China's Chang'e-7 lunar mission: Everything you need to know

China is set to launch its most ambitious lunar mission so far. Named Change’7 aims at searching for water ice on the moon’s south pole.

The launch of this mission will take place on August 24 at the latest, from the Wenchang spaceport in Hainan, using a Long March 5 carrier rocket. It will take about five days for the probe to arrive in the vicinity of the Moon, and two months for the reconnaissance of possible landing areas before the attempt itself in November.

What makes this mission unique?

This marks the first mission ever to land directly at the Moon’s south pole, targeting specifically the rim of Shackleton Crater. The mission deploys four distinct craft operating in tandem:

• Orbiter: Surveys landing sites and carries scientific instruments
• Lander: Touches down on sunlit terrain near the crater rim
• Rover: Explores the surface and scans for subsurface ice
• Hopper: A novel six-legged robot that will “jump” into permanently shadowed craters to search for water ice

Why the south pole?

Shadows created by craters around the Moon's south pole have existed for billions of years, with temperatures dropping below -330°F (-201°C). It is thought that such freezers could be used to collect old deposits of water ice essential for future lunar bases.

The spacecraft will have 21 different scientific tools on board, of which six come from international partners, including Russia, Italy, Thailand, Switzerland, Bahrain, and Egypt. Among those tools, there is one developed with American support by the University of Hong Kong and the International Lunar Observatory Association.

Change’s-7 overlaps with NASA’s Artemis program goals, as both nations compete for access to suspected ice reserves. China aims to land astronauts on the moon by 2030 and build the international Lunar Research Station with Russia by 2035.