Ukraine not enough, Russia also wants to colonize moon.

Russian state space agency Roscosmos launched its first lunar expedition in 50 years on Friday Aug.

11. "Russia not only returns to the Moon, but makes a step to stay there for a long time," Roscosmos said in a joint statement with Russian state news agency TASS. The unmanned Luna-25 mission is aiming for the moon's south pole, which scientists believe could contain water, raising "the possibility of a future human colony on the moon," according[1] to the Guardian.

But according to analysts, Russia's aims are more political than scientific. "Luna-25 plays today a mostly psychological and propaganda role for the Kremlin," Pavel Luzin, an expert on the Russian aerospace industry, told the Guardian. "It needs to demonstrate that it is capable to do something even without the west." International sanctions[2] following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine have taken their toll on Moscow's space program.

Luna-25 offers a chance to recapture lost glory as Russia's isolation deepens. The timing of the launch also suggests Russia hopes to prove itself in a competitive race. In July, India launched Chandrayaan-3, another mission to the moon's previously unexplored south pole.

While both launches are scheduled for the end of August, Roscosmos said that "if successful," Luna-25 would make Russia "the first" nation to land in the lunar south pole. "There is enough space for everyone on the moon," Roscosmos said in a statement published[3] by Reuters.

Ukraine war latest: Child killed in Russian Kinzhal attack aimed at airfield in Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast Key developments on Aug.

11: * Russian forces hit Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast with Kinzhal missiles, killing 1 child * Missile debris fall on children's hospital in Kyiv * Zelensky pledges all enlistment office chiefs to be dismissed following corruption charges * Drone intercepted in Moscow, mayor...

[4] Abbey Fenbert

News Editor

Abbey Fenbert is a news editor at the Kyiv Independent. She is a freelance writer, editor, and playwright with an MFA from Boston University. Abbey served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Ukraine from 2008-2011.

References

  1. ^ according (www.theguardian.com)
  2. ^ sanctions (kyivindependent.com)
  3. ^ published (www.reuters.com)
  4. ^ Ukraine war latest: Child killed in Russian Kinzhal attack aimed at airfield in Ivano-Frankivsk OblastKey developments on Aug.

    11: * Russian forces hit Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast with Kinzhal missiles, killing 1 child * Missile debris fall on children's hospital in Kyiv * Zelensky pledges all enlistment office chiefs to be dismissed following corruption charges * Drone intercepted in Moscow, mayor... (kyivindependent.com)

Tags: