two countries between the American and Soviet space agencies for lunar exploration has become a global endeavor. Missions to orbit the moon, or land on its surface, are now being launched by governments and commercial companies from Europe and the Middle East to the South Pacific.

Despite the success of the American Apollo missions between 1969 and 1972, so far only five countries have been able to land on the moon. China is one of the most ambitious countries with the moon in their sights.

After two successful orbital missions in 2007 and 2010, China landed the unmanned vehicle. Changhe 3 In 2013. Six years later, Chang'e 4 became the first mission to land on the far side of the Moon. The Chang'e 5 robotic rover returned lunar samples to Earth in 2020, and Chang'e 6, which will be launched in May this year, will return the first samples from the far side of the Moon.

The country's ambitions do not stop there. “China publicly aims to send two astronauts to the moon before 2030,” says space journalist Andrew Jones, who focuses on China's space industry.

“There is clear progress in a number of areas needed to carry out such a mission, including the development of a new human launch vehicle, a new generation manned spacecraft, a lunar lander, and expansion of ground stations,” Jones says. “It is a massive undertaking, but China has proven that it is capable of planning and executing long-term human and lunar spaceflight endeavours.”