6 countries and a number of companies are racing to the Moon in 2022

Many countries are trying to go to the Moon next year – Photo: NATURE

Scientists think this may be a new golden age of Moon exploration.

According to the newspaper Nature, HThe series of missions on the Moon heralded the growing ambitions of a number of nations. However, science is not the only driver of flights to the Moon. The business world also wants through the flight to the Moon to test the power of technology and make their mark. In particular, now going to the Moon is easier and cheaper than ever.

First of all, the US with cNASA’s $93 billion Artemis program is the world’s largest program, with the first launch taking place in 2022. This is a step towards sending American astronauts to the Moon.

Next is Korea’s first lunar orbiter project: Korea Pathfinder Lunar Orbiter (KPLO). Scheduled to launch in August, the spacecraft will orbit the lunar surface and operate for at least a year.

Illustration of SpaceX’s lander to the Moon – Photo: SpaceX / NASA

Four other countries are also aiming to reach the Moon in 2022. Of which, Japan’s SLIM spacecraft is likely to launch by the end of 2022; India’s Chandrayaan-3 is scheduled to launch in August.

Meanwhile, Russia’s Luna-25 lander is scheduled to launch in July to the South Pole of the Moon. This is Russia’s first trip to the Moon’s surface since the previous Soviet Moon landing mission in 1976.

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is also embarking on Rashid’s first Moon mission, scheduled to launch in late 2022. It will enter lunar orbit on a rocket built by the United Arab Emirates. SpaceX design.

However, do The impact of hostilities in Ukraine, it is unclear how many of these missions will be carried out as planned in 2022. During hostilities, the aircraft The world’s largest cargo plane Antonov An-225 was destroyed, while Some spaceships from several countries need to be transported by giant cargo plane to the launch site.