The Inquiry

In September 2025 NASA plans to send a mission to space, landing people on the moon for the first time in over a century.

The mission has already been pushed back and is widely expected to be delayed again.

But America is not alone. Both China and India also have ambitions to land people on the lunar surface.

Who is next to walk on the moon is driven by geopolitics and a desire to harness the moon’s resources. Different countries, and even the private companies involved, all have different agendas. Who gets there first may even determine the political ideology of any future permanent human settlement.

Contributors: Oliver Morton, Senior Editor at The Economist and author of The Moon, A History for the Future Eric Berger, Senior Space Editor at Ars Technica Christopher Newman, Professor of space law and policy at Northumbria University Namrata Goswami, Professor at the Thunderbird School of Global Management at Arizona State University

Presenter: Tanya Beckett Producer: Louise Clarke Journalism Researcher: Matt Toulson Editor: Tara McDermott Technical Producer: Richard Hannaford Production Coordinator: Liam Morrey

Image: U.S. Flag On The Moon by Encyclopaedia Britannica via Getty Images