China’s Eventful Year in 2023: Wrapping Up and Getting Ready for Lunar Missions

China has once again demonstrated its spacefaring capabilities with an impressive year of launches in 2023. While the year lacked high-profile missions, China launched a total of 66 orbital missions, making it the second most prolific launcher after SpaceX and the United States. Of these 66 launches, an impressive 64 were successful, with one more launch planned for the end of December.

The majority of China’s launches in 2023 were part of the government-directed Chang Zheng rocket program, with 46 flights across the family of rockets. However, smaller non-Chang Zheng rockets also made their mark, with 20 non-Chang Zheng launches taking place. The standout rocket in China’s fleet was the Chang Zheng 2D, which was launched 12 times in 2023. This makes it the second most-flown orbital rocket worldwide for the year.

One notable trend in China’s space program is the shift from government to private sector or semi-private sector launches. In 2022, approximately 83% of launches in China were performed by a Chang Zheng rocket. However, in 2023, this number dropped to 70%, indicating a growing presence of private space companies. It is worth noting that even though these private companies are not technically part of the government space agencies, they are still directed and controlled by them to some extent. This shift towards commercial alternatives is expected to continue in 2024 and beyond, as China’s small to medium satellite launcher market gains momentum.

One significant achievement in China’s space program in 2023 was the Tiangong Space Station’s successful operations. Three launches visited the space station, including a resupply mission and two Shenzhou missions. The crew from Shenzhou 15, which launched in November 2022, stayed on the station at the beginning of the year. This crew, led by Fei Junlong, marked the first rotation since the completion of the Wentian and Mengtian modules in 2022. With the station now in normal operations, the crew had the opportunity to focus on science rather than constructing the station.

The crew of Shenzhou 15 completed their mission after 186 days, making way for the Shenzhou 16 crew, which launched in May. The crew of Shenzhou 16 conducted a spacewalk to install a support frame for a panoramic camera outside the Tianhe core module, as well as placing two panoramic cameras outside the Mengtian experiment module. After 153 days in space, the crew of Shenzhou 16 was replaced by the Shenzhou 17 crew, who are currently on the station with a planned mission duration of 180 days.

In the private sector, one of the standout stories of 2023 was China’s Landspace, which successfully launched the world’s first methane-based rocket twice during the year. The second launch, in July, marked the first time a liquid methane propellant rocket reached orbit, and the third flight in December was the first methane launch to bring payloads into orbit. Landspace also has plans to conduct hop tests in preparation for its reusable rocket ZhuQue-3.

Other Chinese companies made waves in 2023 as well. Galactic Energy’s Ceres-1 rocket launched successfully six out of seven times, including a launch from the Yellow Sea during the Tianqu-21 mission. i-space made a comeback after a challenging 2021 and 2022 with its Hyperbola-1 rocket, completing two successful launches. The company also performed hop tests with its Hyperbola-2Y hopper in preparation for its Hyperbola-3 rocket planned for 2025. Space Pioneer also successfully debuted its Tianlong-2 liquid-fueled rocket, becoming the first privately-funded Chinese company to do so.

In terms of notable launches, the Chang Zheng 5 rocket made a comeback at the end of the year, lifting the classified Yaogan 41 mission. This mission placed a surveillance satellite into orbit, resembling the size of the Hubble Space Telescope. The secretive Chinese spaceplane also saw action, touching down in May 2023 after 276 days in space and launching again on a Chang Zheng 2F in December. The purpose of the spaceplane remains mysterious, much like the X-37B from the United States.

Looking ahead, China’s focus seems to be on lunar missions. The Chang Zheng 9 and Chang Zheng 10 rockets are being developed for this purpose, with the latter being the rocket to watch in the near future. Chang Zheng 10’s impressive capabilities, including the ability to launch up to 70,000 kilograms into low-Earth orbit and up to 27,000 kilograms into trans-Lunar injection, make it China’s Moon rocket of choice for upcoming missions. The country aims to land on the moon in the 2030s using the Chang Zheng 10 carrier rocket.

Progress on both Chang Zheng 9 and Chang Zheng 10 has been significant throughout 2023. Tests have successfully verified the grid fin design and core stage oxygen delivery system for Chang Zheng 10. China also conducted tests on the YF-100k first-stage engine, accumulating a combined test duration of 3,300 seconds. The Chinese Lunar Exploration Program Phase 4 plans officially confirmed that Chang Zheng 10 would be the main rocket for the program.

While 2023 has been a busy year for China’s space program, the next year promises even more exciting developments. The new year is expected to kick off with an unknown Kuaizhou 1A mission, followed by a Chang Zheng 7 launch to deliver new cargo to the Tiangong Space Station. Additionally, an Einstein Probe is set to launch, in collaboration with the European Space Agency, to survey X-ray and high-energy flashes in cosmic events. Crew rotations on the Tiangong Station are also planned for May and November.

As always, the Chinese space program operates with a certain level of secrecy and announcements are made close to or after the launches take place. With its growing launch capabilities and increasing involvement of the private sector, China’s space program is positioning itself as a major player in the global space industry. The achievements of 2023 set the stage for further advancements and lunar missions in the years to come.