Bao also mentioned that the basic technology is set to be finished by 2030, while the key transport technology is expected to be created by 2040 and inaugurate before 2050, this after a China launched a relay satellite to set up a communications link between the Earth and the then planned Chang’e-4 lunar probe, which accomplished the first-ever soft landing on the far side of the moon. This was praised as\u00a0a historic moment for human space exploration as the successful touch down, according to The Guardian<\/a>, turned into a major technical feat and an important step for China towards\u00a0enhancing its capacity\u00a0for scientific and technological innovation and widening ambitions in the international space race.<\/p>\n When the announcement was made, divided opinions flooded the web, however, many see this as a big step in getting ahead in the race for space.\u00a0Aerospace fans even predicted that the plan of this Earth-moon space economic zone will accelerate many important projects for the country, including the\u00a0Long March-5\u00a0carrier rocket<\/a>, China’s largest launch vehicle, which is expected to be used to send the Chang’e-5 probe in 2020 to bring moon samples back to Earth, in what would be the country\u2019s first independent interplanetary mission. The Long March-9,\u00a0China’s heavy-lift carrier rocket, is also expected to receive more support and investment after the announcement by Bao Weimin, as it is scheduled to make its first flight around 2030, supporting manned lunar exploration, deep space exploration, and construction of a space-based solar power plant.<\/p>\n Though the OECD\u00a0estimates\u00a0<\/a>that China now has the second-highest combined civil and military space\u00a0budget\u00a0in the world, it is still difficult to estimate the full cost and times of building and operating a permanent space station like China ambitions, even because some Chinese officials have also started to share and express their growing concerns on\u00a0whether the country can or cannot afford\u00a0to continue to heavily invest in various space programs. Non the less,\u00a0Lt. Gen. Zhang Yulin, deputy commander of the China Manned Space Program,\u00a0clearly indicated<\/a>\u00a0that China will use the next 15 to 20 years to develop the requisite technical capabilities for conducting manned lunar missions.<\/p>\n \u00a9 China Power<\/p><\/div>\n The\u00a0United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) reports more than 60 countries<\/a>\u00a0that have space programs that engage in\u00a0activities\u00a0ranging from the development of dual-use satellites to lunar exploration.\u00a0 However, only three of these have independently sent humans into space:\u00a0 The former Soviet Union and the United States achieved human spaceflight during the Cold War space race.\u00a0 Four decades later, China joined this elite group with\u00a0the 2003 launch<\/a>\u00a0of Lt. Col. Yang Liwei\u00a0into Earth\u2019s orbit\u00a0on the\u00a0Shenzhou-5.\u00a0<\/em>Yang orbited the Earth 14 times over a period of 21.5 hours.<\/p>\n Other countries like\u00a0Canada are doing their part<\/a>. Even though they have spent very little on its space program compared to others previously mentioned, both in terms of its outlay in dollars and relative to GDP,\u00a0private Canadian companies are picking up the slack with projects like the Montreal-based NorthStar<\/a>, which highlights as one of several high-tech Canadian space-focused companies with either existing projects or exciting ideas in the pipeline of reaching and competing in the space race of today.\u00a0Toronto-based Kepler Communications is also heavily working, as it currently has two small satellites in space\u2014launched on Chinese and Indian rockets\u2014with plans to add 138 more within three years.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.ceo-na.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/number-of-humans-launche.png\")
<\/a>Competition and the other players<\/h1>\n
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