Russia has revealed that it has started construction of a nuclear power plant to be placed on the moon as part of its planned joint moon base with China.
The two countries are working together on the International Lunar Research Station, a massive complex on the moon that will break ground in 2026.
The proposed base, which will have a radius of nearly four miles, larger than any Disney theme park, will house scientists who will study the moon’s properties.
RIA reported that Moscow planned to deliver and install the plant between 2033 and 2035, citing Yuri Borisov, the head of Russia’s Roscosmos space agency.
In March, Borisov said Moscow was considering the idea of powering the station using nuclear energy, due to the fact that lunar nights last about 14 Earth days, making solar panels on the moon’s surface less viable as an energy source.
Yuri Borisov, the head of Russia’s Roscosmos space agency (pictured right with Russian President Vladimir Putin) has said that Moscow has started construction of a nuclear power plant to be placed on the moon as part of the planned joint moon base with China , according to reports in Russia
He said the 2028 mission would see two Russian rockets attempt to reach both the moon’s north and south poles.
The establishment of the International Scientific Lunar Station will unfold in two phases between 2025 and 2035, RIA reported, and will consist of several modules.
During his speech in April, Borisov said it would be necessary to create a compact, reliable and sustainable long-term nuclear energy supply for the base to function.
China and Russia confirmed they were in talks on ‘space security’ and ‘AI weapons’ – while China confirmed in 2022 it was joining forces with Russia to build the base to rival the planned Lunar Gateway NASA project.
Russian and Chinese officials met in February to discuss “doctrinal guidelines and initiatives of Russia and China,” reports said at the time.
The countries agreed to further cooperate in the framework of the Group of Governmental Experts (GGE) of States Parties to the Inhumane Weapons Convention on Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems (LAWS), a UN-supported weapons research and development policy.
The Russian Foreign Ministry said at the time: ‘The meeting confirmed the close ties between Russian and Chinese approaches to this issue.
Russia and China are working together on the International Lunar Research Station, a huge complex on the moon that will start operating in 2026 (file image)
In March, Borisov (pictured) said Moscow was considering the idea of powering the station using nuclear energy, due to the fact that lunar nights last about 14 Earth days, making solar panels on the moon’s surface less viable as an energy source.
‘It was noted that there is a need for further close cooperation in this area, both in a bilateral format and in the relevant multilateral platforms, mainly in the framework of the GGE on LAWS.’
China, meanwhile, added that the talks covered “space security, biosecurity and artificial intelligence.”
China also announced that it plans to install an all-seeing surveillance system on the moon to protect a planned moon base larger than Disneyland using the technology it uses to spy on its citizens.
The country wants to use the “successful experience” of its authoritarian Skynet surveillance system to protect the planned base from “suspicious targets,” according to a research paper written by scientists at the national space agency and published in an academic journal.
Skynet is the world’s largest surveillance network and is used to monitor every nook and cranny of China. With more than 600 million cameras, there is an average of one camera for every two adults in the country.
The news that Russia has started construction of the nuclear power plant is the latest move in a joint effort between Moscow and Beijing in a renewed space race against the West.
Nations race to the south pole and ‘dark side’ of the moon
The new breed is heating up after half a century, with Russia, China and America working to be the first to put humans, robots and even lunar trains on the moon.
The prize is enormous, with resources ranging from ‘rare earth metals’ used in electronics to Helium-3, a potential energy source that could power a nuclear fusion revolution that would provide infinite clean energy.
Morgan Stanley has previously suggested that the global space industry could be worth a trillion dollars annually by 2040 – and make Elon Musk (after the SpaceX company) the world’s first trillionaire.
While Russia and China are making plans for their moon bases, NASA plans to put the first woman on Mars by the middle of this decade.
Defense contractor Northrop Grumman is drawing up plans for a rail line on the moon to transport goods between bases, with the moon’s south pole believed to contain water reserves (which could be turned into fuel for spacecraft that will mine or land on asteroids land on Mars).
NASA has talked about a “moon gold rush,” with Russia saying it would launch even more moon missions and then explore the possibility of a joint crewed mission between Russia and China.
Rare earth metals – used in smartphones, computers and advanced technologies – are available on the moon, according to research by Boeing.
Helium-3 is a form of the gas helium that is rare on Earth, but NASA says there are estimates of a million tons of it on the moon.
Helium 3 could provide nuclear power in a fusion reactor, but because it is not radioactive, it would not produce hazardous waste (although nuclear fusion is not yet financially viable, despite recent breakthroughs).
Most “moon mining” plans involve much of the work being done by robots, supervised by humans at moon bases or in space stations orbiting Earth.
But the law around who ‘owns’ the moon or its resources is unclear, as more than 80 countries are already in space.
Philosopher AC Grayling writes in his new book Who Owns the Moon?: ‘A space is being created in the Wild West.
“The consequences for peace and stability on earth, which are already weak on conventional grounds… could be, and all too likely are, like adding fuel to a fire.”
Water will be an important resource on the moon
The 1966 UN Outer Space Treaty states that no country can claim sovereignty over the moon, although lawyers say it is unclear whether a private entity can claim areas.
In 2020, the United States announced the Artemis Accords to establish “safe zones” on the moon – but Russia and China have not joined.
The south pole is being targeted by both China and NASA, which has identified 13 possible landing sites near the moon’s south pole for the Artemis III, which will return humans to the moon.
Only twelve people have ever walked on the moon – all men, and no one has been on the moon since Gene Cernan and Jack Schmitt in December 1972.