GETTY ESA wants to colonise the moon

The ESA says that it wants to set up a lunar base by 2030, but in the decade prior to this, it will send astronauts back and forth for testing. However, it said in a statement that it won’t be competing with Nasa, which has previously stated that it wants to colonise the planet, but envisions “international cooperation and commercial participation.”

Getty How the moonbase may look

The ESA said: “This return to the Moon envisions a series of human missions starting in the early 2020s that would see astronauts interact with robots on the lunar surface from orbit. Robots will land first, paving the way for human explorers. "Eventually we will see a sustained infrastructure for research and exploration where humans will live and work for prolonged periods.

Getty The ESA wants to colonise the moon

"Here we will put into practice the lessons of the International Space Station, to establish a facility akin to those we see in Antarctica today. In the future the moon can become a place where the nations of the world work together." The mission will begin in 2020 when the ESA sends the Russian Luna 27 to the south pole of the moon to collect soil samples for testing. The long-term objective is to provide scientists with a better understanding of lunar resources such as frozen ice water and they hope to explore the parts of the moon that have so far been remained a mystery to man.