Plausibility In the Raiments of Incivility

NASA administrator Bill Nelson believes China is militarizing its space program for purpose of making the moon a Chinese exclave.

That Mister Nelson entertains such a supposition is understandable; that he framed it in language and trotted it out before the German media is somewhat less understandable.

Nelson went on to state that China’s Tiangong space station is being built to “learn how to destroy other people's satellites." The perceptive but imprudent administrator of the world’s preeminent space agency further posited the moon’s south pole is "hotly contested" on account of its potentially harboring water deposits conducive to the production of rocket fuel.

China denied the allegations, calling Nelson “colonial-minded,” and asserting he had “ … ignored the facts and spoken irresponsibly about China."

Zhao Lijian, a spokesman for the Chinese foreign ministry, stated: "The U.S. side has constantly constructed a smear campaign against China's normal and reasonable outer space endeavors, and China firmly opposes such irresponsible remarks."

Careless speech, and shabby diplomacy notwithstanding, Nelson’s comments merit consideration.

The past decade has seen China dramatically step-up the pace of its lunar-focused space program. In 2013, the nation sent its first un-crewed vehicle to the moon, and landed it—curiously—near the lunar south-pole. What’s more, the Chinese communist government has declared its intention to develop and launch rockets sufficiently powerful to carry taikonauts (the Chinese equivalent of U.S. astronauts—taikong being a Chinese word meaning space or cosmos) to the moon by 2030.

In April, 2022, the China National Space Administration (CNSA) space agency stated it was entering a new phase of its lunar exploration program, which would involve the launch of three lunar-probes before 2030, and a research base on the moon itself that could begin hosting crews in the 2030s.

Last month China launched a new, three-person crew to its as-of-yet-unfinished Tiangong space station. The orbital facility’s final two modules—which, once installed, will mark its completion—are scheduled to be added this year.

In 2021, Nelson congratulated China for successfully landing a rover on the surface of Mars. He later cited the achievement in a warning to Congress, stating that China is an “aggressive competitor” to U.S. space endeavors. Nelson further warned that it behooves the U.S. to "get off our duff" and work on manned space missions.

FMI: www.nasa.gov