“Space activities in this region are set to expand rapidly over the next decade, driving a new round of global competition.
“The competition for resources such as orbital slots and radio frequencies is already on, and will only get more intense in the future. There’s an urgent need for China to establish a top-level road map to develop cislunar space infrastructure and gain a competitive edge in the emerging cislunar economy.”
For instance, the United States Air Force is developing a satellite known as the Cislunar Highway Patrol System to demonstrate its ability to detect, track and identify artificial objects at lunar distances (437,000km or 272,000 miles), which is more than a tenfold increase from the traditional geostationary detection range (35,785km or 22,236 miles).
Civil space agencies in the US, Europe and Japan have also proposed similar infrastructure to support scientific exploration and commercial operations at the moon.
“While plans exist in the US, Europe and Japan, none have been implemented yet. China has a unique opportunity to secure a substantial share in the emerging cislunar space industry,” they wrote.
According to Yang and his colleagues, China’s construction of its cislunar infrastructure would unfold in three stages.
The second stage would then expand the system to include 10 satellites orbiting the moon, Earth and specific locations known as Earth-moon Lagrange points. A second lunar ground station would improve data transmission rates to 5 gigabytes per second and improve navigation accuracy to 100 metres for the lunar south pole region.
The third and final stage would integrate a comprehensive network of 30 satellites, three lunar ground stations, as well as existing Earth-based communication and navigation facilities. It would aim to achieve data transmission rates of 10 gigabytes per second and enhance navigation accuracies to 10 metres (32 feet) for lunar surface activities and 50 metres (164 feet) for journeys between Earth and the moon.
“The development of cislunar infrastructure must follow principles of phased development and dynamic expansion,” the researchers stressed.
“It should also consider the needs for international compatibility and cooperation to support China’s aspirations as a space power and nurture new aerospace industries in the country,” they wrote.
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