Preparations underway for moon landing

Written by Copernical Team Sunday, 19 December 2021 05:26

font size decrease font size increase font size
Print
Email

Write a comment

Beijing (XNA) Dec 20, 2021

China is making preparations for a moon landing that will place its astronauts on the lunar surface, according to a senior official at the China Manned Space Agency. Dong Nengli, head of the agency's technology bureau, said at a news conference at the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee in Beijing on Friday afternoon that space program planners and engineers are researching t

China is making preparations for a moon landing that will place its astronauts on the lunar surface, according to a senior official at the China Manned Space Agency.

Dong Nengli, head of the agency's technology bureau, said at a news conference at the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee in Beijing on Friday afternoon that space program planners and engineers are researching the road map and technologies for the manned moon landing.

"The results of their work will be seen in due course. Our astronauts will definitely touch down on the moon," he told reporters.

The news conference invited key figures from China's manned space programs, who are also members of the Communist Party of China, to share their stories and thoughts with journalists.

China's space authorities have a long-term plan to land astronauts on the moon and set up at least one scientific station there. They hope to use the manned missions to carry out scientific surveys and technological research, explore ways to develop lunar resources and strengthen the nation's space capabilities.

Zhou Yanfei, a deputy chief designer of China's manned space program, said in September 2020 that the country has the capacity to independently land astronauts on the moon because of its technologies, well-trained, innovative professionals and efficient research and management systems.

Toward that goal, Wang Yanan, editor-in-chief of Aerospace Knowledge magazine, said Chinese engineers need to build new, stronger carrier rockets and spacecraft before they arrange a moon-bound journey for Chinese astronauts.

"The nation's current rockets and manned spaceships can't send astronauts to the moon because they are not designed for such a mission. We need to design a new rocket, a new spacecraft, a lunar landing capsule and a new spacesuit fit for a moon walk. We also need to upgrade our ground support system that was designed for operations in low-Earth orbit rather than on the lunar surface," he explained.

Designers at the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology, the country's major maker of carrier rockets, are researching a super-heavy rocket that will be several times bigger and mightier than the Long March 5, now the biggest and strongest in China's Long March rocket family.

With a length of nearly 90 meters, the new rocket, which has yet to be named, will have a liftoff weight of about 2,000 metric tons and will be able to place a 25-ton spacecraft into an Earth-moon trajectory, designers said, adding that this new model will serve the manned lunar landing.

China has conducted three robotic landings on the moon, deployed two rovers and brought samples back to the Earth.

Source: Xinhua News Agency

Thanks for being here;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.

SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once

credit card or paypal

SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5 Billed Monthly

paypal only

Advanced analysis of Apollo sample illuminates Moon's evolution, cooling
Manoa HI (SPX) Dec 17, 2021
Sophisticated analysis of a rock sample taken from the Moon during the Apollo 17 mission revealed new information about the complex cooling and evolutionary history of the Moon. The findings, from University of Hawai'i (UH) at Manoa researchers, were published in Nature Communications. Apollo 17 astronauts collected the rock sample troctolite 76535 from the Moon's surface in 1972, and it remains one of the most scientifically valuable samples of the Moon due to its pristine nature. Further, the ro ... read more