Conflict on the moon | Arabic newspaper

Paris Fifty years after the first man landed on the moon, the interest of space agencies after abandoning the Earth for decades is closest to the Earth.

Three countries managed to land on the moon – the United States, the Soviet Union and China – and Washington managed to send 12 astronauts who landed on its surface between 1969 and 1972.

India hopes to catch up with these countries and the Chandrayaan II mission, consisting of an unmanned vehicle, an Indian probe and a small European probe, comes to explore its surface. Bernard Fueng, astrophysicist at the European Space Agency, expects the mission to India to begin in February.

Israel also intends to enter the competition and has designed the "Birchit" probe weighing 150 kg for this purpose. It should be launched in February with a US missile Spice X.

"The goal of this mission for Israel is to be able to say that it is able to probe the moon and introduce scientific and cultural payloads," Fueng said. "2019 will be a pivotal year in the exploration of the moon," he said. After missions on the moon's orbit, we have entered a new phase. "We are at the beginning of the emergence of a Qamarip robotic village, with the sending of several countries probes there."

Japan is also working to send a lunar probe between 2020 and 2021 to study the volcanic regions of the region. Russia is continuing its work on the Luna 27 Antarctic Ice Study Program with the help of Europe.

The United States, which preceded the world, sent Neil Armstrong and Paz Aldrin to the moon on July 20, 1969, and is also preparing for it. In 2017, President Donald Trump signed a resolution asking NASA to return to the moon as a prelude to flights to Mars using the US private sector.

The agency said it has chosen nine private companies to manufacture vehicles and transport equipment on the moon, as well as the return of manned flights in the next ten years. "The Moon is the eighth continent of the Earth, where we can develop our science and technology, establish international cooperation, use our resources and inspire the public and youth to serve humanity," Fueng said.