China's first crewed lunar mission to feature a three-person crew, with two landing on the Moon's surface
Wang Xiang, deputy chief designer of China's manned spaceflight program, announced at the 7th Manned Spaceflight Academic Conference that China plans to achieve its first manned moon landing by 2030. The mission will follow a "two launches, one landing" model, with a three-person crew, two of whom will land on the lunar surface to conduct scientific exploration.
China's first crewed lunar landing mission is planned to have a three-person crew, with two astronauts landing on the lunar surface.
On October 31, at the 7th Academic Conference on Manned Spaceflight, Wang Xiang, deputy chief designer of China's Manned Spaceflight Program, announced that China plans to achieve its first crewed lunar landing before 2030, using a "two launches, one landing" mission model.
According to the plan, the mission will launch a lunar lander and a crewed spacecraft separately using two Long March 10 carrier rockets, which will then rendezvous and dock in lunar orbit. The first crewed lunar landing mission will consist of three crew members: two astronauts will land on the lunar surface to conduct scientific exploration, while the third will remain in orbit to carry out related tasks. After completing the mission, the astronauts will return to Earth aboard the spacecraft.
Today (October 31, 2026) marks the 17th anniversary of Qian Xuesen's passing. In 1958, Qian Xuesen proposed, "We must go to the moon."
Source: Global Times