SPI Professor, Dr. Henry Hertzfeld, was quoted in a U.S. News & World Report article regarding recent lunar exploration efforts by India and Russia.
India’s Chandrayaan-3 successfully landed on the surface of the Moon, became the fourth nation to do so, and was the first to land near the lunar south pole.
Days prior, Russia’s Luna 25 mission also attempted to land near the lunar south pole, but experienced an anomaly and crashed.
The article analyzes the current state of the Russian space program, contrasts it with India’s recent successes, and extrapolates these lunar missions into the context of larger geopolitical trends.
“It comes at an awkward time for them with India being successful a few days later, … But I think given their history, given the history of the Soviet Union – they’ve landed on the moon before – it wouldn’t surprise me if they came back again at some point with another attempt.”
Dr. Henry Hertzfeld
