China's first manned lunar expedition will involve two Long March 10 rockets, which will lift off from the Wenchang Space Launch Center in Hainan province to transport mission components to the moon's orbit, according to a key project leader.
Wang Xiang, deputy chief planner of China's manned space program and lead architect of the nation's manned lunar exploration project, said the rockets will deploy the Lanyue lunar lander and the Mengzhou crewed spaceship into the lunar orbit.
After reaching their preset orbital positions, the lander and the spaceship will rendezvous and dock. Two crewmembers will enter the lander, which will then undock and descend to the lunar surface for an engine-assisted soft landing. A third astronaut will stay inside the Mengzhou spaceship to support the landing crew.
On the moon, the two astronauts will drive a Tansuo rover to carry out scientific tasks and collect samples. Upon completion of their assignments, they will return to the Lanyue module, which will fly them back to their spaceship waiting in lunar orbit.
In the final stage, the astronauts will carry the samples into the Mengzhou spaceship, which will then undock and carry the crew back to Earth.
Wang revealed details of the planned mission at the 7th Manned Space Symposium, which concluded in Beijing on Sunday.
He emphasized that China's lunar exploration program is both a national strategic undertaking and a contribution to the peaceful exploration and use of outer space. China stands ready to work with all countries to tackle challenges and jointly push forward the frontiers of human knowledge, he said.
Decades of government support and investment, as well as relentless efforts made by scientists and engineers, have helped China build a solid foundation for a manned lunar mission, covering rockets, spacecraft, launch sites, telemetry and communications, space science and in-space operations, Wang noted.
The nation has secured full independence in core technologies and capabilities, and has built a mature system of research and development, testing, launch and in-orbit operations, he said.
Speaking to China National Radio on the sidelines of the symposium, Wang said: "It is notable that we will deploy a rover on our first crewed lunar landing mission. This will substantially expand our capability to conduct a wide range of operations on the lunar surface and boost operational flexibility."
He underscored that the safety of astronauts is the highest priority. "Everything we plan to carry out on the moon will first be tested in near-Earth orbit, and all manned missions will first be validated through unmanned tests," Wang said.
