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Context

• China has now built an artificial moon facility that will simulate lunar conditions and the environment for scientists to test new tech and future missions.

About the project

Features in the Research Facility

• This “first of its kind in the world”, facility is located in the eastern city of Xuzhou, in Jiangsu province.
• It can replicate low gravity environments for as long as one wants, making China less dependent on zero-gravity planes to train astronauts, and environments to test new rovers and technologies.
• The facility, will use powerful magnetic fields inside a 2-foot-diameter (60 centimeters) vacuum chamber to make gravity disappear.

The mini-moon

• The mini-moon is about two feet in diameter and the artificial surface has been made with rocks and dust that are as light as those on the moon.
• Note: The gravity on the Moon is not zero, it is one-sixth as powerful as the gravity on Earth due to the magnetic field.

Significance

• This project will aid scientists in resolving technical challenges and determining whether certain buildings may survive on the surface of the moon. It will also aid in the evaluation of the feasibility of human settlement on the moon.

https://www.indiatoday.in/science/story/china-artificial-moon-lunar-mission-cnsa-nasa-artemis-isro-1901002-2022-01-17

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