China is considering building a nuclear power plant on the Moon to provide energy for the International Lunar Research Station (ILRS), which it plans to establish together with Russia.
Reuters reports this, citing a senior Chinese official who presented this plan.
China wants to become a leading space power and land its astronauts on the Moon by 2030, and its Changʼe-8 mission is intended to lay the foundation for building a permanent, manned lunar base.
During a presentation in Shanghai, the missionʼs chief engineer said that the lunar baseʼs energy supply could come from large-scale solar panels, as well as pipelines and cables for heating and power supply, which would be built directly on the surface of the Earthʼs satellite.
Russiaʼs space agency Roscosmos announced last year that it plans to build a nuclear reactor on the lunar surface in collaboration with the China National Space Administration for ILRS. The deadline was set for 2035.
The fact that a Chinese official mentioned the nuclear power module in his presentation to representatives of the 17 countries and international organizations that make up the ILRS may indicate Beijingʼs support for the idea. However, China has not officially announced it as part of its plans.
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