NASA Administrator Nelson: We’ll Keep China from Claiming Valuable Part of Moon by Getting There First

On Tuesday’s broadcast of CNBC’s “The News with Shepard Smith,” NASA Administrator Bill Nelson raised concerns that China will claim the south pole of the moon where it is believed there’s water that can supply rocket fuel and said that we won’t allow China to do this “because we’re going to get there first.”

Nelson stated, “Well, China is very nontransparent. They don’t share with anybody. I’ve given them plenty of opportunities. I’ve talked to their ambassador and said, you’ve returned a sample from the moon. We shared that with the international community a half-century ago. Why don’t you share it? Not doing it. So, the long and short of it is, the value we think of the moon is the south pole. That’s where we think water is, and if you have water, you have rocket fuel.”

Host Shepard Smith then asked, “And you’re concerned they may claim that south pole and not let us go there?”

Nelson responded, “And is it beyond the realm of possibility that they land and they say, okay, this is our exclusive area, you stay out?”

Smith then asked, “You think they will?”

Nelson answered, “Well, we’re not going to let them because we’re going to get there first.”

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