Great strides of China's space programmes

Abstract While China's almost flawless space endeavours—such as its space lab Tiangong-2, launched last year, and the 2012 mission that sent a rover to the surface of the Moon—have long impressed the world, space-science missions were not among its priorities until recently. The situation improved in 2011 when the Chinese Academy of Sciences won government support for a 10-year Strategic Pioneering Programme on Space Science—with a total budget of nearly 1 billion dollars. Since then, China has launched satellites to probe dark matter, detect black holes and conduct quantum experiments from space. This year will see the launch of an astronomy satellite and a highly anticipated mission to bring back rocks from the Moon. In a forum chaired by National Science Review's Executive Associate Editor Mu-ming Poo, space scientists discussed different types of Chinese space programmes, the science missions already launched or in development, the importance and challenges of international collaboration, and the uncertain future of the country's space-science development. Chunlai Li Deputy Director, National Astronomical Observatories, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing Ji Wu Director, National Centre of Space Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing Jianyu Wang Deputy Director, Chinese Academy of Sciences Shanghai Branch Shuangnan Zhang Institute of High-Energy Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing Yifang Wang Director, Institute of High-Energy Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing Mu-ming Poo (Chair) Director, Institute of Neuroscience, Institute of High-Energy Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai