China today unveiled a plan to become a world leader in space science by 2050, building on its progress in space exploration, which already includes building a space station and bringing back rocks from the moon.
“Our country's space science research is still at an early stage,” said Ding Chibiao, vice-president of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the country's leading scientific institute, at a press conference.
The plan, published jointly with the China National Space Administration and the China Manned Space Engineering Office, aims to make landmark achievements “with significant international influence” that will drive advances in innovation and turn China into a powerhouse in the study of space.
The National Medium and Long-Term Plan for the Development of Space Sciences (2024-2050), divided into three phases, foresees China carrying out between five and eight scientific missions by 2027, with the aim of making significant discoveries in the field of high-energy astronomy and the exploration of Mars and the Moon.
Between 2028 and 2035, 15 missions will be carried out, including some of particular importance in the search for habitable planets and the study of gravitational waves.
In the 2036-2050 phase, the country aspires to carry out more than 30 space missions, with the aim of making progress in areas such as the origin of the universe and manned exploration.
Among the plan's priority areas is research into the origin and evolution of the cosmos, the study of gravitational waves to explore phenomena such as the formation of black holes and the nature of space-time, and the Sun-Earth connection, focused on analyzing the impact of solar activity on space weather and Earth's technology.
Priority will also be given to the search for habitable planets inside and outside the solar system, investigating their potential to harbor life.
As well as putting a space station into orbit, China has already landed a probe on Mars. Its goal is to put a person on the Moon before 2030, which would make China the second nation to do so, after the United States. The country also plans to build a research station on the Moon.
The lunar program is part of a growing rivalry with the United States - still the leader in space exploration - and other countries, including Japan and India. The United States is planning to put astronauts on the Moon for the first time in more than 50 years, although NASA postponed the planned date to 2026 earlier this year.
The US launched a spacecraft this week on a five-and-a-half-year journey to Jupiter, where it will attempt to study one of the planet's moons to see if its vast hidden ocean contains life.
No comments:
Post a Comment