China plans ‘all-seeing’ surveillance camera network on moon to secure its lunar base

China has been planning to set up an all-seeing surveillance system on the moon in the wake of the success of the massive video surveillance network of the country, known as Skynet.

According to Chinese officials, the new system will strengthen the security of the upcoming lunar base, will secure assets and track foreign visitors to the moon.

The agencies, planning the project, said that the lessons learnt from Skynet will help them build and operate the optical surveillance system for the lunar research station of China.

Add WION as a Preferred Source

Skynet or Tianwang is the largest video surveillance network in the world, which includes more than 600 million cameras. In this system, one camera monitors every two adult Chinese citizens and virtually covers every corner of the country.

Also Read:China to raise defence spending as Beijing adopts tougher language against Taiwan

“The construction and operation of the optical surveillance system for the (International) Lunar Research Station can draw on the successful experience … of China’s Skynet project,” said the Lunar Exploration and Space Engineering Centre of the China National Space Administration (CNSA), in a paper published in the Chinese academic journal Acta Optica Sinica on February 22.

The co-authoring organisations like the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Zhejiang University and the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation are the main agencies which manage and execute the lunar programme of China and play an important role in establishing technical standards.

All about the lunar version of Skynet

The lunar version of China's Skynet will include a large number of high-performance security cameras that operate in infrared zones or visible light.

These cameras, which generally weigh only 100 grammes (3½ oz) each, will be fitted with AI-driven chips “capable of identifying, locating, tracking and aiming at suspicious targets independently”, as per the paper.

It said that if “abnormalities” get detected in the system, it will “promptly generate alarm signals and initiate appropriate response measures”. The paper did not mention what kind of measures will be adopted.

Watch:China raises defence spending by 7.1 percent, to improve childbirth policies

The cameras, in batches, will land on the moon and will get automatically connected with each other to ensure seamless coverage of the station area, as per the paper.

The proposed lunar research station, which has a radius of more than 6km (3.7 miles), is a large complex and will house a communication hub, power station, command centre, scientific facilities and a group of robots.

The station will have its own satellites for navigation, remote sensing and communication.

(With inputs from agencies)