3 hours agoShareSavePallab Ghosh,Science CorrespondentandAlison Francis,Senior Science Journalist ShareSaveDo other countries plan to send astronauts to the Moon?Several other countries have ambitions to put people on the Moon in the 2030s.European astronauts are set to join later Artemis missions and Japan has also secured seats.China is building its own craft, targeting a first landing near the Moon’s south pole by 2030. Russia continues to talk about flying cosmonauts to the surface and building a small base sometime between about 2030 and 2035. However, sanctions, funding pressures and technical setbacks mean its timetable is highly optimistic.India has also expressed ambitions to one day see its own astronauts walking on the Moon. Following the success of Chandrayaan 3’s landing near the lunar south pole in August 2023, India’s space agency set out a goal of sending astronauts to the Moon by about 2040. This would be part of a push to move its human spaceflight programme beyond low Earth orbit.Additional reporting by Kevin Church.
