China backs away from manned lunar mission plans
Posted: Tue, May 18, 2004, 1:54 PM ET (1754 GMT)
China will concentrate on developing a space station and has no plans to send humans to the Moon, a leading Chinese space official said this week. Wang Yongzhi, chief designer of China's manned spaceflight program, said Sunday that the country will focus on developing its own space station, a project that will take 15 years to complete. Wang said that while China will proceed with a series of robotic lunar missions, there are no plans to mount human missions to the Moon "due to financial reasons." Chinese officials have sent mixed messages about manned lunar mission plans, with a concensus emerging that such missions would likely not be attempted until at least 2020. He also disclosed that China has spent about $2.2 billion on its manned space program since its inception in 1993, a figure that the Chinese Xinhua news service described as being "far lesser than previously expected."
China will concentrate on developing a space station and has no plans to send humans to the Moon, a leading Chinese space official said this week. Wang Yongzhi, chief designer of China's manned spaceflight program, said Sunday that the country will focus on developing its own space station, a project that will take 15 years to complete. Wang said that while China will proceed with a series of robotic lunar missions, there are no plans to mount human missions to the Moon "due to financial reasons." Chinese officials have sent mixed messages about manned lunar mission plans, with a concensus emerging that such missions would likely not be attempted until at least 2020. He also disclosed that China has spent about $2.2 billion on its manned space program since its inception in 1993, a figure that the Chinese Xinhua news service described as being "far lesser than previously expected."
Related Links:
| <<previous article | next article>> |
|
news in brief
|
|
|
|
news links
|
|
Tuesday, February 25
Clemson alumnae named acting associate NASA Administrator
WHNS-TV Greenville, SC — 5:14 am ET (1014 GMT) Days away from landing attempt, Blue Ghost spacecraft shares stunning close-ups of the moon
CNN — 4:53 am ET (0953 GMT) Eutelsat claims world’s first successful 5G NTN trial
Telecoms.com — 4:53 am ET (0953 GMT) Tuberville: ‘No doubt’ Trump still moving SPACECOM to Huntsville
1819 News — 4:52 am ET (0952 GMT) US speeds up integration of partners like NZ into military space operations
Radio New Zealand — 4:52 am ET (0952 GMT) |
