Further details regarding the upcoming Chinese lunar program were revealed by Zhang Hailian, the deputy chief designer of China’s manned spaceflight project at the Ninth China Commercial Aerospace Forum held in Wuhan on July 12.
“The plan is to launch two carrier rockets to send a lunar lander and a manned spacecraft to a lunar orbit, respectively,” Zhang said. “The craft and lunar lander will rendezvous and dock with each other, and then taikonauts will enter the lander.
“As the lunar lander descends and arrives at the preset area on the lunar surface, taikonauts will carry out scientific tasks and collect samples.
“After completing the planned tasks, taikonauts will return to the lander, which will lift them back to the lunar orbit to dock with their spacecraft.
“In the final step, the spacecraft will fly taikonauts back to Earth with lunar samples.
