China is preparing to launch its Shenzhou-23 mission to the Tiangong space station on Sunday, with one astronaut expected to remain in orbit for an entire year, marking the country’s longest human space mission to date.
The mission comes as competition between China and the United States intensifies over future lunar exploration and long-term space dominance.
According to the China Manned Space Agency, the Shenzhou-23 spacecraft will launch aboard a Long March-2F Y23 rocket from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in northwest China at 11:08pm local time.
The three-member crew includes commander Zhu Yangzhu, pilot Zhang Yuanzhi and payload specialist Li Jiaying, a former Hong Kong police inspector who will become the first astronaut from Hong Kong to join a Chinese space mission.
Officials said one crew member will remain aboard the Tiangong station for a full year, although the final selection will depend on the mission’s progress.
The mission duration would rank among the world’s longest space stays, although it remains shorter than the 14-and-a-half-month record set by a Russian cosmonaut in 1995.
China and US intensify race for moon missions
The launch highlights China’s growing ambitions in space as Beijing pushes toward a crewed moon landing by 2030.
The United States aims to land astronauts on the moon in 2028 under NASA’s Artemis programme.
In April, four NASA astronauts completed the Artemis II mission, becoming the first humans in more than 50 years to travel around the moon.
Meanwhile, Elon Musk’s SpaceX recently carried out another major Starship test flight designed to support future lunar missions.
Washington has repeatedly raised concerns over what it describes as China’s long-term plans to expand influence over lunar territory and resources.
Beijing strongly rejects those accusations.
China has so far sent only robotic missions to the moon. However, the country became the first nation to retrieve samples from the moon’s far side in June 2024.
Chinese officials also hope to establish a permanent lunar base with Russia by 2035.
Extended mission will study effects of long-term space travel
The Shenzhou-23 mission will also focus heavily on medical and scientific research.
Scientists plan to study radiation exposure, bone density loss and psychological stress during long-duration spaceflight.
China is additionally conducting what state media described as the world’s first human “artificial embryo” experiment in space.
Researchers recently sent human stem cell samples to the Tiangong station to study long-term survival and reproduction in space environments.
The mission will also test an autonomous rapid rendezvous and docking system that China plans to use during its future lunar programme.
Analysts say the operation forms a key step toward Beijing’s goal of safely transporting astronauts from low-Earth orbit to the moon’s surface.
