2024 is the year U.S. astronauts will return to the lunar surface on the Artemis III mission, months after the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi proudly declared that “India is on the Moon” following the successful landing of a rover on its southern region. China aims to have its own astronauts land on the Moon by 2030 following a string of robotic landing successes in the last few years and the completion of its space station in Earth orbit. Meanwhile, Japan, Europe, and Canada are jointly developing the Lunar Gateway with the United States to place a space station in orbit around the Moon.

As the Moon looks set to get busier over the next few years, it’s not just scientific curiosity we are collectively are taking to the Moon. As the two leading space powers, the United States and China present competing visions of lunar explorations that reflect their often different political priorities, economic interests, and legal traditions. Yet, is there scope for compromise and understanding as the Moon becomes the scene for scientific, economic, political, and legal interests? At stake are key questions on how states can and should access the Moon and share its benefits responsibly, sustainably, and equitably.

Join the University of Leicester and the Institute for Space’s resident space experts to discuss the importance of lunar exploration and what it means in social, political, and scientific terms, and why lunar exploration matters here on Earth. This panel as part of the University’s Humanising Space project will tackle such questions head-on and take questions from the audience.

Panellists:

Professor Martin Barstow

Professor Martin Barstow joined the University of Leicester in 1979 becoming Professor of Astrophysics & Space Science (2003) Head of Physics & Astronomy (2005-09) Pro-Vice Chancellor/Head of Science & Engineering (2009-16) and Pro-Vice Chancellor/Director of the Leicester Institute of Space & Earth Observation (2016-19). He has been involved in many space missions including Voyager ROSAT EUVE FUSE Hubble and ESA’s Gaia astrometry mission. In 2019 he chaired the programme committee of the UK Space Conference. He was appointed Chair of the UK Space Agency Science Programme Advisory Committee in July 2019.

Dr Rossana Deplano

Dr Rossana Deplano is an Associate Professor at the Leicester Law School and Co-Director of the Centre for European Law and Internationalisation. She holds an LLB and LLM from the University of Cagliari (Italy), a PhD from Brunel University London and a PhD from the University of Nottingham. Her research interests fall within the area of public international law, in particular international space law, United Nations law and general theory of international law.

Dr Francesca Faedi

Francesca Faedi is Lecturer at the University of Leicester School of Business in Business and the Space Economy. She has a scientific background and a PhD in Astrophysics from UoL and more than 10 years of academic research astrophysics. She has a cross-disciplinary expertise from research to Innovation and business development in the Space sector, and published more than 80 refereed papers, refereed papers for Nature, Science and other journals, collaborated nationally and internationally with many academics, including Prof. Queloz, Nobel laureate for Physics 2019. Francesca has the title of 'Knight of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic' and serves on the boards of Fondazione Occhialini, and the MCAA Italy Chapter and is a member of the Women in Aerospace (WIA-E) Europe. Recently, she became a STEM ambassador in the UK.

Dr Bleddyn Bowen

Dr Bleddyn Bowen is Associate Professor of International Relations at the University of Leicester and an internationally recognised expert on astropolitics, the military uses of outer space and space policy. He is the author of two books: Original Sin: Power, Technology and War in Outer Space (Hurst, 2022) and War in Space: Strategy, Spacepower, Geopolitics (Edinburgh University Press, 2020). He has briefed practitioner communities in Europe and the United States, including the UK Prime Minister’s Policy Unit, the UK Ministry of Defence, the UK Space Agency, the US National Space Council, the Pentagon, and the European Space Agency. He is also the founder and Co-Convenor of the Astropolitics Working Group at the British International Studies Association. He is also an Associate Fellow of the Royal United Services Institute. At the University of Leicester, Bleddyn teaches undergraduate and postgraduate modules on astropolitics and space security, and supervises doctoral research on space policy, security, strategy, and technology.

Join us in Bennett Lecture Theatre 2 or online (Microsoft Teams link will be sent via email after you have booked your FREE ticket).