MOSCOW (Reuters) -Russia and China are considering putting a nuclear power plant on the moon from 2033-35, Yuri Borisov, the head of Russia's space agency Roscosmos said on Tuesday, something he said could one day allow lunar settlements to be built. Borisov, a former deputy defence minister, said that Russia and China had been jointly working on a lunar programme and that Moscow was able to contribute with its expertise on "nuclear space energy". Solar panels would not be able to provide enough electricity to power future lunar settlements, he said, while nuclear power could. Its first moon mission in 47 years failed last year after Russia's Luna-25 spacecraft spun out of control and crashed. China said last month it aimed to put the first Chinese astronaut on the moon before 2030.

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Persons: Yuri Borisov, Roscosmos, Borisov, Russia's Luna, Vladimir Putin, ReutersEditing, Andrew Osborn Locations: MOSCOW, Russia, China, Moscow, Russian, United States