National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Administrator Bill Nelson warned that China may try to claim vast swaths of the moon if it beats the United States in the second race to the lunar surface.
In an interview with Politico, Nelson warned that China's military expansion in the South China Sea should serve as an indicator of the communist nation's policy when it comes to territorial expansion and that America needs to accept that it is part of a new space race.
"It is a fact: We're in a space race. And it is true that we better watch out that they don't get to a place on the moon under the guise of scientific research," he said. "And it is not beyond the realm of possibility that they say, 'Keep out, we're here, this is our territory.' If you doubt that, look at what they did with the Spratly Islands." (Related: Space race? Russia to partner with China to build the first lunar base after rejecting US space deal.)
The Spratly Islands are an archipelago around 400 nautical miles from the Chinese coast. The communist nation is currently in a territorial dispute with these islands against Vietnam and the Philippines. Aerial photography of the area shows that China is creating military installations on these islands to assert its control over the sea.
Beijing has on numerous occasions denied American accusations that its space program has an ulterior motive. Back in August 2022, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian claimed that China was committed to the peaceful use of space and to cooperation with other spacefaring nations.
"Outer space is not a wrestling ground, but an important field for win-win cooperation," said the spokesman. He added that space exploration is "humanity's common endeavor and should benefit all."
Chinese space program not to be underestimated
Nelson acknowledged that the China National Space Administration (CNSA), the communist nation's burgeoning space program, has made great strides in the past decade. This includes sending a probe and performing a soft landing on the far side of the moon and collecting and delivering lunar samples back to Earth.
China has also successfully sent an orbiter and a rover to Mars and has launched its own national space station into Earth orbit. The CNSA even successfully launched a crew of taikonauts toward the station.
"China within the last decade has had enormous success and advances" in its space program, acknowledged Nelson.
China plans to launch at least three missions to the moon over the next decade as part of its Chang'e lunar program after it announced that it had discovered a new lunar mineral that could be used as an energy source.
NASA, meanwhile, recently completed its Artemis 1 mission in Nov. 2022 by flying an unmanned Orion spacecraft around the moon. This will be followed by Artemis 2 in 2024, which will be a 25-day manned mission that will loop around the moon before returning to Earth. This will be the first manned NASA mission to travel outside of Earth's orbit since 1972.
Artemis 1 and 2 are preparatory steps for the big event, Artemis 3, scheduled for no earlier than 2025. This will feature at least four astronauts – two remaining in orbit in the Orion spacecraft and another two landing somewhere near the moon's south pole.
The two astronauts will spend around a week on the surface before returning to the Orion spacecraft in orbit and then back to Earth.
For more news about the moon and other new space stories, head over to Space.news.
Watch this Fox News clip from six months ago with former NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine giving the same warning: that China will try to take over the moon.
This video is from the News Clips channel on Brighteon.com.
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