China has taken a step forward in its ambitious plan to land astronauts on the Moon by 2030, unveiling the specially designed spacesuit its crew will wear for what is expected to be a historic mission in the country’s space program.
The new red and white suit — unveiled by the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) over the weekend — is designed to withstand the Moon’s extreme temperatures, as well as radiation and dust, while also allowing physical flexibility for astronauts to perform. tasks on the lunar surface, according to Chinese state media.
The lunar landing suit is equipped with a short- and long-range camera, an operations console and a glare-proof helmet display, according to a video shared by state broadcaster CCTV. The images showed well-known Chinese astronauts Zhai Zhigang and Wang Yaping showing how, using the suit, they can bend down and climb a ladder.
The new technology caught international attention. SpaceX CEO Elon Musk shared a post on Platform X with the CCTV video and his own caption:
“Meanwhile, back in America, the [Administração Federal de Aviação (FAA)] is suffocating the national space program with Kafkaesque paperwork!”, he wrote, in an apparent reference to the perception of the speed with which China reinforced its space program compared to the USA.
THE CNN contacted the FAA to ask it to comment on the matter.
SpaceX’s fortune — and Musk’s personal wealth — have increased in recent years due to large government contracts, as NASA has sought to tap the private sector for space exploration and logistics.
Leader in space
China’s unveiling of the lunar landing suit comes as the country mounts a significant effort to establish itself as a major player in space — a domain that nations, including the United States, are increasingly looking to not only for scientific benefits, but also focusing on resources and national security.
The China National Space Administration has in recent years carried out a series of increasingly complex lunar robotic missions, including the first return of lunar samples from the far side of the Moon earlier this year. The country has been pushing to become the second nation to land astronauts on the Moon, saying its first manned mission will take place “by 2030.”
The US, which has not sent astronauts to the Moon since 1972, also plans to send a crew this decade, although it has pushed back the initial timeline for the Artemis III mission. That mission won’t launch until at least September 2026, NASA said earlier this year. The agency unveiled a prototype spacesuit for the Artemis III mission, the AxEMU, in 2023.
China’s new spacesuit has been hailed in state media as a major advancement in the country’s manned mission timeline, with experts noting the need for a suit specifically formulated for lunar conditions, compared to those used in spacewalks by astronauts on the station. China’s Tiangong spacecraft.
Thanks to its thin exosphere, the Moon is an unforgiving place, exposed to both the sun’s rays and the cold of space. Temperatures near the Moon’s equator, for example, can reach 121 °C during the day and plummet to -133 °C at night, according to NASA.
“Unlike low-Earth orbit missions, astronauts will be in a harsh natural lunar environment during extravehicular activities,” Wu Zhiqiang, deputy chief designer of astronaut systems at the China Astronaut Research and Training Center, told state broadcaster CCTV.
“Complex environmental factors such as high vacuum and low gravity, lunar dust and soil, complex lunar surface terrain, high and low temperatures, and strong radiation will have a significant impact on work and protection.”
Others also praised the costume’s aesthetic, with state media describing the red stripes on its upper limbs as inspired by the ribbons of “flying apsaras,” or deities that appear in ancient art in the western Chinese city of Dunhuang, while the stripes on their lower limbs resemble “rocket launch flames”.
Another designer, Wang Chunhui, told state media that the suit’s proportions would make astronauts “look more energetic and majestic” and “make us look strong and beautiful when we step on the Moon.”
Earlier this year, Chinese authorities released the name of the spacecraft for the manned lunar mission — with the craft named Mengzhou, or “Ship of Dreams,” and the lander Lanyue, or “Embracing the Moon.”
The mission is part of a broader set of lunar ambitions, which include China’s plans to establish an international lunar research station at the Moon’s south pole by 2040.
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This content was originally published in China revealed new space suit and wants to take its astronauts to the Moon by 2030 on the CNN Brasil website.
Source: CNN Brasil
Charles Grill is a tech-savvy writer with over 3 years of experience in the field. He writes on a variety of technology-related topics and has a strong focus on the latest advancements in the industry. He is connected with several online news websites and is currently contributing to a technology-focused platform.
