HELSINKI — China is aiming to work with 50 countries on its ILRS lunar south pole base program as efforts to attract partners continue.
“We are open and welcome international cooperation from all countries, including those countries from the Global South, emerging BRICS countries, as well as Western countries,” Wu Weiren, chief designer of China’s lunar exploration program, told China Global Television Network (CGTN) ahead of International Moon Day, July 20.
The call comes days after NASA canceled the VIPER robotic lunar rover mission that would have searched for ice at the moon’s south pole.
China aims to build a basic International Lunar Research Station (ILRS) by 2035, and an extended station by 2045.
“So far, we have signed agreements with more than 10 countries and nearly 30 international research institutions. We hope to work with 50 countries by inviting 500 foreign scientific research institutions, and 5,000 foreign scientific research personnel to jointly build our international lunar scientific research station,” Wu stated.
China is known to have attracted 10 countries to join it and Russia in the venture. These are Venezuela, Belarus, Pakistan, Azerbaijan, South Africa, Egypt, Nicaragua, Thailand, Serbia and, most recently, Kazakhstan.
Turkey is understood to have applied to join. Meanwhile a series of universities, companies, institutes and regional organizations have signed memorandums of understanding on the ILRS.
The continued diplomatic push does suggest a delay to earlier plans to attract founding partners for the project.
Chinese officials had stated in 2023 that it aimed to establish the International Lunar Research Station Cooperation Organization (ILRSCO) later that year. The organization will coordinate and manage the construction of the ILRS moon base, but its founding is yet to be announced.
China’s efforts have largely focused on the Global South, somewhat mirroring the country’s wider diplomatic moves. Subnational diplomacy has also brought further countries into the program by extension.
The latest example saw the Hungarian Solar Physics Foundation sign an MoU with China’s Deep Space Exploration Laboratory (DSEL), headed by Wu, this month.
Bahrain, a signatory of the Artemis Accords, also signed an agreement with China covering lunar and deep space exploration in late May.
An agreement on the ILRS was not explicitly stated. Bahrain will however collaborate with Egypt to jointly develop a hyperspectral imager for lunar surface material identification payload for Chang’e-7. That Chinese ILRS precursor lunar south pole mission is set to launch in 2026.
Peru, another Artemis Accords signatory, is involved in the ILRS via its participation in the Asia-Pacific Space Cooperation Organization (APSCO).
China jointly announced the ILRS with Russia in June 2021. Since then, China has taken the lead diplomatically following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. It is also leading at the mission level, given the recently successful Chang’e-6 mission and the loss of Luna-25.
The invasion of Ukraine appears to have ended prospects for Western involvement in ILRS. The European Space Agency has stated it will not engage in the ILRS project due to Russian participation.
The U.S. similarly has sanctions and policies in place prohibiting cooperation with Russia. Additionally, language present in NASA appropriations bills, known as the Wolf Amendment, puts severe restrictions on the agency’s ability to engage with Chinese entities.
ILRS: South pole and resource development
Wu also provided a little further insight into the ILRS plans, in terms of destination and goals.
“We are preparing to build a lunar scientific research station at the south pole of the moon. This scientific research station will be combined with an orbital station and a lunar surface station, plus ground facilities such as the headquarters for major scientific projects.”
The ILRS will “enable scientific exploration and resource development,” Wu stated.
China is preparing a pair of precursor missions named Chang’e-7 and Chang’e-8 later this decade. These will map and scout for resources at the lunar south pole and test in-situ resource utilization technologies. Both missions will also involve a range of international partners.
Chang’e-7 will include a small spacecraft to explore permanently shadowed regions to investigate the presence of water ice there. This was the main aim of the VIPER mission.
China aims to construct the permanent lunar base with five missions to establish power, communications and other infrastructure. China also aims to send astronauts to the moon before 2030.
