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Driven by the cold war between China and the United States, the Second Age of Discovery catalyzed the colonization of the Moon in earnest. As East and West jostled for geopolitical power on Earth, space evolved into a new theater of competition: one where nations could vie for prestige while identifying and extracting the resources of the solar system to support the social systems they'd developed on Earth.
It was the United States' Artemis 3 mission in 2024 that established the first temporary human settlement at Shackleton crater and created what would become the most important early Lunar space port with the construction of the Gateway station in orbit. Early colonization efforts were slow, and the Lunar population wouldn't eclipse 100 until 2029. By early 2030, Shackleton base had become home to a permanent human population of 80 colonists and America's second base, Kennedy, had been established in the Ocean of Storms.
During this period, the Chinese space agency struggled to catch up to the American's lead. Recognizing the strategic necessity of countering American dominance of the Moon, China's first manned mission to the Moon successfully touched down on the lunar surface in 2032 in the Sea of Tranquility. This was followed by the swift construction of a base at the lunar north pole with a permanent population of fewer than 20.
China's touchdown on the lunar surface swelled the already burning fire of the space race into an inferno. Suddenly every major space agency received massive increases in funding and lunar landings and bases were planned by the ESA, JAXA, and even powerful private corporations. Though this boom did see the establishment of several new bases by the US, Europe, Japan, and China, it lacked any real justification besides strengthening national pride and geopolitical power on the international stage. The scientific advancements provided by space agencies through their colonization and exploratory missions only barely managed to prop up the expensive and dependent archipelagoes of lunar bases; however, the invention of nuclear fusion catalyzed a complete overhaul of lunar society.
With the invention of nuclear fusion in 2040, the strategic value of the Moon expanded from water and national pride to include the vast swathes of helium-3 deposited on its surface. Almost over night shiploads of colonists swarmed the Moon. The mining industry gave life to the fledgling lunar economy, and almost all industries grew to support it in some way. Botanists established domed gardens to feed to growing population of miners, engineers arrived to help design and construct the machinery necessary to mine, and manufacturers established automated production facilities to create and sell mining equipment too heavy or delicate to be imported from Earth. Even the very structure of the lunar economy was augmented to service the miners. Bases at the poles worked to extract and purify water to ship toward the various Mare in the interior. Through this, the lunar colonies took their first tentative steps toward self-sufficiency.
Interestingly, the political layout of the Moon began to take shape during this period. While initial missions hoped to establish bases near sources of water, it soon became clear that the US had established a sort of sovereignty around the South pole, motivating China to target the North pole for colonization. While the US security umbrella in the South allowed other allied nations to establish bases there, the equatorial regions became more of a battle ground. Especially after the invention or nuclear fusion, nations and corporations scrambled to stake their claim to the large swathes of helium-3 around the equator and in the large Mare on the near-side.
By 2050, the Moon housed a permanent population of roughly 15,000 multinational residents and served as a crucial energy supplier and vital transportation hub for missions to Mars and elsewhere in the solar system.

www.deviantart.com/charles-por…

Description
Driven by the cold war between China and the United States, the Second Age of Discovery catalyzed the colonization of the Moon in earnest. As East and West jostled for geopolitical power on Earth, space evolved into a new theater of competition: one where nations could vie for prestige while identifying and extracting the resources of the solar system to support the social systems they'd developed on Earth.
It was the United States' Artemis 3 mission in 2024 that established the first temporary human settlement at Shackleton crater and created what would become the most important early Lunar space port with the construction of the Gateway station in orbit. Early colonization efforts were slow, and the Lunar population wouldn't eclipse 100 until 2029. By early 2030, Shackleton base had become home to a permanent human population of 80 colonists and America's second base, Kennedy, had been established in the Ocean of Storms.
During this period, the Chinese space agency struggled to catch up to the American's lead. Recognizing the strategic necessity of countering American dominance of the Moon, China's first manned mission to the Moon successfully touched down on the lunar surface in 2032 in the Sea of Tranquility. This was followed by the swift construction of a base at the lunar north pole with a permanent population of fewer than 20.
China's touchdown on the lunar surface swelled the already burning fire of the space race into an inferno. Suddenly every major space agency received massive increases in funding and lunar landings and bases were planned by the ESA, JAXA, and even powerful private corporations. Though this boom did see the establishment of several new bases by the US, Europe, Japan, and China, it lacked any real justification besides strengthening national pride and geopolitical power on the international stage. The scientific advancements provided by space agencies through their colonization and exploratory missions only barely managed to prop up the expensive and dependent archipelagoes of lunar bases; however, the invention of nuclear fusion catalyzed a complete overhaul of lunar society.
With the invention of nuclear fusion in 2040, the strategic value of the Moon expanded from water and national pride to include the vast swathes of helium-3 deposited on its surface. Almost over night shiploads of colonists swarmed the Moon. The mining industry gave life to the fledgling lunar economy, and almost all industries grew to support it in some way. Botanists established domed gardens to feed to growing population of miners, engineers arrived to help design and construct the machinery necessary to mine, and manufacturers established automated production facilities to create and sell mining equipment too heavy or delicate to be imported from Earth. Even the very structure of the lunar economy was augmented to service the miners. Bases at the poles worked to extract and purify water to ship toward the various Mare in the interior. Through this, the lunar colonies took their first tentative steps toward self-sufficiency.
Interestingly, the political layout of the Moon began to take shape during this period. While initial missions hoped to establish bases near sources of water, it soon became clear that the US had established a sort of sovereignty around the South pole, motivating China to target the North pole for colonization. While the US security umbrella in the South allowed other allied nations to establish bases there, the equatorial regions became more of a battle ground. Especially after the invention or nuclear fusion, nations and corporations scrambled to stake their claim to the large swathes of helium-3 around the equator and in the large Mare on the near-side.
By 2050, the Moon housed a permanent population of roughly 15,000 multinational residents and served as a crucial energy supplier and vital transportation hub for missions to Mars and elsewhere in the solar system.

www.deviantart.com/charles-por…