China publicly discloses plan for a lunar landing within three years
The plan does not include a mission similar to Apollo 8 or Artemis II.
The plan does not include a mission similar to Apollo 8 or Artemis II.
The short version
- Chinese space officials confirmed this weekend that the Asian nation plans to land its astronauts on the Moon within three years.
- However, lacking a rocket as powerful as the Saturn V vehicle, the crew and lunar lander will launch separately to the Moon.
- Notably, the plan (for now, at least) omits a mission similar to Apollo 8 or Artemis II, which involved a crew flying out to the Moon and either entering orbit or passing close by before returning to Earth.
What happened
The Mengzhou vehicle should still get a workout closer to Earth with humans on board as part of missions carrying astronauts to Tiangong, China’s space station in low-Earth orbit. NASA has set a target of landing humans on the Moon by 2028, a year or so ahead of China.
Why it matters
The United States, which has been working on the Space Launch System rocket for 15 years and the Orion spacecraft even longer, has a more established rocket and crew vehicle.
Summary by Nerd News Network. Read the full article at Ars Technica via the links above and below.