Jadyn Soares ‘25, News Editor

Image of Rocket Ships, Courtesy of The Economist

Over 50 years after its victory in the 20th-century space race with the USSR, the United States has found four new opponents in a race toward another unexplored destination — the south side of the moon. The moon’s south pole has piqued the interest of numerous space agencies around the globe because of its supposed abundance of ice, which has raised hopes about making the region habitable for humans in the future. Given the motivation to beat their respective political rivals, it is no surprise that India, Russia, Japan, China, and the US all have their sights set on being the first to put a human on the lunar south pole. So, let’s dig into each country’s accomplishments and ambitions in the space race.

India’s Chandrayaan-3 landed on the moon’s south side on August 23, 2023. The mission brought hope to the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) after a demoralizing failed attempt in 2019 in which their spacecraft lost connection with ground control just 2.1 kilometers (1.3 miles) from the landing site. This past August, over 70 million Indian citizens intently watched the landing online as the spacecraft touched down to complete the space mission that cost the ISRO only $75 million — less than half the budget of the movie Interstellar. India’s recently boosted morale could turn out to be a major factor in their success in the space race.

On the other hand, Russia’s first moon mission since 1976 ended in desolation on August 19, 2023 when the Luna-25 lander crashed into the moon’s surface. The Luna-25 mission, if it were successful, would have greatly increased the support for the Russian civil space program, which has recently experienced numerous problems with quality control, corruption and funding. However, regardless of these setbacks, the Russian space program has a long history of success in space exploration — which should prove to be helpful in their space race efforts.

After bad weather interfered with their last attempts, Japan successfully launched its “moon sniper” lander, which is expected to touch down on the moon’s surface in February if all goes right. Of the five countries competing in this new space race, Japan is the only one that has not previously landed on the moon. As part of a joint project between Japan, the US and some European space agencies, the “moon sniper” rocket also carries the X-Ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission (XRISM) satellite, which contains a school bus-sized telescope and aims to study space phenomena like black holes. Despite the lack of previous space success, Japan’s moon mission looks promising — especially given their collaboration with numerous well-funded and well-renowned space research organizations from across the globe.

In July, China revealed the initial details of its plan to send a crewed lunar lander to the moon and back by 2030. According to the deputy chief engineer at the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA), the mission intends to aid in the establishment of a lunar research station and will send astronauts to the moon to “collect samples and carry out ‘scientific exploration.’” (via cnn.com) The strength of this planned lunar mission proves that even though China only sent its first satellite into orbit in 1970, it is shaping up to be a major contender in the space race. 

Lastly, the US plans to send humans to explore the region near the moon’s south pole in the Artemis III mission, which is targeted to launch in 2025. The program has already test-flown the unmanned Artemis I, which was successful in proving that the mission is suitable for flying human astronauts. Next on the program is a piloted spaceflight, fittingly named Artemis II, that will fly for approximately eight to 10 days in November of 2024 and will collect flight test data about the life support and communications systems on the spacecraft. The crew features three NASA astronauts — two of which are the first person of color and the first woman to go deep into space — and one Canadian Space Agency astronaut. If all goes well on the second Artemis mission, NASA and the American public can be hopeful that the US will emerge victorious in a space race yet again.

The new space race will prove to be exciting for all — regardless of who wins. With the help of constantly improving technology, scientists can have a novel perspective on the resources that space has to offer. The harvesting of resources like water from the moon opens countless doors into a world where space mining and space travel could become a common reality. Just think! One day in the future, you could be venturing into space as easily as you could drive to New York City.