Editing Chinese space program (section)

===Lunar exploration===
{{Main|Chinese Lunar Exploration Program}}

[[File:Chang'e-3 lunar landing site.jpg|thumb|Annotated image of the approximate landing site of the Chinese Chang'e-3 lander. It was launched at 17:30 UTC on 1 December 2013 and reached the Moon's surface on 14 December 2013. The lunar coordinates are: 44.12°N 19.51°W.]]
[[File:ChangE-4 - PCAM (51216550288).png|thumb|alt=Chang'e 4 lander on the far side of the Moon|[[Chang'e 4]] lander on the far side of the Moon]]
In January 2004, the PRC formally started the implementation phase of its uncrewed [[Moon]] exploration project. According to [[Sun Laiyan]], administrator of the China National Space Administration, the project will involve three phases: orbiting the Moon; landing; and returning samples.{{cn|date=November 2024}}

On December 14, 2005, it was reported "an effort to launch lunar orbiting satellites will be supplanted in 2007 by a program aimed at accomplishing an uncrewed lunar landing. A program to return uncrewed space vehicles from the Moon will begin in 2012 and last for five years, until the crewed program gets underway" in 2017, with a crewed Moon landing planned after that.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://newsfactor.com/|title=NewsFactor|website=NewsFactor}}</ref>

The decision to develop a new Moon rocket in the 1962 Soviet [[Universal Rocket#UR=700|UR-700M]]-class ([[Project Aelita]]) able to launch a 500-ton payload in [[Lunar transfer orbit#Application to interplanetary travel|LTO]]{{Dubious|date=May 2011}} and a more modest 50 tons LTO payload LV has been discussed in a 2006 conference by academician [[Zhang Guitian]] ({{Zh|s=张贵田|labels=no}}), a liquid propellant rocket engine specialist, who developed the [[CZ-2]] and [[CZ-4A]] rockets engines.<ref name=war-sky>{{cite web|url=http://www.war-sky.com/forum/htm_data/18/0711/243428.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304033007/http://www.war-sky.com/forum/htm_data/18/0711/243428.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=2016-03-04|title=针对我们国家登月火箭的猜测|work=虚幻军事天空 |access-date=2007-11-20}}</ref><ref name=ChineseCrewedLunarRocket>{{cite web |url=http://www.cnsa.gov.cn/n615708/n984628/n984631/72231.html |title=中国载人登月火箭及其动力系统设想 |publisher=国家航天局网 |date=2006-07-25 |access-date=May 9, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080314151359/http://www.cnsa.gov.cn/n615708/n984628/n984631/72231.html |archive-date=March 14, 2008 }}</ref><ref name=zhangguitian>{{cite web |url=http://www.hebysh.gov.cn/ysjj/zhangguitian.htm |title=河北院士联谊 |work=河北院士联谊会秘书处 |access-date=2007-11-20 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070914061112/http://www.hebysh.gov.cn/ysjj/zhangguitian.htm |archive-date=2007-09-14 }}</ref>

On June 22, 2006, [[Long Lehao]], deputy chief architect of the lunar probe project, laid out a schedule for China's lunar exploration. He set 2024 as the date of China's first moonwalk.<ref>{{cite news |title=Expert: China could put a man on the moon by 2024 |url=https://www.cnet.com/science/expert-china-could-put-a-man-on-the-moon-by-2024/ |access-date=8 May 2023 |work=CNET |agency=Reuters |date=20 July 2006 |language=en}}</ref>

In September 2010, it was announced that the country is planning to carry out explorations in deep space by sending a man to the Moon by 2025. China also hoped to bring a Moon rock sample back to Earth in 2017, and subsequently build an observatory on the Moon's surface. [[Ye Peijian]], Commander in Chief of the Chang'e program and an academic at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, added that China has the "full capacity to accomplish Mars exploration by 2013."<ref>{{cite news| url=https://blogs.wsj.com/chinarealtime/2010/09/28/china-to-beat-india-to-moon/ | work=The Wall Street Journal | title=China a Step Ahead in Space Race | date=September 28, 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://frenchtribune.com/teneur/10975-china-send-man-moon-2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101125053735/http://frenchtribune.com/teneur/10975-china-send-man-moon-2025 |url-status=dead |archive-date=2010-11-25 |title=China to send man to moon by 2025 |publisher=French Tribune |date=2010-09-21 |access-date=2013-11-16 }}</ref>

On December 14, 2013<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-25356603 |title=China lands Jade Rabbit robot rover on Moon |date=14 December 2013 |publisher=BBC}}</ref> China's Chang'e 3 became the first object to [[Soft landing (rocketry)|soft-land]] on the Moon since [[Luna 24]] in 1976.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/china-successfully-completes-first-soft-landing-on-moon-in-37-years/2013/12/14/fad6ffb4-64c6-11e3-af0d-4bb80d704888_story.html| author=Simon Denyer| title=China carries out first soft landing on moon in 37 years| newspaper=Washington Post| date=December 14, 2013}}</ref>

On 20 May 2018, several months before the Chang'e 4 mission, the Queqiao was launched from Xichang Satellite Launch Center in China, on a [[Long March 4C]] rocket.<ref name="nasaspaceflifgt-launch">{{Cite web|last1=Barbosa|first1=Rui|last2=Bergin|first2=Chris|date=2018-05-20|title=Queqiao relay satellite launched ahead of Chang'e-4 lunar mission|url=https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2018/05/queqiao-relay-satellite-launched-change-4-lunar-mission/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201109011332/https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2018/05/queqiao-relay-satellite-launched-change-4-lunar-mission/|archive-date=2020-11-09|access-date=2021-10-17|website=NASASpaceFlight.com|language=en-US}}</ref> The spacecraft took 24 days to reach L<sub>2</sub>, using a [[gravity assist]] at the Moon to save propellant.<ref name="P Society Luyuan Xu">{{cite news |last1=Xu |first1=Luyuan |title=How China's lunar relay satellite arrived in its final orbit |url=http://www.planetary.org/blogs/guest-blogs/2018/20180615-queqiao-orbit-explainer.html |work=The Planetary Society |date=15 June 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181017123833/http://www.planetary.org/blogs/guest-blogs/2018/20180615-queqiao-orbit-explainer.html |archive-date=17 October 2018}}</ref> On 14 June 2018, Queqiao finished its final adjustment burn and entered the mission orbit, about {{Convert|65000|km||abbr=}} from the Moon. This is the first lunar relay satellite ever placed in this location.<ref name='P Society Luyuan Xu'/>

On January 3, 2019, Chang'e 4, the China National Space Administration's lunar rover, made the first-ever soft landing on the Moon's far side. The rover was able to transmit data back to Earth despite the lack of radio frequencies on the far side, via a dedicated satellite sent earlier to orbit the Moon. Landing and data transmission are considered landmark achievements for human space exploration.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://edition.cnn.com/2019/01/02/health/china-lunar-rover-far-moon-landing-intl/index.html|title=China lunar rover successfully touches down on far side of the moon, state media announces|last1=Rivers|first1=Matt|last2=Regan|first2=Helen|date=3 January 2019|website=CNN|access-date=3 January 2019|last3=Jiang|first3=Steven}}</ref>

Yang Liwei declared at the 16th Human in Space Symposium of International Academy of Astronautics (IAA) in Beijing, on May 22, 2007, that building a lunar base was a crucial step to realize a flight to Mars and farther planets.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/200705/22/eng20070522_376754.html|title =Astronauts share their experiences|publisher= [[People Daily]]|date=2007-05-22|access-date=May 22, 2007}}</ref>

According to practice, since the whole project is only at a very early preparatory research phase, no official crewed Moon program has been announced yet by the authorities. But its existence is nonetheless revealed by regular intentional leaks in the media.<ref>{{cite web
 |title       = China has no timetable for crewed moon landing
 |url         = http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2007-11/26/content_7149107.htm
 |publisher   = [[Xinhua News Agency]]
 |date        = 2007-11-26
 |access-date  = 2008-10-07
 |url-status     = dead
 |archive-url  = https://web.archive.org/web/20090214062852/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2007-11/26/content_7149107.htm
 |archive-date = 2009-02-14
}}</ref> A typical example is the Lunar Roving Vehicle ({{Zh|s=月球车|labels=no}}) that was shown on a Chinese TV channel ({{Zh|s=东方卫视|labels=no}}) during the 2008 [[International Workers' Day|May Day]] celebrations.

On 23 November 2020, China launched the new Moon mission Chang'e 5, which returned to Earth carrying lunar samples on 16 December 2020. Only two nations, the United States and the former Soviet Union have ever returned materials from the Moon, thus making China the third country to have ever achieved the feat.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theverge.com/2020/11/23/21594565/china-change-5-mission-lunar-sample-return-long-march-5-launch|title=China launches ambitious mission to bring back samples from the Moon|access-date=23 November 2020|website=The Verge|date=November 23, 2020}}</ref>

China sent [[Chang'e 6]] on 3 May, which conducted the first lunar sample return from the [[far side of the Moon]].<ref name="AJ_FI-20230425"/> This is China's second lunar sample return mission, the first was achieved by [[Chang'e 5]] from the lunar near side 4 years ago.<ref name="auto"/>