India’s First-Ever Moon Mission to Launch for Lunar South Pole in March 2018.

February 2, 2018 Albuquerque, New Mexico - The South Pole on our moon contains areas that never have darkness in lunar southern summers. For example, there is a hill in Shackleton crater that gets sunshine non-stop, “the most illuminated place on the moon,” by some estimates. That means permanent solar energy and those all-sun places are logical sites for moon bases. Who gets there and builds first is the question. China has plans to build a base in a year or two. But exploring the South Pole first could be India's claim to fame.