NASA boss: China could claim moon as its own territory and ban US astronauts from landing

A NASA chief is raising red flags over China’s ambitions to go to the moon.

In a new interview, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson says he and other science agency staff are increasingly concerned about what the country plans to do when it reaches the moon.

Nelson believes that China could try to capture the market for resource-rich sites on the lunar surface, blocking the US and other countries that want to make it to the lunar object.

“There is potential mischief that China can wreak on the moon,” said another official overseeing the “space race.”

“There is potential mischief that China can wreak on the moon,” said another official overseeing the “space race.”

NASA Administrator Bill Nelson says he and other science agency staff are increasingly concerned about what China is up to if it sets foot on the moon

The concerns come less than a month after three Chinese astronauts returned from a six-month trip helping build and open a new space station.

In an interview with Politico, Nelson said he and others were concerned that the communist nation would attempt to claim lands over the moon once they arrived.

“It’s a fact: we’re in a space race,” said the NASA administrator, who was appointed by US President Joe Biden in 2021.

“And it’s true that we’d better be careful that they don’t go to a place on the moon under the guise of scientific research. And it’s not out of the question that they’ll say, “Stay out, we’re here, this is our territory,” Nelson continued.

The NASA chief said he fears China will mimic its strategy when it comes to claiming land and water in the South China Sea.

“If you doubt it, look at what they did to the Spratly Islands,” Nelson said.

China has laid claim to the hotly content Spratly Islands, using the islands to house weapons and other structures potentially large enough to store rocket launchers.

NASA officials have pointed to islands in the South China Sea to explain their fears that Chinese are claiming the moon as their territory

In December, three Chinese astronauts returned to Earth after a six-month space mission

Security officials fear China may try to keep the US and other countries off the moon

NASA and the Chinese space program are both working overtime to make it to the moon in the years to come, and have been working toward that goal for the past few months.

The 26-day Artemis I mission from November to December was declared a success as an Orion capsule orbited the moon and NASA took a step closer to its goal of establishing a human presence on the moon.

According to estimates, NASA could be successful in its mission as early as 2025.

Nelson’s concern could be exacerbated by Congress passing a budget that did not include the full funding requested by the agency.

Though the agency won’t get the full budget, Nelson said they will continue to fund all of their key assets, including the upcoming Artemis II and Artemis III lunar missions.

NASA completed a 26-day lunar orbit mission in December

Nelson said NASA hopes to launch the next Artemis mission by the end of 2024

The main concern is that delays in any of NASA’s programs could push the US behind China in the years to come.

“It’s entirely possible they could catch up and surpass us, absolutely,” Lieutenant General Nina Armagno said of the Space Force last month.

“The progress they’ve made has been stunning – amazingly fast,” said Armagno.

In the last few years alone, China has launched orbiters, landers and rovers that have reached the moon and Mars.

“China has made tremendous achievements and progress over the past decade,” Nelson reiterated. “It is also true that their date for landing on the moon is fast approaching.”

Another major concern for security experts is that China’s broader space goals could include disrupting space systems operated by the United States.

“It’s entirely possible they could catch up and surpass us, absolutely,” Lieutenant General Nina Armagno said of the Space Force last month

A former International Space Station commander said he believed the country that came out on top had much to gain from the “space race.”

“On one level, it’s a political contest to show whose system works better,” said Terry Virts, former commander of the International Space Station.

“What they really want is respect as the best country in the world. They want to be the dominant force on Earth, so a trip to the moon is a way to show their system works. If they hit us back to the moon, that shows they’re better than us,” Virts said.

Virts believes the Chinese government could quickly work towards dominating space given the chance.

“If they build infrastructure there, for example, they could possibly refuse to communicate,” said the former commander of the International Space Station

“There is potential harm that China can wreak on the moon,” Virts said.

“If they set up infrastructure there, they could possibly refuse to communicate, for example. Having them there doesn’t make things any easier. There is real concern about Chinese interference,” Virts continued.

Chinese officials deny any claims made by US space and security experts.

“Some US officials have spoken irresponsibly to misrepresent China’s normal and legitimate space efforts,” said Liu Pengyu, spokesman for the Chinese embassy. “China firmly rejects such statements.”

A Chinese official has vehemently denied claims that China may be working to prevent the US from interfering in other space relations

Nelson said that with $24.5 billion approved for 2023, a five percent increase from 2022, he believes NASA will have enough to cover the “essentials.”

The goal for the next Artemis mission, according to Nelson, is to have it operational “within two years.”

“Hopefully we can speed that up,” he said, sharing that the agency hopes to have a crew in orbit around the moon by 2024.

That goal may be ambitious, however, as Nelson told Politico.

The US hopes to be able to put astronauts back on the moon by 2025

“They tell me they can’t [speed it up,] that they need that time to rework and recertify and all that’, of the process to use the Artemis I’s avionics in a cost-saving step.

The goal is to have astronauts back on the moon by 2025.

“All of that will depend on two things,” Nelson told Politico.

“The space suits, are they ready? And is SpaceX ready? And I ask the question every day, “How is SpaceX doing? And all our managers tell me they’re hitting all their milestones.’

“God willing,” Nelson said when asked if the US will return to the moon before China.

China has made great strides in space in recent years, sending several rovers and orbiters into space

The unmanned Artemis I mission returned to Earth in December and was declared a success by NASA officials

Not everyone is entirely concerned, however, that the US could find itself in a full-fledged “space race.”

“I have doubts,” said Victoria Samson, who works for the Secure World Foundation.

Samson pointed to the Outer Space Treaty, stating that countries that have signed it, including the US and China, cannot make claims to the moon.

However, she agreed that the two countries could compete over limited resources.

“Here we have argued that there is a need to work with China,” Samson said.

A space expert says they are not worried about China keeping the US off the moon or interfering in relations, but that the nation could claim valuable and limited resources