Russia, China Aim to Put a Nuclear Plant on the Moon
2024-03-09
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1Russia and China are considering putting a nuclear power station on the moon in about 10 years.
2The head of Russia's space agency Roscosmos, Yuri Borisov, made the statement recently.
3He added that such a project could support the building of moon settlements one day.
4Borisov said that Russia and China had been working on a moon program together.
5The former deputy defense minister explained that Russia was able to help with its expertise in "nuclear space energy."
6"Today we are seriously considering a project - somewhere at the turn of 2033-2035 - to deliver and install a power unit on the lunar surface together with our Chinese colleagues," Borisov said.
7Solar panels would not be able to provide enough electricity to power future moon settlements, he said, while nuclear power could.
8He said the possible plan should be done "without the presence of humans."
9Borisov also spoke about Russian plans to build a nuclear-powered spaceship to carry cargo.
10He said all the technical questions concerning the project had been solved, except for finding out how to cool the nuclear reactor.
11He said the ship would be a large "structure that would be able, thanks to a nuclear reactor and ... high-power turbines...to transport large cargoes from one orbit to another."
12He added that such a ship could collect objects for many other projects.
13Russian officials have spoken before about plans to mine minerals on the moon.
14But the Russian space program has suffered a series of problems in recent years.
15Its first moon mission in 47 years failed last year after Russia's Luna-25 spacecraft lost control and crashed.
16Russian officials have said they will launch further lunar missions and then explore the possibility of a joint Russian-China crewed mission and even a lunar base.
17Last month, China said it aimed to put the first Chinese astronaut on the moon before 2030.
18Russian President Vladimir Putin last month said a warning by the United States that Russia planned to put nuclear weapons in space was false.
19Putin said the warning was part of a plan to force Russia into arms negotiations on the West's terms.
20I'm John Russell.
1Russia and China are considering putting a nuclear power station on the moon in about 10 years. 2The head of Russia's space agency Roscosmos, Yuri Borisov, made the statement recently. He added that such a project could support the building of moon settlements one day. 3Borisov said that Russia and China had been working on a moon program together. The former deputy defense minister explained that Russia was able to help with its expertise in "nuclear space energy." 4"Today we are seriously considering a project - somewhere at the turn of 2033-2035 - to deliver and install a power unit on the lunar surface together with our Chinese colleagues," Borisov said. 5Solar panels would not be able to provide enough electricity to power future moon settlements, he said, while nuclear power could. 6He said the possible plan should be done "without the presence of humans." 7Borisov also spoke about Russian plans to build a nuclear-powered spaceship to carry cargo. He said all the technical questions concerning the project had been solved, except for finding out how to cool the nuclear reactor. 8He said the ship would be a large "structure that would be able, thanks to a nuclear reactor and ... high-power turbines...to transport large cargoes from one orbit to another." He added that such a ship could collect objects for many other projects. 9Russian officials have spoken before about plans to mine minerals on the moon. But the Russian space program has suffered a series of problems in recent years. 10Its first moon mission in 47 years failed last year after Russia's Luna-25 spacecraft lost control and crashed. 11Russian officials have said they will launch further lunar missions and then explore the possibility of a joint Russian-China crewed mission and even a lunar base. 12Last month, China said it aimed to put the first Chinese astronaut on the moon before 2030. 13Russian President Vladimir Putin last month said a warning by the United States that Russia planned to put nuclear weapons in space was false. Putin said the warning was part of a plan to force Russia into arms negotiations on the West's terms. 14I'm John Russell. 15John Russell adapted this story from a Reuters report. 16______________________________________________ 17Words in This Story 18expertise -n. special knowledge that relates to field or an industry 19deliver -v. to take something from one place to another in order to fulfill a request 20install -v. to put equipment or software in a place where it is to be used 21lunar - adj. of or relating to the moon 22solar panel - n. a large, flat piece of equipment that uses the sun's light or heat to create electricity 23cargo -n. products or objects carried by a vehicle from one place to another for a price that is often based on weight 24turbine - n. an engine that has a part with blades that are caused to spin by pressure