Crew landing roadmap

Having gathered rich experience through robotic adventures, China is moving progressively toward its goal of sending astronauts to the moon before the end of this decade, according to a key figure in this ambitious endeavor.

Zhou Jianping, chief designer of China's manned space program, told a crewed spaceflight forum in late November in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, that all of the preparatory research work for the nation's first manned lunar mission has finished, with essential technologies and implementation plans already in place.

Mission planners, scientists and engineers have started to design and build prototypes of necessary hardware, he said.

"Currently, prototypes of the Long March 10 heavy-lift carrier rocket, the Mengzhou crew spaceship, the Lanyue lunar lander, as well as the crew rover and other hardware needed in a manned mission to the moon are under research and development. Some of their components have been made and are being tested," Zhou said at the forum, hosted by the China Manned Space Agency.

China's roadmap for its first manned lunar expedition involves two Long March 10 launches from the Wenchang Space Launch Center in Hainan province to transport a Lanyue lunar lander and a Mengzhou manned spacecraft to lunar orbit.

After reaching their preset orbital positions, the Lanyue lander and the Mengzhou vessel will rendezvous and dock with each other. Two crew members will enter the lander, which will then undock and descend toward the lunar surface for an engine-assisted soft landing.