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The Chinese space programme includes plans for a lunar station by 2045 and a commercial launching service.
China's Manned Space Program chief designer Zhou Jianping on Friday informed that his nation will launch the core module of the country's first space station next spring.
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The central module will be sent by the Long March 5B rocket, a heavy-lift launch vehicle that made its successful maiden flight in May.
"The rocket will be released from the Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Site, in Hainan Province," Jianping said, adding that the space station will be completed in 2022.
The news was released in Shaoshan, Hunan Province, during the ceremony for the return of the Shenzhou-10 manned spacecraft capsule.
When the module core enters orbit, China will send the Tianzhou-2 cargo spacecraft and the Shenzhou-12 manned spacecraft.
#ChangE5 Lunar samples, weighing a total of 1,731 grams, were officially transferred to research teams #China #moon
— Leona-Li (@Leona_BJ) December 19, 2020
Photos: CCTV pic.twitter.com/2FjtRistJ0
"The astronaut crew will stay in space for several months. During this period, we will verify the new technologies of the space station, including its spacewalk, robotic arms, and energy technologies," Zhou added.
China's ambitious space program includes plans for a lunar station by 2045 and a commercial launching service.
On December 6, the Chinese Chang'e 5 probe, which carried samples of the lunar surface to bring them to Earth, was docked in the lunar orbit. This was a new achievement for China's space program.
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