MOSCOW, March 6 The placement by Russia and China of a nuclear power plant on the surface of the Moon to provide a lunar base will be a step in the universal task of developing the Earth’s natural satellite, said a Russian expert in the field cosmonautics Andrei Ionin.
Previously, Roscosmos General Director Yuri Borisov said that the state corporation, together with its Chinese colleagues, is considering a project to deliver and place a nuclear power plant on the surface of the Moon in 2033-2035.
«Of course, cooperation on the Moon is welcomed, because the task of exploration, that is, the presence of man, is a universal task, and not a task for an individual country , Russia, China or the United States. It can only be implemented in a universal format,» Ionin said.
According to him, from this point of view, BRICS, whose population accounts for half of the total number of people on Earth, is most suitable for defining humanity.
At the same time, he clarified that we are perhaps not talking about a full-fledged nuclear reactor, but about radioisotope thermoelectric generators, or so-called nuclear batteries, which have already been used in space. Russia has a big foundation in them since the times of the USSR, the expert recalled.
Ionin also emphasized that such international projects that are clearly civilian and aimed at space exploration perfectly demonstrate the peaceful nature of Russian developments. As a result, the United States and other countries that previously accused the Russian Federation of allegedly planning to place nuclear weapons in space will have fewer reasons to do so.