China abruptly postpones ambitious Chang'e-7 lunar mission launch

China said on Sunday it was postponing its planned ambitious Chang'e-7 lunar mission, which was set to carry out explorations including searching for water ice on the moon. This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies.

Credit: Yang GuanyuXinhua via AP China said on Sunday it was postponing its planned ambitious Chang'e-7 lunar mission, which was set to carry out explorations including searching for water ice on the moon. The Chang'e-7 spacecraft was originally set to lift off in the coming days from the Wenchang Space Launch Site on China's southern Hainan island.

Preparations have been carried out at the Wenchang launch site for the Chang'e-7 mission over the past weeks, the seventh in the Chang'e moon exploration program. It was set to explore permanently shadowed craters on the moon and conduct environmental and resource surveys of the lunar south pole, the Xinhua report said, citing the space agency.

Chang'e refers to a Chinese moon goddess. The Chang'e-6 probe returned to Earth in 2024 with rock and soil samples from the far side of the moon in a world first.

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Full profile → In this photo released by Xinhua News Agency, the combination of the Chang'e-7 lunar probe and the Long March-5 Y14 carrier rocket is transferred vertically to the launching area at the Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Site in southern China's Hainan Province on.

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