US-China cooperation in the exploration of the moon

NASA said it was in contact with the Chinese Space Agency and had limited coordination with it to explore the moon. Any cooperation should be subject to strict rules to prevent the transfer of US technology to China. NASA's chief scientist Tomas Rosbukin wrote on Twitter Friday that his agency had held talks with China to use an American satellite to monitor the unmanned Chinese spacecraft ChangA4, which landed on the moon on Monday. 3rd of March.

The Chinese agency has provided Monday to the US agency the landing site of Chang A-4, said Monday in Beijing the head of the Chinese space agency Wu Yanqua, during the meeting. 39; a press conference, under which the American moon, the orbiter Roxonis, could capture images of the moment of landing.

The Chinese vehicle landed on the hidden side of the moon, still blocked from the ground.

The Chinese, however, talked about the moon's orbit to the Chinese, but it was not in the right place when the Chinese vehicle landed.

NASA said in a statement that it was interested in monitoring the dust cloud caused by the collision of the Chinese vehicle on the moon. But "for several reasons", it was not possible to adjust the orbit of the moon to be able to monitor the landing of Chang & # 39; A4, but he remains "interested in monitor the dust cloud long after the landing, "the statement said.

These observations are useful to Americans who intend to send probes to the Moon and then astronauts and establish a station on the orbit of the Moon by 2026.

The American moon will fly over the landing site of the Chinese vehicle on January 31 and will be seen under the name Chang A3 in 2013.

The two agencies agreed to "publish any significant scientific discovery resulting from this collaboration for the benefit of the global scientific community" at the United Nations Vienna Scientific Conference on the Peaceful Use of Space in February. Since 2011, the US law prohibits any space cooperation with China for fear of disclosing advanced technical secrets or any information likely to affect national or economic security. China does not participate in the International Space Station, which Washington is the largest financier. However, this exception is allowed provided that the Agency guarantees Congress and the safety authorities that the cooperation does not present any of these dangers.

NASA said in its statement that its cooperation with China respects these conditions and is "transparent, mutually beneficial and mutually beneficial". Wu Weirin, designer of the Chinese Lunar Exploration Program, noted that cooperation between the two sides could develop. He added that the Americans had asked the Chinese to extend the work of the satellite, which provides communication between the hidden face of the moon and the land and the reason NASA intends to do so. land on this side of the moon and want to enjoy it. The cooperation is more than that, without any insurmountable hurdles, says Henry Hertzfield, a researcher at George Washington University. But Congress can decide on leniency in certain paragraphs of this law, which was approved in response to cyber attacks attributed to China.