China Lays Out Four-Step Plan to Reach the Moon Before 2030

China has laid out a detailed four-mission roadmap to put astronauts on the moon before the end of the decade, maintaining pressure on NASA's competing lunar schedule. Revealed at the 7th Manned Space Symposium in Beijing, the campaign relies on a newly detailed sequence of test flights using the Long March 10 rocket family, the Mengzhou crew capsule, and the Lanyue lunar lander.

Our read is that the carefully chosen phrasing of a landing before 2030 offers vital schedule flexibility. While a 2029 touchdown would coincide with the 80th anniversary of the current government, the aggressive timeline protects against political exposure if technical milestones slip. The progression begins in 2027 with the maiden flight of the Long March 10A carrying an uncrewed Mengzhou cargo resupply mission to low Earth orbit.

That test will be followed in 2028 by the debut of the heavier Long March 10 rocket sending an uncrewed Lanyue lander to perform a lunar descent and ascent test. In 2029, a dual-launch rehearsal will test orbital rendezvous and docking between Mengzhou and Lanyue in lunar orbit. The fourth mission will combine two Long March 10 launches to send a crewed Mengzhou and an uncrewed Lanyue for a lunar landing, where two of the three astronauts will spend three days conducting moonwalks.

Meanwhile, NASA is aiming to land astronauts on the lunar surface during the Artemis IV mission in early 2028 using either SpaceX's Starship or Blue Origin's Blue Moon lander.

Yet that timeline depends heavily on unproven steps, including off-Earth refueling for Starship and first-time flight tests for Blue Origin.

Both space agencies are racing toward more than just footprints.

Establishing the first lunar outpost will secure access to critical resources like water ice and set the operational norms for future exploration.