China Is Shooting For The Moon Sooner Than You Think

China is targeting a crewed Moon landing by 2030, just four years away. The mission centers on the Long March 10 super-heavy-lift rocket, capable of 70 tonnes to LEO and 27 tonnes on a trans-lunar trajectory — comparable to NASA's SLS. The Mengzhou spacecraft (analogous to Apollo's CSM) and the Lanyue lander will be launched separately and rendezvous in low lunar orbit. A first-stage test was completed in February 2026, with the first full orbital flight scheduled for later this year. The mission architecture closely mirrors the Apollo program, reflecting the unchanged physics of lunar travel. Whether China or the US lands first remains an open question.