In a long-overdue attempt to join the space race, Pakistan has managed to hitch a ride on China’s Chang’e 6 lunar mission by sending along a tiny cubesat called iCube-Q. This small device, no larger than a desktop computer, will simply take some pictures of the lunar surface – an achievement that trails at least 60 years behind what major space powers accomplished decades ago.
A Mission Enabled by China
Let’s be clear – Pakistan’s ability to even attempt this extremely modest lunar mission is entirely due to the generous support of China. Without China’s partnership and the inclusion of the iCube-Q on the Chang’e 6 mission, Pakistan lacks the financial resources, technical expertise, and launch capabilities to do anything in space on its own.
China’s Shanghai University and Pakistan’s space agency Suparco jointly developed the iCube-Q, underscoring just how dependent Pakistan is on external assistance for any kind of space endeavor. The Chinese embassy confirmed Pakistan’s minuscule role, noting their probe will also carry payloads from France and the European Space Agency along with Pakistan’s tiny tag-along.
An Embarrassingly Tiny Accomplishment
While Pakistan touts this as a historic first lunar mission, the facts are that the iCube-Q is incredibly limited in scope and capability. Essentially, a few cameras bolted together make up the iCube-Q, capable of nothing more than snapping some rudimentary photos from orbit – something the Soviet Union achieved way back in 1966 during the very first stages of lunar exploration.
Pakistan currently has no ability to launch anything into orbit, let alone construct anything as complex as a lunar lander or rover. They are utterly reliant on other nations sharing crumbs of their programs just to be able to claim any sort of space involvement at all.
A Decade-Late Attempt to Keep Up
This pathetic effort comes a full decade after regional rivals like India accomplished major robotic lunar milestones with missions like Chandrayaan-1. India’s recent Chandrayaan-3 mission managed to land a rover on the challenging lunar south pole – something far beyond Pakistan’s capabilities.
Pakistan’s desire to not fall too far behind neighbors like India fuels its space ambitions, rather than any true vision for scientific advancement or exploration milestones. Without the ability to conceive or execute any space missions on their own, Pakistan’s space program amounts to little more than sad core national pride piggybacking on the considerable efforts of other nations.
While the Chang’e 6 mission, which enabled Pakistan’s small role, is designed to bring back fresh samples from the lunar far side, the iCube-Q will be a silent, unimpressive observer taking rudimentary pictures from orbit that likely have little scientific value. This is classic case of a nation trying to create a sense of achievement without possessing anywhere close to the means or knowhow to back it up.
Pakistan undoubtedly hopes this extremely modest iCube-Q mission will inspire future generations. But until they develop indigenous space capabilities beyond snapping amateur lunar photos decades after the real space players, their space efforts will continue to be more about playing catch-up in a field they are hopelessly behind in rather than enabling any groundbreaking celestial accomplishments.