NASA warns of new 'race' to the Moon's south pole

NASA Director Bill Nelson has spoken out about a new space race, hinting at the possibility of China occupying the Moon's south pole if its astronauts arrive first.

The US and China are in a new competition at the Moon's south pole. (Source: Getty Images)

On August 8, speaking at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida (USA), Mr. Nelson shared that China's actions on the Moon in the near future could be similar to Beijing coming and claiming sovereignty over some international islands in the East Sea, and building military runways there.

According to him, there is currently a race between the US and China to quickly access the amount of water ice believed to be trapped at the South Pole of the Moon.

At the same time, Mr. Nelson said: “We need to protect the interests of the international community... If we do find an abundant source of water that can be used for future crews and spacecraft, we want to make sure that water is available to everyone, not just the person who claims to have it.”

Additionally, Mr. Nelson revealed that potential landing and resource locations at the Moon's south pole are limited and the landscape is very different from the area chosen for previous landings.

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