As NASA faces cuts, China reveals ambitious plans for planetary exploration

China created a new entity called the "Deep Space Exploration Laboratory" three years ago to strengthen the country's approach to exploring the Solar System. Located in eastern China, not far from Shanghai, the new laboratory represented a partnership between China's national space agency and a local public college, the University of Science and Technology of China. Not much is known outside of China about the laboratory, but it has recently revealed some very ambitious plans to explore the Solar System, including the outer planets. This week, as part of a presentation, Chinese officials shared some public dates about future missions. Space journalist Andrew Jones, who tracks China's space program, shared some images with a few details. Among the planned missions are: 2028 : Tianwen-3 mission to collect samples of Martian soil and rocks and return them to Earth : Tianwen-3 mission to collect samples of Martian soil and rocks and return them to Earth 2029 : Tianwen-4 mission to expl ... Read full article.