Message #178024

[Wind]

LONDON, England (CNN) -- (First published October 5, 2007)

Fifty years ago this week, the Soviet Union launched Sputnik, the first man-made satellite, into orbit at the height of the Cold War and ushered in the space age.


Half a century and hundreds of billions of dollars later, the Cold War battle for the cosmos is history but new international rivalries over controlling the final frontier have emerged.
The U.S. plans a manned lunar mission by 2025, but they're not the only country with designs on the moon. After two successful manned-missions into space in 2005, the moon is in China's sights. Japan, the U.S.'s old rivals Russia, and India all have active space programs, with national pride, national security and even commercial gain all at stake.
"There's a mini-space race going on in Asia with Japan, China and even India claiming an interest in sending astronauts to the moon," Bill Read of the Royal Aeronautical Society told CNN.