11 July 2019
China is developing a new generation recoverable satellite for commercial use, which is expected to make its maiden flight in 2020, according to a space engineer. Delivering a report at a science communication salon recently, Zhao Huiguang, chief designer of the recoverable satellite from the China Academy of Space Technology, said China's new generation recoverable satellite is able to return 500 kg to 600 kg payloads back to Earth from space. So far, China has launched 25 recoverable satellites, and their usage is shifting from resources investigation to space science, according to Zhao.
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14 July 2019
Geoff Brumfiel of National Public Radio, reflects on the upcoming Indian lunar mission. Also, he points out some interesting facts about China's Moon exploration programme. Among others, he interviewed Robert Wimmer-Schweingruber from University of Kiel, who is the project scientist of the radiation detector on Chang'e 4. Wimmer-Schweingruber told Brumfiel that the whole process of the preparation of the payload was "absolutely crazy" and he added "that he would work with the Chinese again."
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13 July 2019
Already during a press briefing on 26 September 2018, Lin Xiqiang, Deputy Director of CMSE, announced that the Tiangong 2 Management Committee had decided on 20 September 2018 to manually deorbit the space lab after July 2019. On 13 July 2019 CMSE published a short note that the date for the controlled re-entry is set for the 19 July 2019. Tiangong 2 is expected to go down over the South Pacific Ocean with most parts burning up during the process. Remaining debris will fall into the area around 160 to 90 degrees West, 30 to 45 degrees South.
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17 July 2019
With the coming 50th anniversary of the moon landing, Wang Ya'nan, chief editor of Aerospace Knowledge magazine, speculated that China will be "technically ready" for a manned lunar landing by around 2035, establishing a permanent lunar base rather than NASA's symbolic footprint of 1969. In an interview with CBS Face the Nation on Sunday NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine said that "We're so far ahead of China right now, it's not even a comparison." In reply, Wang noted that China has never chased a ranking in the space sector.
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