BEIJING, July 21 (Xinhua) -- The first stage of
China's moon-orbiting program - the launching of the Chang'e-1 Lunar Orbiter -
will cost as much as the construction of two kilometer-stretch of subway in
Beijing.
The investment for the lunar project is negligible
compared to the country's huge GDP, but "we must make careful plans and
calculations to do it well," said Ouyang Ziyuan, chief scientist of the
country's lunar program, on Friday at the ongoing 36th Scientific Assembly of
the Committee on Space Research (COSPAR).
In 1960, China began studying the possibilities of
launching its own lunar orbiter. In 2004, the government approved the 1.4
billion yuan (about 175 million US dollars) lunar orbiting program,namely the
building, launching and operation of the Chang-e-1 Lunar Orbiter.
According to the chief scientist, Chinese scientists
completed the designing of the Chang-e-1 in 2004 and the building of the lunar
orbiter reached its primary stage in 2005. This year, the building of the
Chang'e-1 will be completed to ensure its lunar mission in 2007, Ouyang said.
In the long term, the chief scientist said, China's
lunar program is divided into three stages - an unmanned lunar flight, a manned
lunar voyage and the building of a lunar base.
Compared with the 1.4 billion yuan budget for the
first stage, the second and the third stages may cost more than that, Ouyang
said.
In its new space programs published in 2004, the
United States said it plans to launch unmanned lunar orbiters after 2008 and
send its astronauts back to the Moon in 2018, with a budget of 104billion U.S.
dollars, and by 2025, Americans will land on Mars, at a cost of 217 billion U.S.
dollars. Enditem
Related:
Scientists to focus four tasks in moon
exploration
BEIJING, July 21
(Xinhua) -- A leading Chinese lunar scientist said on Friday that the Chinese
lunar exploration program would focus on four major tasks.
Chinese scientists were scheduled to sketch a
three-dimensional lunar map, and analyze 14 mineral elements, including titanium
and helium.
China to enjoy more int'l co-op in
future lunar exploration
BEIJING,
July 21 (Xinhua) -- China will cooperate more closely with space agencies in
Russia, Europe and the United States in future lunar exploration, announced a
leading Chinese space scientist on Friday.
At the ongoing 36th Committee on Space Research Scientific
Assembly, Ouyang Ziyuan, a member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, said that
China has already worked closely with Russia in the fields of space instruments,
facilities and observation and control of spacecraft.
China has stones from moon, Mars: space
scientist
BEIJING, July 21
(Xinhua) -- Although China hasn't sent any space craft to the moon and the Mars
yet, it has got three stones from them.
"Chinese explorers found nearly 10,000 stones fallen from
space in the Antarctic area, including one from the moon and two from the Mars,"
said Ouyang Ziyuan, a member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, at the ongoing
36th Committee on Space Research Scientific Assembly here Friday.
Leading moon scientist believes
Americans did land on the Moon
BEIJING, July 21 (Xinhua) -- Chinese leading moon scientist Ouyang Ziyuan said
here Friday that the Apollo 11 landing on the Moon was credible.
"Although there is no atmosphere on the Moon, the U.S.
flag could still fly due to the shaking of the pole," he said, saying that he
had conducted a similar experiment himself.
Helium 3 from Moon possible replacer in fusion
reaction
BEIJING, July 21
(Xinhua) -- A leading Chinese lunar scientist said here on Friday that helium 3
exploited from the Moon could be used for the fusion reaction, which can produce
non-ending electricity for human beings.
Scientists from six nations, including the United States
and China, are building an experimental fusion reactor in France by 2020.
Lunar resources exploitation uneconomical
BEIJING, July 21 (Xinhua) -- There are no current
plans for exploiting mineral resources on the Moon as it's not cost-efficient,
said a leading Chinese lunar exploration scientist here on Friday.
The Moon, a priority goal for deep space exploration, has
some unique resources that humans are eager to have, said Ouyang Ziyuan, member
of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
