![\"China](\"https:\/\/wp-assets.futurism.com\/2020\/10\/china-reveals-rocket-send-astronauts-moon-300x158.jpg\")
<\/div>Crewed Space<\/h2>
China just showed off a rocket that could send astronauts to the Moon — but when that will happen is still a huge question mark.<\/p>
The rocket features three massive stages, including a central core, reminiscent of the United Launch Alliance’s Delta IV Heavy and SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy, as Space.com<\/em> points out<\/a>.<\/p> There’s little we know about the unnamed rocket so far. It’s designed to carry a 27 ton spacecraft into trans-lunar injection<\/a> and will weigh three times as much as China’s current largest rocket, the Long March 5, on the launch pad.<\/p> It’s part of a larger global trend of renewed interest in exploring space beyond Earth’s orbit.<\/p> “The world is seeing a new wave of lunar exploration, crewed or uncrewed,” Zhou Yanfei, deputy general designer of China’s human spaceflight program, told Chinese media<\/a>. “International cooperation projects in crewed lunar exploration are intertwined and influencing each other.”<\/p> While the country has been excelling at sending unmanned probes to the Moon in recent years, sending humans into trans-lunar orbit is an entirely different kettle of fish.<\/p> We don’t know when China is aiming to launch such a rocket or when it will take on its first test flights. The country will also still need a lander, according to Zhou.<\/p> Before China is ready to take humans to the Moon, it will largely focus on establishing a presence in low-Earth orbit. The first components of the country’s space station are set to launch some time next year<\/a>.<\/p> The country is also working on SpaceX Falcon-9 style rockets<\/a> that are capable of vertical take off and landing.<\/p> READ MORE: <\/strong>China is building a new rocket to fly its astronauts on the moon<\/a> [Space.com<\/em>] The post China Reveals Rocket to Send Astronauts to Moon<\/a> appeared first on Futurism<\/a>.<\/p> Link: Crewed Space China just showed off a rocket that could send astronauts to the Moon \u2014 but when that will happen is still a huge question mark. The rocket features three massive stages, including a central core, reminiscent of the United Launch Alliance\u2019s Delta IV Heavy and SpaceX\u2019s Falcon Heavy, as Space.com points out Continue reading Race to the Moon<\/h2>
Baby Steps<\/h2>
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China Reveals Rocket to Send Astronauts to Moon<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"