Russia-China plan for moon mission (AP/CNN)

[eppur_se_muova]

MOSCOW, Russia (AP) -- Russia will cooperate closely with China on moon exploration, and the two nations could sign space cooperation agreements by the year's end, the Russian space chief said Monday.

Federal Space Agency chief Anatoly Perminov said that Chinese experts had shown a strong interest in Russia's lunar experience.

"Russia is ready for close cooperation with China in the field," Perminov said in remarks posted on his agency's Web site. "This is a serious and quite promising field of cooperation. In the past the Russian-Chinese cooperation have been mostly limited to the sales of Russian equipment, but now we are considering the development and implementation of joint projects."
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Perminov said that the two nations had formalized their plans for the moon research in a specific action plan approved in June 2005 and followed up on that with several expert meetings. The latest meeting of Russian and Chinese space officials took place last week.

"Joint lunar research is our priority," Anatoly Perminov said, according to the RIA Novosti news agency. He didn't elaborate on specific plans for the moon research, but said that new agreements on space cooperation could be signed during Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Fradkov's visit to Beijing in the fall.
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more: http://www.cnn.com/2006/TECH/space/09/11/russia.china.moon.ap/index.html

[Prisoner_Number_Six]

1. I'm glad SOMEONE'S going back to the moon.

We should never have stopped our missions- in fact, we should have a colony on Mars by now, *bush's empty mouthings notwithstanding. Mankind hasn't stepped foot outside of near earth orbit for far too long. It's the real shame of my generation that we walked away from all that without a backward glance. :cry:

[mccoyn]

3. Work has already started.

Our biggest problem has been the shuttle. Because of its large size it is very expensive to take it to the moon. Work has begun on the next generation space vehicle, the Orion, which will be smaller. Its being designed with the moon in mind. Manned flights are planned to begin in 2014 with lunar flights around 2020.

[Prisoner_Number_Six]

4. "Already" started

Forgive my sarcasm, but work should never have STOPPED. We're a generation behind, and the nation is suffering the worst technical brain drain in history.

I used to wait for the day NASA was renamed Star Fleet. Now I think it should be named Junk Heap. I shouldn't have to remind you man already stepped onto the moon- IN 1969.

[Duer 157099]

2. Wow. What a concept.

I thought America owned the moon, and the rest of the planets too.

No?