to achieve your goals Moon exploration and researchAnd China decided to build Satellite That will begin work in the next few months, according to detallaron Al South China Morning Post Researchers responsible for the project.
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The goal is to create an installation where a low-gravity environment on the Moon can be simulated, in order to better prepare for future lunar missions of which the Asian giant is most interested.
While low gravity can be achieved artificially in an aircraft or drop tower, the time the effect lasts is short, making research difficult. What has been achieved through this project is that the effect can “last as long as you like,” Li Ruilin, the project’s chief scientist at China University of Mining and Technology, explained.
According to the expert, this simulation will be “the first of its kind in the world”, which will raise the preparation for lunar missions to a new level.
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The installation will allow, for example, to test equipment before it is transferred to space and thus avoid costly calculation errors. In addition, according to Li, the simulator will also allow to know if technologies that work on the Earth can also be used on the Moon, such as 3D printing to build infrastructure.
“Some experiments conducted in a simulated environment can also give us some important clues, such as where to look for trapped water under the surface,” said the Chinese scientist.
China and its interest in the moon
The Asian giant has a great interest in lunar exploration. In 2019, a probe from that country made history by successfully landing on the far side of the moon, a feat that no country has yet achieved.
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In addition, only a few days ago the fourth phase of the lunar exploration program was approved, which includes the construction in the next decade of a scientific exploration base at the satellite’s south pole.
The China National Space Administration (CNSA) has announced that the Asian country will continue its lunar exploration program with future missions Chang’e 6, Chang’e 7 and Chang’e 8.
The Chang’e program (named after a goddess who lives on the moon according to Chinese mythology) began with the launch of the first probe in 2007. The ultimate goal of this program is to send a manned mission to the moon.
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