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China plans to send a manned mission to Mars by 2033, setting a clear deadline for Beijing’s major efforts to take Washington as a superpower in space.
Beijing wants to send astronauts to the red planet in five missions from 2033 to 2043, Wang Xiaojun, head of China’s Launch Vehicle Technology Academy, one of the country’s state-owned aerospace companies, said in a statement released by Chinese state media.
Wang told Thursday’s Global Space Exploration Conference that China will first have to return soil samples from Mars and perform several other robotic missions before sending astronauts or building a research base on the planet.
Wang also described the third phase he hoped to make trips to Mars more common, including the use of multiple space stations to complete the “sky ladder” for travelers on the route.
China’s rapid advances have made it necessary to master the technologies of launch vehicles and satellites required for advanced spaceflight a source of domestic and international fame For the Communist Party, before the celebrations of the following month of the centenary of its founding.
But Beijing’s aggressive timing and rapid pace of implementation have raised concerns among some concerned U.S. politicians threats to national security If Washington loses its technical leader.
NASA aims to send manned missions in the 2030s to Mars, after returning to the Moon this decade.
Analysts fear that lack of coordination, trust and communication between countries could lead to accidents or unnecessary safety problems. U.S. law has banned Nasari from working with China’s space program since 2011.
Beijing has it it has placed the basic module of its space station In Earth orbit and this year it became the second largest country in the US to successfully land on Mars.
China has stressed that its intentions are peaceful and welcomes international cooperation. Beijing is also exploring the possibility of working with Russia to build a research base on the Moon’s surface.
The three taikonauts, as Chinese astronauts are known, took up residence last week at the China Space Station, where they will stay for three months to dismantle supplies and prepare for future visits and scientific research.
Chinese President Xi Jinping congratulated the crew in a video call sent to the nation on Wednesday, saying the station “will make pioneering contributions to humanity in the peaceful use of space.”
“We have a long-term house of Chinese taikonauts in orbit,” replied Nie Haisheng, head of the three-person crew.
Additional report by Emma Zhou in Beijing
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