China's plans for the Moon and Mars
Discussion
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-36085659
According to the video they want to explore the 'dark side' of the moon as there is a greater chance of ice due to lack of sun light......either they need to have a strong word with themselves, or the subtitles are inaccurate - perhaps they really said they'd like to explore the polar regions as there are craters that receive no sunlight?
Do I need a Whoosh Parrot - are there regions on the 'dark side' that have little or no sunlight?
Edited cos can't spell init.
According to the video they want to explore the 'dark side' of the moon as there is a greater chance of ice due to lack of sun light......either they need to have a strong word with themselves, or the subtitles are inaccurate - perhaps they really said they'd like to explore the polar regions as there are craters that receive no sunlight?
Do I need a Whoosh Parrot - are there regions on the 'dark side' that have little or no sunlight?
Edited cos can't spell init.
Edited by rjben on Wednesday 20th April 15:33
rjben said:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-36085659
According to the video they want to explore the 'dark side' of the moon as there is a greater chance of ice due to lack of sun light......either they need to have a string word with themselves, or the subtitles are inaccurate - perhaps they really said they'd like to explore the polar regions as there are craters that receive no sunlight?
Do I need a Whoosh Parrot - are there regions on the 'dark side' that have little or no sunlight?
I reckon they have been listening to too much Pink Floyd.......... there may be something lost in translation According to the video they want to explore the 'dark side' of the moon as there is a greater chance of ice due to lack of sun light......either they need to have a string word with themselves, or the subtitles are inaccurate - perhaps they really said they'd like to explore the polar regions as there are craters that receive no sunlight?
Do I need a Whoosh Parrot - are there regions on the 'dark side' that have little or no sunlight?
Being generous to the Chinese, I expect they are referring to parts of th FAR side that may be permanently in shadow, as the far side has far more mountains and craters than the near side.
Alternatively, they may have hired Professor Rafferty O'Reilly as their chief scientific adviser.
Alternatively, they may have hired Professor Rafferty O'Reilly as their chief scientific adviser.
Eric Mc said:
Being generous to the Chinese, I expect they are referring to parts of th FAR side that may be permanently in shadow, as the far side has far more mountains and craters than the near side.
Alternatively, they may have hired Professor Rafferty O'Reilly as their chief scientific adviser.
As it orbits the earth, almost all the surface of the moon receives some sunlight - only deep craters at the poles are likely to have never received sunlight.Alternatively, they may have hired Professor Rafferty O'Reilly as their chief scientific adviser.
http://www.space.com/20302-dark-moon-craters-lro-s...
I know all that. I was trying to work out why the chap they interviewed seemed to think that there were more shadowed areas on the far side. I heard the interview on Radio 4 and thought that it didn't make a huge amount of sense. On the other hand, the individual person talking was not one of the scientists but an interpreter - so perhaps he had misunderstood what the scientist was saying.
What I would like to know is how the far side lander will be able to communicate and transmit its data back to earth. I presume it will require the positioning in lunar orbit or at a stable Le Grange point a communications relay satellite to allow the signals to reach earth.
If they do this, it will be a major and proper "first" for the Chinese space programme.
What I would like to know is how the far side lander will be able to communicate and transmit its data back to earth. I presume it will require the positioning in lunar orbit or at a stable Le Grange point a communications relay satellite to allow the signals to reach earth.
If they do this, it will be a major and proper "first" for the Chinese space programme.
That's already been done a few times. The Chinese would like to claim a genuine space "first" for their programme. They want to be considered a big player in space exploration and they feel they will only enter the big league if they start breaking new ground (literally - if they are able to sample lunar material from the far side).
Eric Mc said:
That's already been done a few times. The Chinese would like to claim a genuine space "first" for their programme. They want to be considered a big player in space exploration and they feel they will only enter the big league if they start breaking new ground (literally - if they are able to sample lunar material from the far side).
Maybe they want to build a runway...qube_TA said:
The far side looks quite different to the near side, I guess as the Earth isn't in the way to block stuff from hitting it as much it's had a rougher time.
Would be interesting to see how it compares from a geological perspective.
That's not the reason why the far side is rougher - although the earth is the root cause.Would be interesting to see how it compares from a geological perspective.
At one point the near side and far side would have been pretty equally cratered and rugged - a legacy of the process that formed the moon in the first place. However, once the moon's rotation became "locked" with one side facing the earth, the side facing the earth became more exposed to the tidal effects caused by the earth's gravity.
This was still almost 4 billion years ago - when the moon would still have had a hot and active molten interior. As a result of these tidal effects, the side facing the earth experienced massive lava and magma flows which produced the large expanses of the relatively smooth "maria" (the lunar "seas"). These predominate on the near side but are virtually unknown on the far side. Even today, the moon displays a bulge on the side facing the earth due to the earth's tidal influence.
The moon is now largely inactive as far as volcanic activity is concerned although occasionally there are reports of outgassings and minor eruptions.
Monty Python said:
Eric Mc said:
Hmmm - I'm trying to see any logic there.
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-southchinasea-china-idUSKBN0UI20520160105Staking a legally enforceable proprietorial claim on the moon is currently not allowed. But staking a "moral" right to exploring the moon is what the Chinese are doing. They want to be considered an equal with those countries that have currently landed stuff on the moon - Russia and the US, so in a way it is the modern equivalent of staking a claim.
Well, I guess I will be the first one to say to them "good luck with it!"..... it is good to see another nation get seriously involved in space and play their part in furthering our knowledge.
With funding drying up to a large extent in USA, Russia and the EU for 'expensive' space operations, its good to see another 'player' push the boundaries.
Hopefully they will be successful and continue the funding to move humanity forward in extraterrestrial terms.
(Also it may give a nudge to western governments up their efforts for the sake of 'competition').
With funding drying up to a large extent in USA, Russia and the EU for 'expensive' space operations, its good to see another 'player' push the boundaries.
Hopefully they will be successful and continue the funding to move humanity forward in extraterrestrial terms.
(Also it may give a nudge to western governments up their efforts for the sake of 'competition').
Toaster said:
Monty Python said:
Maybe they want to build a runway...
I suspect they will and the claim will be more than a moral one, possibly the same approach thats taken in Tibet.....and the islands in the south china sea's 
Monty Python said:
Eric Mc said:
That's already been done a few times. The Chinese would like to claim a genuine space "first" for their programme. They want to be considered a big player in space exploration and they feel they will only enter the big league if they start breaking new ground (literally - if they are able to sample lunar material from the far side).
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