Space/Science — HabitableZone

Space/Science » in reply to China Cancels Moon Plans to Focus on Space Station

Another moron-reporter

The Chinese official said no such thing.

There have never been 'official man-on-the-Moon plans' in China, since such a step is at least 10-15 years off.

The unmanned lunar program will continue, with an orbiter in Dec 2006, followed by landers and rovers and samplers. This is all official.

Shenzhou will keep flying in low earth orbit until the space station is deployed, sometime in the next fifteen years and probably much sooner.

The new booster family 'Long March 5", and the heavy-duty LM 5-500 especially, will make these later missions possible.

Super-Shenzhou, using a LM 5-500 booster, can perform manned lunar orbital missions in the second half of the 2010's, if Beijing deems it worthwhile in terms of world technology status. Such a vehicle could also visit other interesting regions of Earth-moon space including various lagrangian points.

A manned lunar landing is a big step beyond THAt capability, and decisions to build the boosters and spacecraft for it don't have to made for years yet.

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