There is sufficient light and the possibility of water ice is extremely high. A permanent relay station can be built, which has added a lot of points to the vicinity of Schalcton Crater, but this mainly solves the problems of long-term residence and scientific detection.

If there is only the value of scientific exploration in a certain place, people's enthusiasm for it will be greatly reduced, but if there are rich minerals there, it will be different.

Are there any abundant minerals near Schalkton Crater?

have!

But it is not near it, but it is located on a huge metal mine.

The name of this huge metal mine is the Antarctic-Aitken Basin.

The Aitken Basin at the South Pole of the Moon is about 2,500 kilometers in diameter and about 13 kilometers deep. It is one of the largest known impact craters in the entire solar system and is also recognized as the largest, oldest, and deepest basin on the Moon.

Internationally, impact craters with a diameter of more than 300 kilometers are usually called impact basins. This thing is 2,500 kilometers obviously conforms to the definition.

And the reason why it is called the Antarctic-Aitken Basin does not mean that this basin is located in Antarctica.

In fact, the main body of the basin is located on the back of the moon, with the southern edge at the south pole of the moon, while the northern edge extends to the Aitken crater near the equator, so its name is jointly named after two places at both ends of the edge of the basin - the Moon South Pole + the Aitken crater.

If you only look at the plane map on the back of the moon, you feel that it accounts for a quarter of the size of the back of the moon!

Let's put it this way, Chang'e-4 landed in the Von Carmen crater on the back of the moon, which is located inside the basin of Antarctica-Aitken.

Yutu No. 2 has been wandering around here.

The area near the Shackleton Crater where the outpost test compartment landed this time is also in this huge basin. The Shackleton Crater is a place with very few huge basins located on the front of the moon, so astronauts working at the outpost can still look up and see the earth.

After detection, there is a huge metal deposit under the basin, which may be the core of the meteorite metal that formed the basin in ancient times. The volume of this huge metal material is about five times that of the Hawaiian Island!

Moreover, people know that the moon contains rich mineral and energy resources. The development and utilization of lunar resources is one of the driving forces for humans to conduct lunar exploration, especially the nuclear fusion material helium-3, which has been for many years.

It is just because the earth blocks the solar wind that invades the front of the moon, the helium-3 content and concentration on the front of the moon are less than the unobstructed back of the moon.

In addition to the long polar day in the polar regions, sufficient sunlight will enrich a large amount of helium-3 around the Shackleton crater.

With this huge mine, the area near Shackleton Crater is worthy of the best lunar base establishment location.

In addition to researching value, the value of being a space construction center and a space transfer station has also emerged.

By the way, when it comes to research value, in addition to the low temperature environment at the bottom of the Shackleton crater crater, it is very ideal for infrared observation and can be used to build large infrared telescopes, this large basin located on the back of the moon can also carry out low-frequency radio astronomical observations.

In fact, astronomers have always dreamed of conducting low-frequency radio astronomical observations and exploring the mysteries of the universe more deeply.

However, due to the shielding effect of the earth's magnetic field and atmosphere, low-frequency radio astronomical observations cannot be carried out on the ground.

Low-frequency radio astronomical observations on the front of the moon are also disturbed by the earth's magnetic environment, and the observation effect is not good.

But the back of the moon is a rare and quiet place, blocking the interference of radio signals from the earth. It is an excellent area for conducting low-frequency radio astronomy observations. It can fill the gap in the low-frequency observation segment of the radio astronomy field, provide possibilities for the study of the sun, planets and extra-solar system objects, and also provide important information for studying the origin of stars and the evolution of nebula.

When the Chang'e-4 lander softly landed on the back of the moon, it then used the "mini equipment" it carried out lunar-based low-frequency radio astronomical observation research, and obtained a number of original and world-leading scientific achievements.

If you use a large antenna, the observation results will definitely be quite considerable.

Moreover, this resource not only has its own huge mining value, but since there are asteroids with mining value everywhere in space, building mining factories on the moon will provide experience in the future mining of other space resources.

Combined with various direct, indirect and regional advantages, there is basically no place on the moon that is suitable for establishing a lunar base than near the Shackleton Crater, so this place has long been targeted by capable countries on the earth, and some have even formulated corresponding plans.

For example, the Free Federation.

Its return to the moon project focuses on landings in the Antarctic, and through several manned landings and unmanned equipment landings, the most important candidate area is near the Shackleton Crater.

If the previous plan was followed, the time when the stars first manned landed on the moon was the time when the Free Federation officially began to build the lunar base, then a good place would definitely be occupied by the Free Federation.

But now, the plan is completely in chaos.

The first flight of the SLS Rocket of the Free Federation was delayed for a long time, but the first flight of the starry Long March 9 Rocket was greatly advanced. The first flight, which was supposed to be a small 10-year difference, came together, only a few months apart.

Moreover, the SLS rocket's first flight plan is very conservative, allowing the Orion spacecraft to circle the moon orbit for a few laps before returning. However, the first flight of the Long March 9 rocket was much bolder. Not only did the new manned spacecraft circle around the moon orbit, it also carried an outpost!

What's even more outrageous is that the outpost has landed successfully, and it has taken over the most important point of Shackleton Crater!

When the Free Federation received this news, it was shocked because Fanxing did not say the exact landing at the beginning, but just said that one of the several candidate landings in the Antarctic region was chosen.

After the outpost test compartment separated from the new manned spacecraft, it did not land as soon as possible, but instead turned several times in the lunar orbit, just to choose a suitable landing ground.

Unexpectedly, I hit the bull's-eye!

So the first idea that the Free Federal Aerospace Administration had learned was...

"what to do?"

Although the Free Federation said it would land there, it was also one of the candidate landing sites and had no right to accuse Fanxing.

Moreover, places on the moon cannot be obtained by talking. After all, there is a convention. If the moon does not allow territories to be seized, it is not allowed to claim sovereignty to a certain area.

But you say you are doing scientific research, that's OK.
Chapter completed!