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HELSINKI – China is formalizing its plans to land a pair of astronauts on the moon before the decade is out.
Zhang Hailian, deputy chief designer of the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA), presented a preliminary plan to put astronauts on the moon for a short period to conduct science missions and collect samples, at the 9th China (International) Commercial Space Forum. In Wuhan, Hubei Province, July 12.
The mission envisions launching a manned spacecraft and landers separately on a pair of Long March 10 rockets under development. The crew spacecraft and lander stack will meet in lunar orbit before attempting a lunar landing.
The new generation spacecraft has a mass of 26 tons and is capable of flying in deep space and high-speed re-entry into the atmosphere. China has already conducted a large-scale demonstration flight test of a version of a new generation spacecraft in a relatively high orbit.
The landing part will consist of a descent vehicle and a propellant stage with a total mass of about 26 tons. The thrust stage will be used to enter lunar orbit and descend toward the lunar surface. The probe will be able to land on the lunar surface and return astronauts to lunar orbit.
The probe will be equipped with four 7500N variable thrusters. The mission is very sensitive to collective constraints, Zhang said, which means lightweight design and integrated designs are essential. “We also need to use advanced materials and structures to improve structural efficiency and strictly control weight,” Zhang said.
The lunar module will also be part of the mission profile. It will have a mass of 200 kilograms, accommodate two astronauts and have a range of 10 kilometers.
Zhang said that a space suit for lunar surface operations is being developed with a working time of at least eight hours. It will help astronauts walk, climb, drive and operate machinery on the moon.
Long March 10 will be a three-stage rocket with three cores five meters in diameter in its first stage. It will be able to send 27 tons of payload to the translunar injection.
The test launch of the Long March 10A—a two-stage low-Earth orbit version of the larger rocket—is set for 2027. CASC recently reported progress on testing the rocket’s 130-tonne liquid oxygen and kerosene engines.
CMSA Plus July 17 announce Call for proposals for scientific payloads to travel on the lunar lander. The call is open to research institutions, universities and high-tech enterprises. Proposals should focus on areas of study including lunar geology, physics, observation, space life sciences, and in-situ resource use.
The new details follow an announcement by CMSA in May that China plans to land its astronauts on the Moon for the first time by 2030.
In the past two years, top lunar scientists have claimed to state media that China will have the capabilities to land a crew on the Moon before the end of the decade. China has long been working on various components required for manned lunar missions. These include a new spacecraft for the crew, new launchers and a lunar lander.
The mission is meant to be more than a flags and footprints campaign. China plans to build a lunar base in the 2030s known as the International Lunar Research Station (ILRS).
China is planning a series of robotic missions during the 2020s as precursors to the ILRS. These include the 2026 Chang’e-7 orbiter, lander, rover and “small flying detector” lunar south pole mission. Chang’e-8, currently scheduled for launch around 2028, will serve as an on-site resource utilization and 3D printing technology test mission.
China’s space activities have expanded dramatically in recent years. The country has greatly increased the launch rate and completed a domestic GNSS system and manned space station.
The white paper published in January 2022 stated that China “will continue studies and research on the plan for human landing on the moon… and research key technologies to lay the foundation for lunar space exploration and development.”
Future plans include an ILRS and an unprecedented Mars sample return mission. However, the country is currently facing economic challenges that could dampen the growth on which these plans are based. NASA’s Mars sample return plans are currently facing scrutiny and concern about the status and cost of the mission.
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