Why is China targeting the moon — and should NASA as well?

file photo Doctor Who

Why is China targeting the moon — and should NASA as well?
By Jeremy A. Kaplan
Published December 06, 2013
FoxNews.com

Americans from Buzz Aldrin to president Barack Obama say it’s a waste of time to put men back on the moon — so why are foreign countries so eager to take that one small step?

While several private American companies are planning robotic missions to the moon, China launched a man-sized robotic scout to the moon on Monday. The country’s recent manned missions and efforts to build a new space base suggest a future manned mission to the moon, though why is an open question. Speculation has run from the desire to build a military missile base — a Death Star of sorts — to national pride to simple economics.

The answer may be far simpler: The moon is “easy” to get to.

“If you’re still trying to test out your space legs, it’s a great place to do it,” said one NASA engineer familiar with the agency’s plans. NASA’s current space agenda includes a highly challenging project to tow an asteroid back to Earth, as well as transporting men to Mars within two decades — projects of vast technical complexity compared with the moon landings America ended four decades ago.

https://www.foxnews.com/science/2013/12/06/why-is-china-targeting-moon-and-should-nasa-as-well/