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The nation's leading scientific institute laid out an ambitious
plan Tuesday to become a global leader in space science by 2050.
It listed a wide range of research areas including black holes,
Mars and Jupiter, and the search for habitable planets and signs
of extraterrestrial life.
“Our country’s space science research in general is still in an
initial stage,” Ding Chibiao, a vice president of the Chinese
Academy of Sciences, said at a news conference. “It’s a weakness
that must be addressed on the path of building an aerospace
power.”
The plan, jointly issued with the China National Space
Administration and the China Manned Space Engineering Office,
set a goal of making landmark achievements “with significant
international influence” that drive breakthroughs in innovation
and transform China into a power in the study of space.
Besides putting a space station into orbit, the space agency has
landed an explorer on Mars. It aims to put a person on the moon
before 2030, which would make China the second nation after the
United States to do so. It also plans to build a research
station on the moon.
The moon program is part of a growing rivalry with the U.S. —
still the leader in space exploration — and others, including
Japan and India. America is planning to land astronauts on the
moon for the first time in more than 50 years, though NASA
pushed the target date back to 2026 earlier this year.
The U.S. launched a spacecraft this week on a 5 1/2-year journey
to Jupiter, where it will try to study one of the planet's moons
to see if its vast hidden ocean might hold the keys to life.
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