US vs China vs Russia: New Space Race To Be The First To Build A Nuclear Reactor On Moon

Sean Duffy is preparing to install an American nuclear reactor on the moon before 2030. But with Russia and China targeting 2036 as their completion date, the three superpowers are now locked in a head-to-head race to get there first. 

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US vs Russia Vs China

In the years of the Cold War, the US and the Soviet Union tussled to prove their superiority by rushing to become the first nation to put a man on the moon. While America might have claimed that particular prize in 1969, a new and even more dramatic space race is only just beginning.

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US reactor on moon before 2030

It has been revealed that Sean Duffy, the new head of NASA, is preparing to install an American nuclear reactor on the moon before 2030.

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Sean Duffy

Duffy claims this would allow the US to declare a 'keep-out zone' on the lunar surface. This is seen as a necessary step towards protecting the landing site for a future American moon base, planned as part of the Artemis Programme. Duffy called for NASA to 'move quickly' in establishing a nuclear reactor on the moon in order to 'support a future lunar economy'. Duffy, who is also US transport secretary, has asked NASA to place a reactor capable of producing at least 100 kilowatts on the moon by the end of the decade. That is enough energy to power 80 average American households and could provide the energy backbone for a permanent lunar base. NASA had previously planned to place a 40-kilowatt reactor on the moon in a similar timeframe, but it is not clear if they will be able to use the same designs.

Duffy will give NASA 30 days to appoint an official to oversee the operation and 60 days to issue a request seeking proposals from commercial companies for the project.

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Artemis programme

Meanwhile, the Artemis programme, once feared to be a target for Donald Trump's cuts, is now scheduled to return a human presence to the moon by 2027.

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China/Russia

In May, China and Russia signed a memorandum of cooperation to build their own nuclear reactor on the moon.

But with Russia and China targeting 2036 as their completion date, the three superpowers are now locked in a head-to-head race to get there first.

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Nuclear power key for establishing lunar presence

Nuclear power is seen as key for establishing a lunar presence because it is plunged into complete, freezing darkness for two weeks every month. At the South Pole, where NASA is planning to establish its operations, the sun never rises high above the horizon and some craters are shrouded in permanent darkness.

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Roscosmos statement

Roscosmos, the Russian space agency, wrote in a statement: 'The station will conduct fundamental space research and test technology for long-term uncrewed operations of the ILRS, with the prospect of a human being's presence on the Moon.' The ILRS would be a permanent base located within 62 miles (100 km) of the moon's South Pole, involving the work of 17 countries, including Egypt, Pakistan, Venezuela, Thailand and South Africa.

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Moon- A target of new international space race

The groundwork will be laid by China's upcoming Chang'e-8 mission, which will be the nation's first attempted human moon landing. This means that the moon, and especially the south pole, is now becoming the target of a new international space race. Dr Mark Hilborne, a security studies expert from King's College London, told Daily Mail: 'The Moon is a place where nations will have competing interests. There will be parts of the moon that are more valuable than others and, therefore, could be particular points of competition.

'The Moon is valuable as a low-gravity staging base where future space developments can be built. Lunar materials, mined in situ, would be valuable in building elements that would further lunar exploration.

'If these could be built on the Moon, rather than sent from Earth, the cost would be far cheaper.

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Conflict on lunar surface

'The United States is attempting to act quickly and get to the Moon first, at least before China and Russia, so as to be able to unilaterally claim the right to set out the rules of the game.' This has the serious potential to spark conflict between the nations since China and Russia, having not signed the Artemis Accords, have no legal requirement to respect the US 'keep-out zones'. Dr Tronchetti says that international law 'does not recognise the possibility' of the US's claims, adding that the US is attempting to 'force its [China's] hand to set out rules favourable to its own interests'.

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Who will claim territory?

The big concern for the US, and presumably Russia and China, is that whatever country starts building on the moon first could effectively claim it as its own territory. That idea may now be alarming to America as China shows rapid advancements in its spaceflight program that have put a human presence on the moon within reach.