China could establish bases on the Moon in 2035, before the United States

In recent years, the conquest of space has seen many advances, and several countries want to return to the Moon to establish a sustainable base there. But while the United States seemed to be ahead in this project, China may well overtake them.

This conclusion was highlighted through a report from the Commercial Space Federation called Redshift. And the least we can say is that China is progressing rapidly and catching up with the Americans, especially when we know that this country already has a space station called Tiangong, has mapped the surface of the Moon, and brought back lunar rocks. Not to mention that it is also developing mega-constellations of satellites, similar to SpaceX.

On the US side, there are numerous delays, mainly concerning Starship's HLS (human landing system). It must be said that there are still many challenges to be overcome for this modified spaceship, like refueling and flights in low orbit. But this is not the only program experiencing delays, as the spacesuits to be worn by the Artemis III astronauts are not ready, and neither are the life-support systems.

However, the Moon is a giant laboratory that is very interesting for the future of space exploration. Establishing lunar bases there could serve as a springboard to other destinations, such as Mars, but also planets or natural satellites located further away. Thus, it remains difficult to know which country will be the first to reach the Moon, even though China seems to be catching up and could dominate space exploration in the coming years.