(ANSA) – BEIJING, OCTOBER 17 – China aims for world leadership in space science by 2050, consolidating the great strides made in exploration among the astronauts sent to its orbital station and the recovery of rocks from the Moon. The plan involves turning those feats into scientific breakthroughs with an ambitious new plan based on a broad range of research areas including black holes, Mars, Jupiter and the search for habitable planets and signs of extraterrestrial life.
“Our country’s space science research in general is still at an early stage,” said Ding Chibiao, vice president of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (Cas), in the state media report. It is a weakness that must be addressed on the path of building an aerospace power.” Ding then outlined the development goals of China’s space science, including 17 priority areas in five key scientific themes. The most critical step is that of 2036- 50: China wants central leadership in critical fields and become a “global space science power” in areas such as the origin and evolution of the universe.
The plan, developed by CAS, the China National Space Administration and the China Manned Space Engineering Office, aims to achieve epochal results “with significant international influence”.
In addition to putting the space station into orbit, the Chinese agency landed a rover on Mars: Beijing wants to send its astronauts to the Moon by 2030, becoming the second nation to do so after the USA, and also plans to build a research station on the Moon. The lunar program is part of a growing rivalry with the United States and other countries, such as Japan and India.
Washington is planning to land astronauts on lunar soil for the first time in more than 50 years, although NASA pushed back the mission date to 2026 earlier this year. This week the United States launched a spacecraft on a 5 and a half year journey to Jupiter, with the aim of studying one of the planet’s moons to test the hypotheses of life in its vast hidden ocean. (HANDLE).