Russia will land its first cosmonauts on the moon in 2031, according to new reports.

The bold claim was made by a Russian rocket firm boss, who said that the landing would be preceded by a series of unmanned flights starting in 2026.

The news follows recent reports that Russian space agency Roscosmos plans to build a moon base to house 12 cosmonauts.

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Russian hopes to build a moon colony of 12 cosmonauts on the lunar surface. NASA scientists say it may be possible to build a permanent base (illustrated) housing 10 people within the next five to seven years for around $10 billion

COULD MINING THE MOON MAKE LIVING THERE AFFORDABLE? A recent study commissioned by Nasa has estimated the cost of sending humans back to the moon could be reduced by 90 per cent by partnering with private companies and mining for lunar resources. The study, conducted by the National Space Society and the Space Frontier Foundation, also found permanent lunar base could be established for around $38 billion (£24 billion). The authors insist opening up lunar exploration to commercial partners could help to dramatically drive down the costs. The report envisions building an industrial base on the moon that mines water from the lunar soil, processing it to hydrogen that can then be used to fuel spacecraft. It says the base, which would house four astronauts, could provide around 200 megatons of propellant within 12 years of the initial landings. Advertisement

The ambitious moon landing mission will kick off in 2026 with an unmanned flight to the moon followed by a take-off and landing module being launched into the moon's orbit in 2027, RSC Energia CEO Vladimir Solntsev told Russian news agency TASS.

In 2029, a new spacecraft named Federation will fly to the moon's orbit, he added.

'In the 2030s, we set the task of a manned flight to the moon and in 2031 we plan landing on the moon,' Mr Solntsev told TASS.

Russia is inviting Esa and Nasa to jointly develop a module for landing on the moon, Mr Solntsev said.

So far, only Nasa has managed to land humans on the moon.

During the course of the Apollo missions, 12 astronauts set foot on the lunar surface between 1969 and 1972.

In September, Russian space agency Roscosmos revealed that it had started a series of simulations in preparation for the country's plans to permanently station 12 cosmonauts on the lunar surface.

Researchers are using a unique platform simulating the moon's gravity, built by RSC Energia in the early 1970s.

The test will determine how easy it would be for cosmonauts to walk on the lunar surface and get out of a rover vehicle.

'We conduct these experiments in order to see if there's anything we can recommend to the system developers in terms of streamlining work on the moon,' said Alexander Polishchuk, company's deputy head of research in a statement.

'After all, the moon is not an easy place to walk in a spacesuit - it will require special means of transportation or rovers.'

The new simulation experiments bring the nation a step towards reaching its aim of making a permanent base for astronauts on the moon.

A human moon landing was predicted for 2030 - a year earlier than the most recent estimate.

In the 1960s the Soviets began developing their own designs for a manned mission to land on the moon with its N1-L3 Lunar Lander (left). However, the project never flew and was eventually cancelled. Earlier this year the European Space Agency said it planned to work with Russia on its mission to land on the moon (right)

Russia's plan to conquer the moon has started to take shape. The agency has started a series of experiments to simulate the conditions astronauts, according to the nation's space agency Roscosmos

'Their goal is to get acquainted with the work of human conditions on the moon, and to evaluate the human potential,' said Alexander Kaleri, from RSC Energia.

After getting a clear view of the big picture, experts will move on to logistics and streamlining before starting on designs for permanent lunar bases, rovers, runway facilities, and other important aspects of the mission.

The moon base will be used for research and mining of precious minerals - but some suggest it may also have a military purpose.

At first the moon base will be manned by no more than four people, with this number later rising to between 10 and 12 people.

The base will be powered by a sub-surface energy station, near one of the moon's poles.

A fallout shelter will also be installed underground, helping to shield the crew from both radiation and any nuclear attacks.

Overall, Russia plans to complete the moon mission using six separate launches of the upcoming Angara rocket.

Each launch will send a new module to the moon, creating the base piece by piece, in a similar way to how the ISS was put together.

Assembly of the moon base is expected to take more than ten years.

The launch of Angara-A5 heavy booster at Plesetsk Cosmodrome on December 23, 2014 in Arkhangelsk Region, Russia. Several launches of this rocket will help Russia build a manned base on the moon

A group of Nasa scientists recently calculated it may be possible to return to the surface of the moon within the next five to seven years for a total cost of just $10 billion (£6.4 billion).

Indeed, they say it may be possible to build a base that can support up to 10 astronauts for more than a year by 2022 as many of the technologies needed already exist today.

Earlier this year, Russian company Energia last month revealed draft plans for an 11.4 tonne reusable spacecraft that will take cargo and cosmonauts onto the lunar surface within five days.

The 'Ryvok' project was announced in May at the Human Space Exploration international conference in Korolev, near Moscow.

The shuttle will be sent on the ISS by Soyuz ships and Angara rockets.

Prior to the lunar mission, another launch to the space station would send an 'accelerator block' to act as fuel for Ryvok.

This makes the flight dramatically cheaper as instead of a needing a rocket, all that could be needed is a spacecraft and fuel to lift passengers to low-Earth orbit.

When returning from the near-moon orbit, Ryvok would open an 'umbrella' of 55 square meters for braking in the Earth atmosphere.