Russia plans to deploy a power plant on the moon in the next decade, with the aim of providing energy for its lunar space program, as well as a joint Russian-Chinese research station, Reuters reported, BTA reported.
Since Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first person to walk in outer space in 1961, Russia has established itself as one of the leading powers in space exploration. In recent decades, however, the country has lagged behind the United States and increasingly behind China.
Russian ambitions suffered a serious blow in August 2023 when the unmanned mission "Luna-25" crashed into the lunar surface The Moon during a landing attempt. At the same time, Elon Musk is revolutionizing spacecraft launches - an area in which Russia was once a leader.
The state space corporation „Roscosmos“ announced in an official statement that it plans to build a lunar power plant by 2036 and has signed a contract for this purpose with the aerospace company „Lavochkin“.
According to „Roscosmos“, the main purpose of the power plant will be to provide energy for the Russian lunar program, including for lunar rovers, an astronomical observatory and the infrastructure of the joint Russian-Chinese International Lunar Research Station.
„The project is an important step towards the creation of a permanently operating scientific lunar station and the transition from one-time missions to a long-term lunar exploration program,“ the company said. „Roscosmos“.
The corporation did not explicitly specify that the power plant would be nuclear, but indicated that among the participants in the project are the Russian state nuclear corporation „Rosatom“ and the Kurchatov Institute - Russia's leading nuclear research center.
The head of „Roscosmos“ Dmitry Bakanov said in June that one of the corporation's goals is to deploy a nuclear power plant on the Moon, as well as explore Venus.