Nation unveils plan on crewed moon mission

　　Long March 10 rockets to carry astronauts, landing module to lunar orbit before 2030

　　China made public on Wednesday specific designs for its manned lunar mission, which is scheduled to be achieved before the end of this decade.

　　Speaking at a space industry forum in Wuhan, Hubei province, Zhang Hailian, deputy chief planner at the China Manned Space Agency, said the plan is to launch two Long March 10 carrier rockets from the Wenchang Space Launch Center in Hainan province to transport a lunar landing module and a manned spacecraft to lunar orbit.

　　After reaching their preset orbital positions, the landing module and the spacecraft carrying astronauts will rendezvous and dock with each other. The crew will enter the landing module, which will then undock and descend toward the lunar surface for an engine-assisted soft landing.

　　On the moon, the astronauts will drive a rover to carry out scientific tasks and collect samples. Upon the completion of their assignments, they will return to the landing module, which will fly them back to lunar orbit and dock with their spacecraft.

　　In the final stage, the astronauts will carry the samples into their spacecraft, which will then undock and carry the crew back to Earth.

　　"To achieve this goal, designers and engineers are developing the Long March 10 rocket. The model will have three-and-a-half stages and a liftoff weight of about 2,200 metric tons, capable of sending a 27-ton spacecraft into the lunar transfer orbit," Zhang said.

　　The manned spacecraft for the mission is in the middle of its research and development stage, according to Zhang.

　　"It will have an overall weight of 26 tons and will consist of three components — an escape tower, a reentry capsule and a service section," he said, adding that the new spaceship will feature reusability and modular designs that suit both near-Earth and deep-space explorations.

　　According to the space agency, the landing module will have two parts — a landing section and a propulsion section — and will weigh nearly 26 tons. It will accommodate two astronauts. The four-wheeled moon rover will weigh 200 kilograms and carry a host of scientific equipment.

　　In the long term, China intends to construct a lunar scientific outpost to conduct extended explorations and technology demonstration operations, Zhang said.

　　"The moon is the nearest extraterrestrial body that humans can reach based on current technologies. Manned missions to the moon will be a realistic and practical step ... to start with (in order) to expand our exploration endeavors in deep space.

　　"Meanwhile, it is scientifically meaningful for us to continue to explore the moon because it will help scientists better understand the origin and the evolution of the solar system as well as the composition of planets," Zhang said.

　　The massive project will welcome international cooperation and the participation of private enterprises, he added.

　　Lin Xiqiang, deputy director of the space agency, said in May that in order to achieve the goal of a manned moon landing before 2030, scientists and engineers would develop a commuting system and short-term stay system for crew members, and would work out human-robot integrated testing and other key technologies.

　　譯文：

　　（標題）中國披露載人登月任務方案

　　（副標題）長征十號運載火箭將在2030年前將航天員、登月艙送入月球軌道

　　中國在本周三公布了載人登月初步方案，計劃在2030年前實現該方案提出的目標。

　　中國載人航天工程辦公室副總師張海聯在當日于武漢舉辦的一個商業航天論壇上披露，我國載人登月的初步方案是：從文昌航天發射場發射兩枚長征十號運載火箭，分別將月面著陸器和載人飛船送至地月轉移軌道；在到達預定軌道位置后，飛船和著陸器在環月軌道交會對接，航天員從飛船進入月面著陸器。其后，月面著陸器將下降并軟著陸于月面預定區域，航天員乘組登上月球，駕駛月球車開展科學考察與樣品采集。在完成既定任務后，航天員將乘坐著陸器上升至環月軌道與飛船交會對接，并攜帶樣品乘坐飛船返回地球。

　　張海聯在會上表示：“為實現這個目標，航天科研人員正在研制長征十號運載火箭。這型火箭將是三級半構型，起飛重量約為2200噸，可以將27噸有效載荷送入地月轉移軌道。”

　　同時，載人登月任務所需的新型載人飛船也已經開始研制。

　　“新飛船入軌質量約為26噸，由逃逸塔、返回艙和服務艙組成，”張海聯說。

　　他指出，新飛船的主要特點為模塊化設計，能夠適應近地和深空探測任務。同時，其返回艙可重復使用。

　　月面著陸器由登月艙和推進艙兩部分構成，重約26噸，可將兩名航天員送達月面。四輪載人月球車重約200千克，將攜帶科學探測儀器。

　　張海聯表示，著眼未來，中國計劃在月面建立一個月球科研站，用以開展時間較長的探索活動，并驗證有關技術。

　　“月球是人類采用當代工程技術可以到達的最近的地外天體。載人月球探測是我國載人航天活動走向深空的路途中，符合邏輯和發展規律的現實選擇。同時，月球具有很高的科學探索價值，關于月球的研究對理解太陽系起源、演變歷史，以及行星構造等科學問題，具有重要意義。”

　　張海聯還表示，中國載人月球探測工程將致力于推進國際合作，也歡迎商業航天企業參與工程研制。

　　載人航天工程辦公室副主任林西強在5月曾表示，為在2030年前實現中國人首次登陸月球，科研人員將研發載人地月往返、月面短期駐留、人機聯合探測等關鍵技術。