China Aims for the Stars in 2024 with Record 100 Space Missions 🚀🌕

China’s Space Day just dropped some cosmic news! 🌟 The country plans a record-breaking 100+ space launches this year, including Thursday’s Shenzhou-18 crewed mission to its space station. From moon samples to next-gen rockets, here’s your galactic cheat sheet.

🚀 Launching Into Overdrive

After ranking #2 globally in 2023 with 67 missions, China’s doubling down. The new Long March-12 rocket—a 3.8-meter liquid-fueled beast—will debut at Wenchang’s commercial launch site, hauling satellites for low-orbit ‘megaconstellations.’

🌖 Moonraker Moves

This year’s lunar lineup slaps:

• Chang’e-6: First-ever far side moon sample return (with French/Italian gadgets onboard!)
• Queqiao-2: Relay satellite already prepping Earth-Moon FaceTime sessions

🌍 Squad Goals: Space Edition

The International Lunar Research Station just added Nicaragua and two space orgs as partners. Think global moon base vibes—Phase 1’s set for 2030. 👩🚀

🔥 Hot Space Tech Drops

Watch for:

• New crewed spacecraft prototypes
• Tianwen-2 asteroid sampler
• China-France salinity-monitoring satellite

With 290+ spacecraft set for orbit, China’s 2024 space playlist is lit. 🎧

Reference(s):

China's Space Day: Unveiling upcoming space missions in 2024

cgtn.com