The reaction to the publication of a white paper by the Chinese government which spelled out a long term goal of landing a man on the moon was varied. How one viewed it largely depended on how one views space exploration.
Most media reaction was not with indifference.
What has the reaction been?
In short, most have viewed the development with alarm.
Cal Thomas, a conservative pundit and former radio reporter in Houston, Texas, called the Chinese man to the moon plan as its "JFK moment." Thomas views China's space plans, which include a while host of things besides sending people to the moon, as part of its drive to become a super power. He suggested that the United States better view this as a warning and act accordingly to rebuild its own space program.
Even the New York Times, not known for viewing foreign threats with anything resembling concern, suggested that China's space plans constituted a challenge to the United States. The Times article suggested that a new space race, similar to what occurred in the 1960s between the United States and the Soviet Union, may be in the offing.
Apollo Moonwalker Buzz Aldrin, writing for the Huffington Post, also views the Chinese plan as a challenge. Aldrin states that the Chinese challenge comes "at a dangerous convergence" of a debt crisis and a contentious presidential election in the United States.
How to react to the Chinese challenge
The difference comes in how the United States should react to the Chinese plan to land humans on the moon.
Thomas suggests what is in effect a renewal of America's space exploration program, cancelled by President Barack Obama, revived partially by Congress. He points to a goal of establishing a base on the moon and sending astronaut explorers to Mars as worthy things to do to trump China's attempt to become a space power.
Aldrin's approach is a little different. He does not mention the moon at all, but rather suggests going directly to Mars. He also eschews the use of the Space Launch System in favor of smaller, commercially available rockets. The idea is that separate rockets would create a fuel depot in space which the spacecraft headed to Mars would top off at before heading for the Red Planet. This would require many multiples of launches to supply one expedition to Mars.
The Bottom Line
There seems to be little dissent to the notion that China's lunar plans constitute a long term challenge to the United States. The disagreement, as exemplified by Thomas' and Aldrin's prescriptions, is in what to do about it. How (and whether) the question will be resolved is as yet unknown and may be dependent on the outcome of the current election. It is interesting to note that the Chinese white paper was published after Mitt Romney made his unfortunate remark about a lunar mining colony being "zany." One wonders if the candidate has altered that opinion in view of more recent developments.
Mark R. Whittington is the author of Children of Apollo and The Last Moonwalker . He has written on space subjects for a variety of periodicals, including The Houston Chronicle, The Washington Post, USA Today, the L.A. Times, and The Weekly Standard.
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