Dr. Leroy Chiao's commentary was published by CNN.
Dr. Leroy Chiao, works as a consultant and is the CEO and co-founder of One Orbit LLC - a motivational training,education and talent management company.
He served as a NASA astronaut from 1990-2005 and flew four space missions on three space shuttles – and once as co-pilot of a Russian Soyuz spacecraft to the International Space Station (ISS), where he served as commander of Expedition-10. The views expressed in this commentary are those of Dr. Leroy Chiao.
There are many reasons why nations create and continue civilian space programs. Some hope to advance their civilian efforts in science and technology, others seek to expand their engineering workforce, pushing the next generation of young people toward the stars.
Since the dawn of the space race, however, the greatest motivation by far has been to enhance national prestige, domestically and internationally.
That is an important part of what motivated India when it just made a feat of becoming the only country to successfully land a probe on the South Pole of the Moon at 18:04 on August 23, 2023 (Indian time); and at the same time, it is the 4th country in the world (along with the Soviet Union, the US, and China) to launch a spacecraft to the Moon.
The Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft's Lander Imager 4 camera captured this image of the Moon's surface on August 20. Credit: ISRO
This milestone marks a huge achievement for their fledgling space program, which has made steady progress over the years. I expect future success: Delhi has demonstrated a significant commitment to investing in space exploration.
Achievements of the Soviet Union
At the dawn of the space age, the Soviet Union, which understood very well how a successful space program could strengthen its position on the national stage, made its first impression by launching Sputnik, the first satellite, in 1957.
Although it only transmitted a simple “beep” signal, the significance of the launch was enormous. Moscow followed up that breakthrough with a series of historic achievements, including the first animal to orbit (the dog Laika in 1957); and the first human to fly into space (cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin in 1961).
Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin - the first man to fly into space. Photo: Getty Images
As the Soviet Union achieved success after success in space, the United States was on the verge of panic. Although Washington followed with its own successes, the initial impression was that the Americans were technologically behind the Soviet Union.
That is why President John F. Kennedy's call to send American astronauts to the Moon resonated so deeply with America, receiving enthusiastic support from both parties in Congress, as well as from the American public at large.
Russian President Vladimir Putin is the latest leader to try to use a successful space project to reflect the greatness of his country. Mr Putin had hoped to soon receive good news from the successful landing of Russia's Luna-25 moon lander.
For added effect, the Russian president timed the lunar mission to take place just days before the journey to the Moon by India's rival spacecraft, the Chandrayaan-3.
However, technical problems caused Luna-25 to crash into the natural satellite instead of landing on the Moon.
The last photo of the Luna-25 spacecraft before it crashed into the Moon. Source: Roscosmos
Asia’s space programs are growing, most notably China and India. Both countries have developed sophisticated cryogenic rocket engines, launchers, and spacecraft. Both operate a number of satellites for communications, Earth imaging, and remote sensing, and China also has its own navigation satellites.
China also boasts a human spaceflight program with an operational space station, Tiangong, which includes both crew and cargo spacecraft. China's lunar probe (Chang'e-4) is still actively exploring the far side of the Moon.
India plans to send its astronauts into Earth orbit in the next few years, while China has announced plans to send its astronauts to the surface of the Moon in the 2030s.
The US, Europe, Japan and Canada are also continuing to push forward with space exploration in the International Space Station (ISS) partnership. After years of delays and cost overruns, the Artemis I mission (launching the SLS super rocket) is finally set to launch in 2022, and NASA has lined up a crew for the Artemis II mission, which will include a Canadian astronaut.
NASA plans to return humans to the Moon in the coming years, something that hasn't happened since the last Apollo landing in 1972.
These nations also continue to launch satellites and other spacecraft. Meanwhile, NASA continues to operate rovers on Mars. And one of the most exciting developments in the West is the collaboration between commercial space companies and NASA.
SpaceX has been a partner with NASA for years, sending supplies and crew to the ISS. It is also developing a lunar lander for NASA, as is a team led by billionaire Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin.
Several smaller companies are entering contracts to provide spacecraft and services for lunar exploration, demonstrating a relentless effort to advance into space on multiple fronts.
Downward spiral
Russia is an exception. Instead of expanding, its space program has been in decline for several years. The once-grand program began to unravel after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Cosmonaut Sergei Krikalev was stranded on the Mir space station for nearly a year because of the collapse of the Soviet Union and the chaos that followed.
Their space program is said to have been heavily supported by the US, which supported the Mir space station and brought Russia into the ISS program, with cash for services and contracts to produce core modules and other equipment.
Russia is also a key partner in the ISS program. They provided crew and cargo transportation (including the crew of Expedition-10) while the Space Shuttle Columbia crashed.
Until recently, Russian rockets and spacecraft were among the safest and most reliable. But now the future of Russia's space program is in doubt, amid ongoing budget cuts, corruption allegations and a shortage of young professionals in its ranks.
Russia has seen failures of its Soyuz and Progress spacecraft and launchers in recent years, including the aborted 2018 launch of Soyuz MS-10 with American astronaut Nick Hague on board. Luna-25 is the latest failure.
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