Why China Has Unexpectedly Delayed Its Participation in the New Moon Race
A Chang'e-7 rendering from a video animation of the mission at Beijing Aerospace Control Center.Credit: Xinhua/Jin Liwang
While the physicists, engineers, and astronauts of NASA's 1970s Apollo program doubtless wanted the best for the future of space science, they might also take some satisfaction in how things are playing out right now. As seen in the behavior of both the United States and China, the simple reality has never been clearer: Traveling to the Moon is really, really hard.
The latest evidence came late Sunday evening, when the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) announced that the Chang'e-7 lunar mission was being delayed until further notice.
"[The] Chang'e-7 lunar probe does not meet launch conditions, and its launch therefore cannot take place during the planned window this year," the CMSA said in a statement. "The assessment was conducted following the principle of prudence, reliability and absolute mission success."
Now,...
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