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June 5, 2003 Conflicting reports continue to be issued from the Chinese National Space Agency(CNSA)regarding planned dates for a lunar landing. Reports available on the web give dates as early as June 2004 for a manned lunar landing program. Conflicting reports from CNSA spokesmen state dates as late as 2010. What ever the actual truth of the date is ,the Chinese ambition to match the USA in this arena, and eclipse the Russians shows a dogged determination to advance their National image on the world stage; and denotes the end of an era of US leadership in space exploration. The stated intention to establish a manned lunar base begs the question ,is it first come first served? Could the establishment of a manned base give the Chinese primacy on lunar property & mineral rights? Will the US Space program ask to be included in any staffing of the base? Should we be including more Chinese astronauts or Taikonaunts on the mission specialist list for the International Space Station in the hopes of some sort of reciprocal agreements later on? If the Chinese decide to prepare a manned lunar outpost what if any should be the US response? After being first to the moon and the first to land and return samples, NASA and the US GOVT have decided that there are better uses for our dollar than manned exploration. Space probes and robots have their place, but from my point of view the manned spaceflight program should have continued to be a priority. As it stands now, we have a very limited heavy lift capability provided by the DELTA-IV series and the Russian Energia booster. Even if the US embarked on a crash development program it is unlikely that a US Lunar mission could be mounted in less than 10 years. I know the taxpayer has provided the money, Billions if not Trillions of dollars over the decades and what do we have to show for it? The French & British are retiring the fastest passenger planes in the world. How long will the USA have to wait before Boeing or Northrup step up to the challenge? The next generation of low earth orbit transports are still languishing on the drawing boards or in the mock up stage. For all the money and time invested there is still no replacement for the shuttle. It seems like somewhere along the way NASA lost its desire, drive and focus. If the Chinese are going to lead the way to the moon, then NASA is going to have to follow in their footsteps.. How sad it must be to our earliest Astronauts to watch the Chinese prepare to go to a place where we ourselves can no longer reach. In the years since 1969, we must have learned something about materials and technologies that could make a lunar quest a more achievable objective. Instead of squandering $ on endless wars and conflicts isn't it time for NASA to capture the imagination of this generation and lead the way future just as John F Kennedy intended. ------------ About the author: Stan Bernard lives in Edmonton Alberta, Canada. Stan writes, poetry, lyrics and short stories. His poetry has won recognition on CBC Radio, and local artist Dale Ladouceur has recorded and released a cd featuring his work... "Prayer for the Forest". Email Stan: bernard_stan@yahoo.com Comment on this column in the forum. ------------ |
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