China is making significant strides toward a crewed lunar mission. As reported by the China Global Television Network, a state-run news agency, the Long March-10 rocket successfully launched with the Mengzhou spacecraft earlier this Wednesday.
This rocket is noteworthy due to its reusability, much like SpaceX’s Falcon 9. Following the launch, its booster stage returned safely to the ocean. Furthermore, this mission was the inaugural launch from a new pad. China’s aim is to send astronauts to the Moon by 2030.
According to Ars Technica, the Long March-10 is equipped with YF-100 engines that operate on a combination of liquid oxygen and kerosene, similar to the fuel used by SpaceX’s Merlin engines.
Although the Space Race with a focus on lunar exploration has quieted in recent years, it appears that interest is reigniting in Beijing.
To infinity and beyond (or at least the Moon)
Meanwhile, NASA has plans for a crew of four astronauts to orbit the Moon as part of the Artemis II mission, which is anticipated to launch “no earlier than March 2026.” This mission will utilize the Space Launch System (SLS).
The significant lunar landing exercise, known as Artemis III, is scheduled for 2028, two years ahead of China’s lunar ambitions.
The last time humans set foot on the lunar surface was in December 1972, during the Apollo 17 mission, when astronauts Eugene A. Cernan, Harrison H. Schmitt, and Ronald E. Evans explored the Moon.
It is hoped that by the start of the 2030s, either a Chinese or American team will have embarked on another crewed mission, guided by the recent rocket tests and planned explorations that reflect a passionate quest for knowledge about the Moon and its scientific possibilities.
