China Successfully Launches Second Moon Probe

China launched its second unmanned Moon mission on Friday, sending the Chang'e II probe on a five-day journey to reach lunar orbit. "The probe plans to test technology in preparation for an unmanned moon landing in 2012, with a possible manned lunar mission to follow in 2017. China's other space plans include the launch of the first module of a future space station next year followed by the dispatch of manned spacecraft to dock with it. ... After its six-month mission, Chang'e II will either land on the moon as an experiment for future probes, fly further into outer space, or change its course and begin orbiting the Earth, Xinhua cited chief designer Huang Jiangchuan as saying." The Planetary Society blog has pictures and video of the launch.

Comments

Manned lunar mission?

[MichaelSmith]

manned lunar mission doesn't have to mean a landing. It could just be their normal orbital vehicle on a figure eight trajectory around the moon.

leaping ahead

[sohp]

Thanks to self-interested politicians like Utah's Orrin Hatch and others who'd rather fatten up on pork, China has a viable space program, while the US just has a money sink that keeps corporations flush in fat lobbying budgets.

Re:leaping ahead

[Anonymous Coward]

"Auf deutsch und auf englisch
kenn' ich den Countdown.
Jetzt lern' ich chinesisch!"
sagt Wernher von Braun.

Good for them!

[RyanFenton]

I love it when any nation does ambitious explorations like this, to progress and promote their general state of science and technology.

I just hope they release any findings freely - I do dislike the idea of scientific projects where most of the results end up state/company secrets.

Ryan Fenton

Re:Good for them!

[TheNucleon]

"July 1969 A.D. We Came in Peace For All Mankind."

If Mankind can return during my lifetime, I'll be delighted. I don't particularly care which section of Mankind leads the way - I'll rejoice with them when we venture out again.

Think what we could accomplish if we all worked together? Maybe someday we could get out of our own back yard.

Pre-emptive posting

[Chicken_Kickers]

To pre-empt the inevitable sino-phobic scare mongering posters, let me get the shitposts out of the way:

1. OMFG, China is making a lunar land grab.
2. Great job China, you're just 50 years late (smug).
3. We've done this before. Nothing to see here. Move along (more smug).
4. Socialist!
5. Not content with polluting the Earth, China is now throwing junk on the moon.
6. We must stop the expansionist Godless pinko commie heathens.
7. Meh, China's economy is doing too well, so it is bound to crash and their space program will cease.

Anything I missed?

Re:Pre-emptive posting

[Anonymous Coward]

Yes, you missed the iconoclastic, exhaustive list of possible objection vectors.

Re:Congraturation

[Anonymous Coward]

I can't really recall Slashdot being a forum for overt racism in the past.

I know that this post will be modded down because I am invoking the Principal of Reverse Psychology.

Re:Congratulation

[Anonymous Coward]

Note that China is a nation, not a race -- is it possible that some China-haters might actually hate China not because OMFG THEY R TEH YELLLOOWWWW!!!, but because of things China has done/continues to do that they find morally repugnant?

It's Communism WE can BELIEVE in!

[arcite]

Never mind half their population live on $1 a day!

Re:It's Communism WE can BELIEVE in!

[Anonymous Coward]

Never mind half their population live on $1 a day!

Yes, and there are beggars in every country on this planet, let all countries stop their space program right this moment.

Nevermind that the entire Chang'e space program cost less than a single Space Shuttle launch.

But go ahead with the China bashing, you will get modded up no matter what.

Re:It's Communism WE can BELIEVE in!

[Anonymous Coward]

Yes, because having a space program has no positive impact on the research and manufacturing in China. High tech industries won't help improve conditions for at least some Chinese workers. Those people would be better off if they had not bothered getting an education and gone to work in some textile factory or assembling iPods instead.

Re:It's Communism WE can BELIEVE in!

[uninformedLuddite]

Big bloody deal. There are places on earth where the people's incomes are so low they aren't measurable. They still appear to eat, sleep, clothe themselves and appear happier in general than us poor wage slaves. Plus, if civilisation was to collapse some of them wouldn't even notice.

Re:Congratulation

[timeOday]

is it possible that some China-haters might actually hate China not because OMFG THEY R TEH YELLLOOWWWW!!!, but because of things China has done/continues to do that they find morally repugnant?

Nope. Xenophobia and righteous indignation are both factors, but not they main ones. If so, there would be just as much angst over less powerful nations where people look and think differently. And also, we wouldn't be discussing China's moon program; we'd be discussing how to use our diplomatic and economic influence to redeem China from their moral failings, which we're not.

No, mostly China phobia is just naked fear at the rise of an economic and military competitor.

Re:"Chinese" is a nationality, not a race.

[Foobar of Borg]

"Chinese" is a nationality. It is not a race. There are people of many races who are Chinese.

Quite true, but many racists in America use "Chinese" to mean "any o' them thar yellar people."

Exchange rate?

[mangu]

Never mind half their population live on $1 a day!

True or not, it doesn't matter.

The real question is what does that buy? I know many Americans who make $100 a day and still can't make ends meet.

Re:that's great

[interactive_civilian]

It has already happened. The USA sent a number of men to the moon.

And a great many of us were not alive when this happened. Along with GPP, I'd like to see another man on the Moon. Yes, the United States did it. Yes, we Americans briefly touched greatness. Yes, we took our first baby steps out into the next great frontier and the only real long term future for humanity. And then, like frightened or chastised children, we fled back to the safety of our mother's skirt and have remained there ever since.

I am not discounting at all the greatness achieved by unmanned exploratory missions. I think they are some of the finest achievements of humankind (We've sent probes out of the solar system!). But, I can't help but feel a thrill that some humans somewhere on the planet are actively working towards once again stepping away from our mother. And I wouldn't be able to help feeling some measure of pride to see that happen again. And I would be even more proud to see humans take further steps out into the solar system.

And, I couldn't care less if they are speaking Chinese when they do it.

Re:Where's the competition?

[Nyeerrmm]

Considering that its taken NASA 30 years to get over the first one, and we're still recovering, the last thing we need is another one.

Space races lead to expensive one-off architectures that achieve their goal but are too expensive to be used for much else. NASA needs to learn how to develop flexible systems that can be revised and re-purposed with minimal modifications, short time-frames, and within the historical post-Apollo budget.

I fear if we got in another space race with China, we'd achieve more flags and footprints, and be saying 'If only it were like the 2010s again' until 2070.