America can conquer new territory, a huge decision awaits Trump

America can conquer new territory, a huge decision awaits Trump

Donald Trump arrives in the middle of a modern “space war” as president

As we have already mentioned in several of our previous articles,

the countries interested in space research are trying more and more decisively to extend their influence in outer space in recent years.

While during the Cold War the two absolute leading powers of the world order, the United States and the Soviet Union, were tense with each other in outer space, today more and more countries have become interested in starting their own space programs.

At the end of last summer, India wrote world history with the Chandraján-3 mission, because it was the first nation on Earth to land near the south pole of the Moon, making India the fourth country to successfully land on the celestial body. The purpose of the Indian mission was to search for water potentially hidden under the surface, which is due to the establishment of a future permanent lunar base. key area of ​​space research.

India’s moon landing was so memorable because the great success happened just a few days after the previous pioneer of space exploration, Russia, had failed in the same area. In August 2023, the Russians also attempted a landing on the South Pole of the Moon, however A spacecraft named Luna-25 crashed into the surface of the Moon due to a technical error.

Moscow would have returned to the surface of the moon after 47 years with the ultimately unsuccessful Luna mission. During Soviet times, the country was the absolute leader in space research for a long time: they developed the precise operating principle of multi-stage rockets (the Soviet scientist Ciolkovszkij can be considered one of the fathers of rocket science), in 1957 the first man-made device, Sputnik-1, was put into orbit around the Earth, and in 1961 a man was also sent into space, thus causing quite a headache for the Americans, who were significantly behind compared to them at that time. Later, of course, with the economic decline of the Soviet Union and the approaching end of the Cold War, America was able to catch up with them.

Russia is “slow but steady” in space exploration with its decline parallel

China emerged as one of the world’s most significant space superpowers.

In recent years, the Far Eastern country has accumulated success after success in the area, which is already threatening the hegemony of the United States.

This year, the news that the Chinese lunar program a Csang-o-6-os space probe first successfully landed on the “dark side” of the Moon, far from us, and a few weeks later they were the first in the world to bring home rock samples from there.

In addition to the spectacular landings, which were also a great success in the media, which is considered a great technological innovation of the future, satellites providing global internet access America also found a challenger in the person of the great power in the Far East. The Starlink fleet of 6,400 satellites, which is operated by Elon Musk’s space company SpaceX, was previously considered to be the industry leader. However, China is also developing rapidly in the field; within the framework of the Qiafan (“Thousand Sails”) constellation, the country launched the first satellites this summer, which are the first elements of a fleet of 14,000 satellites.

The Asian country has even bolder plans for the future:

They also want to collect rock samples from Mars in 2028, while they want to send people to the Moon in 2030.

China’s successes are also exceptional because, while other countries often cooperate with larger space agencies, such as NASA, in their space programs, China mostly sets out to conquer outer space as a separate traveler.

One good example of this is China’s own space station, completed in 2022 Tienkungwhich is a International Space Station (ISS) is the other currently operating station in outer space suitable for receiving astronauts. At the beginning of the 2010s, China did not shy away from cooperation in the field of space policy. They would also have joined the ISS, which was established as an international project, as the name suggests, but the United States Congress in 2011 forbade a NASA kid, that cooperate meaningfully with their Chinese partners without prior permission, which included their exclusion from the ISS program.

The USA is fighting to stay in the (space) race

Reading the Chinese successes above, it is clear that the United States must focus on the area if it wants to keep up with its Asian rival. By the way, this is not only important for scientific and technological reasons: the conquest of outer space can also be driven by security policy interests.

So it’s no coincidence that Bill Nelson, director of NASA one of this year in his interview made a very critical statement about China’s space plans:

We believe that much of the so-called civilian space program of the Chinese is actually a military program and I think that we are actually in a competition.

During Trump’s previous presidency, he basically supported space exploration, for example he brought it back created the institution of the National Space Council, traditionally under the control of the vice president, as well as the American one Space Army (Space Force) is.

A Space Review trade journal according to his analysis anyway Donald Trump and Kamala Harris consider it similarly important the commercial use of outer space, innovation in space exploration, the new moon landing, and generally maintaining America’s leadership in space.

The difference between them is rather a significant in terms of implementation: Working in the Biden administration, Harris was clearly on the side of cooperation. 38 of the 47 members of the Artemis Accords agreement, created to coordinate global space research, signed the agreement during the Biden administration. According to the paper’s assessment, Trump would place less emphasis on gaining allies and would prefer to imagine conquering outer space alone.

Musk can help out Trump and vice versa

Elon Musk cheers on stage at Donald Trump’s campaign event in New York. Musk, who is currently the richest man in the world, publicly stood behind the Republican candidate during the summer and supported Donald Trump’s campaign with at least 130 million dollars. Image credit: Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images

And for Donald Trump to achieve these lofty goals Elon Musk, who came forward as one of his main supporters during the election campaign, can be on the receiving endaki SpaceX already plays a major role in the United States’ space program with its space industry company.

Following the retirement of the Space Shuttle in 2011, NASA, Commercial Crew Program commissioned two private companies, SpaceX and Boeing, to develop new space vehicles. While the latter company has not progressed smoothly with the project recently, to put it mildly, until then the Crew Dragon spacecraft developed by SpaceX now regularly delivers cargo and people is az ISS-re.

Currently considered the most powerful rocket SpaceX Starship and forms the central element of the new Moon and Mars programs.

Although SpaceX receives billions of dollars from the state to implement various space industry projects, it often clashes with the American authorities, for example the company’s rockets harmful to the environment due to its effects. About these Musk he also regularly voices his criticisms, that the authorities are hindering the development of American space exploration with their restrictions. With Trump’s victory, it’s easy to assume that as rumored even playing a role in the administration of the Republican president

Elon Musk’s space company may face fewer similar regulatory condemnations in the future.

The Atlantic article according to him, it could create a lot of conflict of interest problems if Musk really gets an advisory role in the Trump administration.

We have not seen a historical example of this

– said the space expert speaking to the paper, Casey Dreierimplying that a potential high-ranking advisor to the government in the person of Musk would also be the owner of the leading space industry company to which the United States is closely linked with its space program.

The paper also points out that Musk Ürtervei they are often not only ambitious, but downright they can also be unrealistic. According to the current situation, SpaceX wants to carry out its first unmanned landing on Mars in 2028, while

It would also send astronauts to the surface of the red planet by 2030.

Exactly of course cannot be predicted which direction Donald Trump, known for his sudden and often drastic decisions, will take the US space program, however, if he does not make major changes to the plans that are already on track, after more than 50 years, under his presidency, humanity may return to the surface of the moon and America will most likely get closer to Mars as well. And for these he definitely needs Elon Musk’s help.

Cover image credit: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images



Source: www.portfolio.hu