Photo:CCTV

 

Photo:CCTV

Wangyu and Tansuo,MK sports meaning "Looking into the Universe" and "Exploration," respectively, were officially unveiled by the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) on Wednesday as the names of the spacesuits and manned lunar vehicle for the country's manned moon exploration mission, set to take place before 2030. 

The names of the lunar spacesuit and manned lunar vehicle reflect unique Chinese characteristics, contemporary spirit, and cultural significance, the CMSA said in a statement it provided to the Global Times on Wednesday.  

Building on the public naming campaign for the new spacecraft in 2023, the CMSA launched naming campaigns for the lunar spacesuit and manned lunar vehicle in September and October 2024. 

These initiatives garnered widespread attention and enthusiastic participation from society, with over 9,000 submissions received from organizations and individuals in the fields of aerospace, technology, and cultural communication. After expert selection and review, the lunar spacesuit was named Wangyu, and the manned lunar vehicle was named Tansuo, the CMSA said.

According to the agency, Wang Yu, meaning "Looking into the Universe," represents humanity's enduring curiosity and ambition to explore the vast cosmos. It resonates with the Feitian spacesuits used in China Space Station missions, signifying China's new journey to land on the moon and explore deep space, following the realization of the dream of "flying to space" and the establishment of a "space home." 

Such naming also reflects China's steadfast commitment to peaceful space exploration and its contribution to building a community with a shared future for mankind, the CMSA explained. 

Tansuo, meaning "Exploration," embodies the spirit of discovery and the drive to uncover the unknown, highlighting the core mission and application value of the lunar vehicle in helping China explore the moon's mysteries. 

The name aligns closely with China's space dream of exploring the vast universe, advancing space development, and building a space power, showcasing the innovative spirit of China's manned space program as it relentlessly strives for new heights, the CMSA said. 

Photo: CCTV

Currently, the development and construction of the lunar landing phase of China's manned lunar exploration program are advancing as scheduled. The key technological breakthroughs and in-depth demonstrations in the early stages have been completed, and the program has now entered the initial prototype development phase, the state broadcaster CCTV reported on Wednesday.

As planned, China's manned lunar exploration program aims to achieve a manned lunar landing before 2030, the CCTV said. The program will involve conducting lunar scientific investigations and related technological experiments, as well as breaking through key technologies such as manned Earth-Moon round-trip travel, short-term lunar surface stay, and human-robot joint exploration. 

The program will complete multiple tasks, including "landing, patrolling, sampling, research, and return," and establish an independent and autonomous manned lunar exploration capability. Leveraging both pre-manned flight experiments and the manned lunar landing mission, large-scale space science experiments will be conducted, with preliminary plans in place for scientific objectives in three major fields: lunar science, lunar base science, and resource exploration and utilization, covering nine key disciplines. 

At present, the Long March-10 carrier rocket, Mengzhou manned spacecraft, Lanyue lunar lander, lunar spacesuit, and manned lunar vehicle are in the initial prototype production and testing phase, with related ground trials progressing as planned. A series of ground facilities and equipment supporting these production and testing activities have been completed and is now operational, and construction at the Wenchang launch site is progressing as planned, the CCTV revealed.

Zhang Chongfeng, deputy chief designer of the manned spacecraft for China's Manned Space Program and a standing committee member of the Shanghai Academy of Spacecraft Technology science and technology committee, revealed to the CCTV that the prototype of the manned lunar vehicle they developed has already completed experiments in a simulated lunar surface test environment, as well as extensive field experiments. 

Currently, the manned lunar vehicle has entered the preliminary sample stage, and detailed design and subsequent engineering tests are underway, Zhang said.

The CCTV on Wednesday also released computer graphic footages illustrating the country's manned moon mission. 

The video footages suggested taikonauts of the mission would ride the lunar vehicle and explore three different areas surrounding the landing site in three days. 

Although the CMSA has not officially released detailed plans for China's first manned moon landing mission, the term "short-term lunar surface stay" could imply that the mission will be more complex and involve a longer duration on the moon's surface compared to the US' first crewed moon landing mission Apollo 11, which lasted more than 21 hours. This also reflects China's thorough preparation and the improvement of its technological capabilities for its first lunar mission, Pang Zhihao, a senior space expert, told the Global Times on Wednesday.