China's Lanyue Lander Completes Key Test, Paving the Way for Manned Lunar Landing

China's Lanyue lander has successfully concluded a comprehensive landing and takeoff verification test. The test took place at an extraterrestrial landing test site in Huailai county, Hebei Province. The China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) announced the successful completion of the test, highlighting its significance as China's first landing and takeoff experiment for a manned spacecraft on an extraterrestrial body.

The CMSA emphasized the complexity of the test, citing challenging conditions, an extended cycle, and high technical difficulty. The agency stated that the successful completion of the test represents a crucial milestone in the development of China's manned lunar exploration program. The test validated essential systems, including the lander's design, control strategies, lunar contact shutdown procedures, and the compatibility of subsystems like Guidance, Navigation, and Control (GNC) and propulsion.

The CMSA previously announced plans to conduct a manned lunar landing before the year 2030. Taikonauts for the first manned moon landing mission will be selected from the current pool of astronauts who have participated in missions to the China Space Station.

The mission will involve two carrier rockets launching a manned spacecraft and a lunar lander into lunar orbit. After docking, astronauts will enter the lander. Upon landing on the moon, astronauts will utilize a lunar rover for scientific exploration. The moon-landing spacesuit is named Wangyu, and the manned lunar rover is named Tansuo.