Will China overtake US in space exploration in five years?

Astronomers say a Chinese rocket could hit the moon’s surface on March 4. The news of the impending crash comes as Beijing outlines a five-year plan for the development and progress of outer space exploration, which will include satellites, deeper space and more people in orbit. Mention of sending.

Analysts believe that China, despite its impending rocket crash, could achieve many progress goals in outer space during its five-year plan. China’s space program is seen as a rival to the space programs of Russia and the United States, especially with regard to the use of space technology for commercial purposes.

China needs to be taken seriously in the face of increasing competition,” said Marco Caesar, director of space at the Telgroup market analysis firm.

“Although the United States is ahead of countries like China in this regard, their economies are growing rapidly and they are about to reach it,” he added. A Chinese astronaut on the Shenzhou 12 mission is working in a laboratory to be installed on the Chinese space station. August 20, 2021

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Journey from the past to the future

China launched its first satellite in 1970 and launched its first astronaut in 2003, making it the third country in the world to cross the milestone after Russia and the United States. In 2019, a Chinese spacecraft made a historic landing on a remote part of the moon and now Beijing is in the process of activating its “Tiangong” space station in space later this year.

China has been barred from using the International Space Station due to US security concerns. Europe, the United States, Russia, Japan and Canada support the space station’s activities. Over the next five years, Beijing will continue its long-term space activities for scientific research in space, completing its research on Mars and its research on Jupiter, a planet in the solar system, according to China’s Space Program “A 2021 Perspective”.

Successful landing of Chinese space mission on the surface of Mars

The five-year plan document states that over the next half-decade, the capabilities of the space transport system will be improved, and the integration of China, remote detection, communications, navigation and satellite positioning technologies will continue. Will continue to develop its space infrastructure.

China can achieve its space goals

Analysts say China is likely to achieve its five-year targets because it has been working on them for a decade or more, for which it has large government funding. Richard Bitzinger, a defense analyst at the Defense Budget Project, a Washington-based nonprofit think tank, says China’s January report on space projects effectively combines things that are already clear.

Appearing in shape. Butzinger added that it was technically possible for China to dig for a metal from a planet, although it would require complex processes and equipment. The goals of China’s space program remain for peaceful purposes, while Washington fears that China could move its space program toward military goals.

Impact on the commercial sector of space research

Analysts say developments in China’s space program have made China more “aggressive” than the United States in marketing satellites and advanced launch services. In this area, China’s budget is probably growing faster than NASA’s. He added that Chinese-made spacecraft can be seen in Africa, Asia and Latin America.

Russia and China plan to build a space station for research on the moon
Countries such as Australia and Japan have already been using Chinese-made space remote sensing data since natural disasters. Russia and China agreed in September to set up a joint research center on the moon.

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South Asian countries and China

According to VOA’s Ralph Jenning, the Chinese embassy in Washington told VOA on Wednesday that “China is committed to working with all countries to build a common future for the world community, and for equality, mutual benefit in outer space.” It calls for in-depth exchanges and cooperation based on peaceful use and comprehensive development.

Alan Chong, an associate professor at the S Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore, says that despite China’s strong desire to increase its influence, some of the countries closest to China geographically still have American Space technology exists.

For example, according to the US-based Center for Strategic and International Studies, the Myanmar government is angry with China over infrastructure loans and projects that people consider unrelated to their lives.

“I think the situation is unclear. I would not say that Southeast Asia will still be calm under Chinese influence. Of course, the situation has never been friendly with China in the last 15 years,” Chong said. But I don’t think the game is over for the United States. “