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China's space programme

China's space programme
The China National Space Administration was founded more than 25 years ago and is overseeing an ambitious programme which includes deep space exploration, a manned space station, and cutting-edge advancements in technology, new materials, robotics and artificial intelligence.
Astronauts have been bolting together pre-built space modules since the 1980s. Engineers now seek to fabricate components directly in orbit. Photo: CCTV
Science

Can Chinese scientists bring Nasa’s ‘space spider’ dream to life?

Shenyang team focuses on how to produce strong structural parts efficiently, and how to connect them reliably.

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Science

China names 2 Pakistani astronauts chosen to train for space station mission

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Science

Is China about to launch a rocket from South China Sea international waters?

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Space

Editorial | New space race should be recognised as a marathon, not a sprint

In lieu of cooperation, perhaps friendly competition between the spacefaring superpowers can ensure exploration benefits humankind.

This handout, released by Nasa, shows Earth as it dips beyond the lunar horizon, also known as “Earthset”, as seen from the Orion spacecraft on April 6. Photo: AFP via Handout
China technology

China’s GPS rival, BeiDou, dominates at home. Now, it aims to convert the world

China is overhauling its home-grown satellite navigation system as part of a push to expand the network’s global influence.

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United States

Nasa’s Artemis astronauts zoom towards moon after fixing toilet malfunction

After troubleshooting minor technical glitches, the four-person crew leave Earth’s orbit for a journey further into deep space than ever before.

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IPO

Countdown starts for Chinese rocket maker CAS Space’s Shanghai listing

China’s commercial rocket champion plans to raise US$600 million on the Star Market after its listing application is accepted.

CAS Space’s Lijian-2 Y1 rocket with three satellites onboard blasts off from the Dongfeng commercial space innovation pilot zone in northwest China, on March 30, 2026. Photo: Xinhua
Space

Video | Historic Artemis II moon mission lifts off

After repeated setbacks, US space agency Nasa is sending 4 astronauts around the moon and further from Earth than ever before.

United States

Nasa embarks on world’s first crewed moon mission in decades amid race with China

After repeated setbacks, Nasa is sending four Artemis II astronauts around the moon and further from Earth than ever before.

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Science

Is China’s commercial rocket now cheaper than Elon Musk’s SpaceX Falcon 9?

Using the measure of cost per kilogram of payload capacity, CAS Space compares its Kinetica-2 to a US reusable rocket.

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A Kinetica-2 Y1 carrier rocket, also known as the Lijian-2 Y1, with three satellites onboard blasts off from a launch centre in northwestern China on Monday. Photo: Xinhua
Science

‘Lighthouses in space’: the Chinese jam-proof satellite network to fill GPS gaps

System places powerful light sources on satellites to send coded signals for drones, self-driving cars, space missions to navigate.

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Tsinghua University says its new network uses coded light signals from “beacon” satellites. Photo: Shutterstock
Space

Opinion | Why China’s space-based solar power is the next frontier of green energy

As the race for orbital energy heats up, China’s ambitious plan to build solar stations in space could boost its strategic influence beyond our atmosphere.

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Science

Can China commercial satellite’s ‘octopus tentacle’ pass low-orbit refuel test?

Hukeda-2, with its flexible robotic arm designed to smoothly dock with target spacecraft, was launched on Monday, state media said.

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United States

Nasa clears Artemis moon rocket for an April launch with 4 astronauts

After critical repairs, the rocket returns to the pad for humanity’s first crewed trip to the moon in over 50 years.

Nasa’s next-generation moon rocket, the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket with the Orion crew capsule. Photo: Reuters
Science

China’s 2030 moon landing: scientists suggest a site long on Nasa’s radar

Research team cites abundant mare basalts, river-like valleys formed from surface lava flows and deposits of volcanic materials.

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A Nasa image shows a close-up of a small fresh crater in the highlands near Rima Bode II. An international team of scientists says it has identified four possible landing sites for China’s first crewed mission to the moon. Photo: Nasa
Science

China can’t buy Elon Musk’s theory on space-based AI centres: experts

Beijing urged to focus on installing computing system in orbit to analyse data from satellites making information gathering more effective.

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Science

What is the moon’s far side made of? Chinese scientists use AI to crack mystery

Findings add to a growing body of insights from China’s historic Chang’e-6 mission to the lunar far side in 2024.

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Science

China boosts science budget: is it listening to everything Elon Musk says?

Beijing says greater allocation reflects importance of science and tech self-reliance in driving China’s economy and its rivalry with the US.

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Beijing’s draft budget announcement shows it is positioning frontiers such as satellite internet as China’s future industries. Photo: Xinhua
Space

Video | Japan’s Space One fails to launch satellites into orbit for third time

The start-up aims to become Japan’s first private company to put a satellite into orbit.

United States

Nasa overhauls Artemis mission amid setbacks in moon race with China

The US space agency will essentially swap a planned moon landing for an additional test mission staged closer to Earth.

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US-China relations

US must be able to ‘turn around and punch’ as China boosts satellites: general

Head of US Space Force Combat Forces Command also highlights spaceplanes as area of increasing competition with China.

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US Lieutenant General Gregory Gagnon says more than 500 of China’s satellites “are purposely designed and networked to track mobile forces such as US carriers, destroyers and cruisers in the Pacific, as well as aircraft that deploy around the Pacific”. Photo: Xinhua
China-Africa relations

How China’s ‘gifting’ of space infrastructure is a diplomatic tool in Africa

Analysts say Beijing is gifting space infrastructure as a form of soft power on the continent.

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Beijing has funded a new satellite data ground station near Windhoek, Namibia – the latest in a growing network of space facilities across Africa built with help from China. Photo: Handout via Xinhua
China stock market

From AI to aerospace: China meme rocket shares take off in race with US

Investors scramble for opportunities to maintain market momentum after the AI frenzy shows signs of losing steam.

US-China relations

Why China is being told to integrate commercial space tech with military systems

Appeal comes as strategic rivals such as the US are increasingly eyeing military uses for tech developed by private firms such as SpaceX.

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Science

Steve Durst – the US citizen space diplomat who reached out to China

Durst, who has died aged 82, bridged a political divide for the ‘shared excitement of exploring the cosmos’.

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Steve Durst (second right) poses with collaboration partners from mainland China, Hong Kong and Thailand at the second International Deep Space Exploration Conference (Tiandu Forum) in Anhui, in September 2024. Photo: Handout
Science

China’s first man in space Yang Liwei officially retires from active duty

First Chinese astronaut to reach Earth’s orbit says he and his cohort are ready to return to space ‘if our motherland needs us’.

Yang Liwei emerges from the Shenzhou-5 re-entry capsule in October 2003. Photo: Handout
SpaceX

Video | Mars to moon shift pits Musk against China in lunar quest

Elon Musk shifts short-term goals from Mars to the moon, where the race for prime space could pit his company against Chinese research base.

Science

China’s Mengzhou spacecraft passes key test for 2030 crewed moon mission

Test features first flight and controlled vertical splashdown of a Long March-10 carrier rocket.

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