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Humanity is Suddenly Moving to the Moon
Humanity is Suddenly Moving to the Moon
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Phụ đề (222)
0:00
What if NASA's next mission to the Moon isn't exploration… it's control?
0:04
For decades, we were told the Moon belonged to everyone. Since Neil Armstrong planted the
0:09
Stars and Stripes, the Moon has remained one of humanity's few truly neutral frontiers.
0:13
A place where any nation capable of reaching it could conduct research and exploration.
0:18
But is that era about to end? Could the future of the Moon look
0:22
less like one giant leap for mankind… and more like a massive American stronghold?
0:27
Is NASA really preparing to build a massive autonomous lunar fortress,
0:31
powered by cutting-edge drone technology, to secure one of the Moon's most valuable locations?
0:36
Because if that's true, the new race to the moon won't be about getting there first.
0:41
It'll be about deciding who gets to stay. Right now, Shackleton Crater is one of the
0:45
most important locations on the ,oon. Located at the lunar south pole, it's one of the moon's most
0:50
unusual geographical features. The crater's rim rises high enough that some of its peaks,
0:55
known as the Peaks of Eternal Light, receive sunlight for nearly 90% of the lunar day.
1:00
But inside the crater, conditions couldn't be more different.
1:03
Constantly shrouded in darkness, it creates a cold trap that flash-freezes everything inside
1:08
it. The crater has been examined by unmanned spacecraft, and its findings indicated that
1:12
water ice is likely present. It’s one of the most inhospitable spots on our only satellite.
1:18
And one of the most valuable.
1:20
NASA recently revealed a 3-stage timeline that will take the United States back to the moon
1:25
for the first time since 1972. The agency is pouring more than $20 billion into the effort,
1:30
with the goal of putting astronauts back on the lunar surface within the next few years.
1:34
But this isn't just about planting another flag.
1:37
It’s about dominance.
1:39
America wants to establish a foothold on the moon. And that’s where phase three comes in.
1:44
Known as "Sustained Human Presence," the program would create a lunar base capable of hosting
1:48
not just astronauts, but eventually long-term residents. For the first time, humanity would
1:53
have a permanent station on another world. It will be built in the Shackleton crater and result
1:58
in a massive perimeter around the crater that covers over 31,000 square miles (80,209 sq km).
2:03
Astronauts won’t just be exploring the moon.
2:06
They’ll be claiming it.
2:08
The plan is for the base to be protected by some of the most advanced drone technology ever
2:12
developed. Drones will map and track the lunar surface as well as moving around independently.
2:17
But these aren’t only the cameras, they’re the security. These drones will arrive on the
2:22
surface of the moon long before any humans set foot there. They’ll eventually be used
2:26
to create an autonomous surveillance network as the Shackleton Crater falls under U.S. control.
2:31
But NASA isn’t kickstarting the race to the moon.
2:33
It's been going for a long time already.
2:36
While the public only learned about these ambitious plans in May 2026, NASA had already
2:40
been laying the groundwork for years. Phase 1 will take place between 2026 and 2029, and is
2:46
planned to involve 25 launches - 21 of which will land on the moon. Most previous missions
2:52
to the moon using unmanned spacecraft have been done to send a single surveillance spacecraft.
2:57
This time it’s different.
2:59
The goal is to deliver up to four tons of infrastructure to begin the process of building
3:03
the moon base in stages and transform one of the Moon's harshest environments
3:07
into somewhere hospitable. At the heart of NASA's plan is the Mark 1 Endurance Lander,
3:13
built by Jeff Bezos' space company, Blue Origin. For years, Bezos watched from the sidelines as
3:18
Elon Musk's SpaceX dominated the modern space race. Now, he's been handed one of the most
3:23
important missions in its history. And he'll have to deliver.
3:27
The first phase, known as Moon Base I, will see the Endurance lander begin its initial missions
3:32
to the Moon. These early flights are designed to test its capabilities by targeting the Shackleton
3:37
Connecting Ridge and ensuring its landing and propulsion technologies can operate safely.
3:42
Once these missions are complete, the lander will begin unloading its first payloads of technology.
3:47
This includes high-resolution cameras and a laser-reflecting device designed to help
3:52
future spacecraft pinpoint and navigate lunar locations with far greater precision.
3:57
Because many more will be coming.
3:59
Griffin Mission One, a lunar lander developed by robotics company Astrobotic Technology will
4:04
play a key role in Moon Base II. While Blue Origin will handle the human landing systems,
4:10
Griffin Mission One will focus on building the heavy surface infrastructure. One of its key
4:14
developments is the FLEX Lunar Innovation Platform. It’s a multi-purpose lunar rover
4:19
designed to operate across the surface as the base begins to take shape.
4:23
This rover will carry the payloads delivered from Earth, taking them exactly where they’re
4:28
needed as construction of the lunar base begins. For Moon Base III, Blue Origin and Astrobotic
4:33
will be joined by additional partners as the mission moves into its most advanced stage yet.
4:38
This phase will see the deployment of the Nova-C Trinity Lander built by Intuitive Machines.This
4:44
mission will be bringing in specialized analytical technology that will explore to
4:48
study magnetic anomalies on the Moon and investigate the mysterious lunar swirls
4:53
that continue to puzzle scientists today. For the first time, this stage of the program
4:57
also expands beyond the United States, bringing in international cooperation from
5:01
partners including South Korea’s space program and the European Space Agency.
5:06
But cooperation is just the first step toward control.
5:09
As NASA begins to deliver the infrastructure to pave the way for human habitation,
5:13
it’s also preparing for the biggest perimeter in human history. While the first stages of the
5:17
Moon Base are advancing, Nasa’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory is getting ready for a 2028 mission
5:23
that will determine whether the entire mission is a success… or a failure.
5:27
The Moonfall Drones are autonomous “hopping” devices inspired by the success of NASA’s
5:32
Ingenuity Mars Helicopter. They’ll be carried aboard the Elytra spacecraft,
5:36
which will transport a quartet of 550-pound (250 kg) drones toward the lunar surface.
5:42
But instead of landing with them, the main spacecraft will release them in transit.
5:46
This will allow the drones to deploy independently once they reach the Moon.
5:50
And from that moment on, there’s no control ship… and no second chance.
5:55
They’re on their own. Once they reach the lunar surface,
5:57
they will use up to 10 high-definition cameras to create a map of hard-to-reach
6:02
terrain within the crater. The drones will reportedly feature technology that allows
6:06
information to be independently gathered. This is important because it will allow NASA to create
6:12
a real-time survey grid over the lunar South Pole, long before a crew sets foot on the moon.
6:17
Because what comes next is humans stepping into
6:19
one of the most unforgiving places in our neighborhood.
6:22
There have been plans for moon bases for decades now, although most of them fell more into the
6:27
realm of science fiction rather than reality. The talk about how to power such a huge undertaking
6:32
often leaned towards solar power. It would be sustainable, easy to maintain, and reliable.
6:37
There’s just one problem.
6:39
It wouldn’t work.
6:40
The lunar cycle only provides solar power for 50% of the month,
6:44
which plunges the moon into darkness for a 14-day night.
6:47
It’s not possible to create a level of storage that would carry you through half the month.
6:51
Battery backups would be incredibly expensive, hard to transport, and subject to failure.
6:56
And that would mean death. The Shackleton Crater is one of the coldest places
7:00
on the Moon, where the long lunar night can drop temperatures to around -400°F (-240°C) for over
7:06
336 hours. That’s similar to conditions on Pluto, the frozen dwarf planet at the edge of our solar
7:13
system. The goal is to create a climate-controlled moon base that can sustain human life long-term.
7:18
Human excursions outside would be limited and performed in climate-controlled suits.
7:23
But to do that, a new form of power will be needed.
7:26
The crown jewel of NASA’s Moon base plan is its Fission Surface Power project. Developed
7:31
in partnership with the Department of Energy, it would use a self-sustaining nuclear power system
7:36
capable of keeping the base running regardless of lunar night, solar storms,
7:40
or supply delays. The long-term goal is to be used as part of a Mars colony,
7:44
but it will make its debut on the moon. Fission has a lot of advantages. It’s
7:48
small and lightweight, and can be duplicated for future outposts.
7:53
If it works, the power problems will be solved.
7:55
This fission power system - still in active development and scheduled for later
7:59
deployment - is expected to generate up to 40 kilowatts of energy for the base. That’s roughly
8:04
equivalent to the electricity needed to power around 30 households on Earth for an entire year.
8:09
But those households aren’t operating on the Moon. They don’t have the same stakes attached to them.
8:14
On the moon, a power failure will be measured in hours before everyone on the base freezes
8:19
to death. There is no room for error here, and the technology is experimental. There will be
8:24
an inherent level of risk for anyone who joins this moon base project. But according to NASA,
8:28
it’s a risk worth taking. Because there’s a secret in the darkest recesses of the Shackleton Crater.
8:34
One that might be worth dying for.
8:36
During the early days of the space race, it was exactly that… a race.
8:40
The world was in the throes of the Cold War, with 2 superpowers jockeying for advantage.
8:45
No one was sure what would happen if the Soviets got to the moon first.
8:48
Would they declare it sovereign territory and threaten military assaults if anyone
8:52
else tried to land there? In the end, the US’ victory allowed for a future where
8:55
the final frontier would be neutral territory that anyone could explore.
9:00
Now, people are trying to keep it that way. The Artemis Accords were introduced in 2020
9:04
as a set of non-binding agreements shaping the future of space exploration under NASA’s Artemis
9:10
program. Today, 67 countries have signed on, including the United States, much of Europe,
9:15
and rising space powers like India, Japan, South Korea, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE.
9:20
But two major players are noticeably absent. Russia, and China, both long-standing space
9:25
rivals of the United States. And China, in particular, has made no secret of
9:29
its ambition to build a lunar base of its own. So is the US about to violate its own principles?
9:35
One of the foundations of the Artemis Accords is that all activities in space should be for
9:39
peaceful purposes. Nations should commit to transparency and a mutually beneficial sharing
9:44
of scientific information. This would seem to prevent national appropriation of the moon.
9:49
But the US has a loophole for that. Section 11 of the Artemis Accords
9:52
requires signatories to avoid any activity that could cause harmful interference with another
9:58
nation’s operations in space. On paper, that makes large scale development on the Moon difficult.
10:04
But further down, there’s a key caveat. The wording says “...the nature and existence
10:09
of safety zones is expected to change over time reflecting the status of the relevant operation”.
10:15
That gives the governments some leeway in creating so-called safety zones on the moon.
10:19
It just so happens that the US’ idea of what constitutes a safety zone is very large.
10:24
Critics of the current program point to the 1967 Outer Space Treaty, which was signed before
10:29
the US had won the space race. It essentially limited the moon and all other celestial bodies
10:35
to peaceful uses. This was signed by the USSR, at a time when the United States had the high ground,
10:40
and has been abided by ever since. China was added to the treaty in 1983. Of course, the fact that
10:46
only the US has ever landed people on the moon has largely rendered it moot. But that might be
10:51
changing. Critics of the US’ current plan say it stands the risk of creating a space arms race.
10:57
But it might be on the verge of already happening.
10:59
Because there’s something on the moon that might be the key to the entire solar system.
11:04
People are watching the current US mission with interest, because on the surface,
11:08
it has chosen one of the most difficult spots on the moon to stake its set up base.
11:12
Anything exposed to the depths of the crater will be flash-frozen.
11:15
That’s exactly why it has to be here.
11:18
Space might look peaceful at first glance, but it’s constantly in motion. The cosmos is always
11:23
carrying particles from other celestial bodies, with water ice being one of the most common.
11:28
It can drift in small amounts, or it can be carried frozen solid on comets. What form it takes
11:33
will depend on where it lands. Any that lands in the Shackleton Crater will remain frozen solid,
11:39
maybe for eons. It’s estimated that there might be over 100 million metric tons of
11:43
water ice locked down there in the crater. That’s more than 40,000 Olympic-sized swimming pools.
11:48
In the space race, that might be an ace card.
11:51
One of the biggest challenges of creating a moon base will be keeping everyone who lives
11:55
there alive. Food will likely be a combination of pre-packaged astronaut meals, delivered to the
12:00
base, and produce grown on the moon after gardens are started in the early stages.
12:04
But water will be harder to come by. The human body can go longer without food than
12:08
it can without water. Just a few days without the latter can mean death. If the US can find
12:14
a reliable source of water on the moon, it can make life on its moon base sustainable.
12:18
The US might have just unlocked the key to long-time life on the moon.
12:22
But that’s just a jumping-off point. NASA and many of its partners have
12:26
their sights set on Mars next, and for that, you’ll need energy.
12:30
The Shackleton Crater is surrounded by the Peaks of Eternal Light, the high ground of the crater’s
12:35
rim. They’re exposed to the sun for 90% of the lunar year. By setting up solar panels there,
12:40
the base would be equipped with a strong backup of energy that could be useful for
12:44
keeping the base running… or powering any vessel that lands on the satellite.
12:48
But NASA isn’t the only space agency with its eye on this incredibly valuable real estate.
12:53
The United States’ moonshot has a very ambitious end goal. The goal is to first
12:57
deliver the infrastructure through unmanned missions, then begin landing astronauts in 2028.
13:03
After that, a second phase follows: 27 launches, 24 lunar landings,
13:08
and more than 132,000 pounds (59,874 kg) of additional payload delivered to the surface.
13:13
From 2029 to 2032, the focus shifts again: building the infrastructure needed for sustained
13:19
human life on the Moon. During this time, early colonists would work alongside autonomous systems
13:24
to expand and maintain the base, along with its growing research networks.
13:28
It’s a wildly ambitious plan. One many experts say is overly rushed.
13:33
But the United States is trying to beat the clock.
13:35
That’s because they have a rival. The International Lunar Research Station,
13:39
or ILRS, is a joint China-Russia-led project aimed at creating a lunar base of its own.
13:45
It will be operated by the 2 great powers with a tense relationship with the United States,
13:50
alongside Pakistan, Egypt, Venezuela, South Africa, and Serbia. They've been planning it for a
13:55
long time. China has been doing unmanned missions on the moon since 2007. Russia’s Roscosmos agency
14:01
has been launching its own probes on the moon, albeit with a more erratic record.
14:05
But now they want to beat the US to the moon.
14:09
The ILRS timeline looks a lot like the American one at first, with the process starting in 2026.
14:14
That’s when joint operations will start, as cargo deliveries begin to the surface of the moon.
14:19
Once that is pulled off, the next phase will begin establishing facilities
14:23
both in-orbit and on the surface, as the base starts taking form.
14:27
This will take place from 2031 to 2035, putting it behind the US’ schedule. But no one is sure if
14:33
the US timeline can be pulled off. This base is expected to be utilized from 2036 onward.
14:38
It’s the location that worries the U.S.
14:41
China and Russia have been fairly cagey about the location planned for the base or
14:45
how large it will be. But the location is planned for the lunar south pole as well.
14:49
It’s not clear if the target is the Shackleton Crater,
14:51
but the location’s water-rich environment makes it a highly inviting target.
14:55
That means the US isn’t just in a moonshot to duplicate its past success.
14:59
It’s in a race to maintain its domination of space.
15:02
Not since Sputnik has the United States been behind in the Space Race,
15:06
and it’s never had to answer one big question.
15:08
What happens if someone else gets there first and claims their territory?
15:12
With resources on the moon looking inviting and Mars looming as the next great frontier,
15:17
a space war may become inevitable. That’s why the United States is looking at the moon in a way no
15:22
one can ignore. A nuclear-powered fortress right on top of the most resource-rich spot on the moon,
15:28
patrolled by the most advanced drones in the world, would certainly send that message.
15:33
Now it just has to deliver.
15:35
When NASA had to beat the Soviets to the moon, it relied on the best scientists who were willing to
15:39
work for the government. But now, it has access to a whole new pool of talent from the tech sector,
15:44
motivated to deliver on this impossible-seeming timeline.
15:47
They know that if they pull this off, the rewards are massive both personally and professionally.
15:52
But they also know that if they fail, there’s much more at stake than their stock holdings.
15:56
If the US loses the new space race, there might be no catching up this time.
16:00
Because this one isn’t just for bragging rights.
16:03
It’s for the keys to the cosmos.
16:06
The technology for spaceflight may be about to take a quantum leap.
16:09
Watch “20% Speed of Light!! NEW Light Engine Is INSANE!”
16:14
to find out what might be powering the future of space travel, or watch this video instead.
