Chang'e 7 is a planned robotic Chinese lunar exploration mission expected to be launched in 2026 to target the lunar south pole.^[4] Like its predecessors, the spacecraft is named after the Chinese moon goddess Chang'e. The mission will include an orbiter, a lander, a mini-hopping probe, and a rover.^[5]

Overview

The Chinese Lunar Exploration Program is designed to be conducted in four^[6] phases of incremental technological advancement: The first is simply reaching lunar orbit, a task completed by Chang'e 1 in 2007 and Chang'e 2 in 2010. The second is landing and roving on the Moon, as Chang'e 3 did in 2013 and Chang'e 4 did in 2019 (The rover still being active as of 2024). The third is collecting lunar samples from the near-side and far-side of the moon and sending them to Earth, a task accomplished by Chang'e 5 in 2020 and by Chang'e 6 mission in 2024. The fourth phase consists of development of a robotic research station near the Moon's south pole.^[6] ^[7] ^[8] The program aims to facilitate a crewed lunar landing in the 2030s and possibly build an outpost near the lunar south pole.^[9]

Chang'e-7 mission will try to land on the illuminated rim of Shackleton crater near the lunar south pole.^[10]

Scientific objectives

The official scientific objectives of Chang'e 7 mission are:^[11]

Investigation and study of lunar surface environment and water ice in its soil.
High-precision investigation and study of morphology, composition and structure of the Moon.
Investigation and study of interior structure, magnetic field and thermal characteristics of the Moon.
General investigation and study of surface environment of the south pole of the Moon.
Moon-based observation and study of the Earth's magnetotail and plasmasphere.

Scientific payloads

Chang'e-7 will carry a total of 21 scientific payloads, including 6 international payloads, aiming to conduct detailed exploration of the environment and resources in the south polar region of the moon. Mission objectives include fixed-point landings. In situ observations of the permanently shadowed crater will be made by the mini-hopping probe, which will carry water molecule and hydrogen isotope analyzers.^[12] ^[13] ^[14] ^[15]

Lunar orbiter

High Resolution Stereo Mapping Camera
- At an altitude of 100 km, the resolution of the lunar surface is better than 0.5 m, and the imaging width is greater than 18 km
- At an altitude of 15 km, the resolution of the lunar surface is better than 0.075 m, and the imaging width is greater than 0.9 km
Miniature Synthetic Aperture Radar
- Imaging resolution better than 0.3 m
Wide Band Infrared Spectrum Mineral Imaging Analyzer
Lunar Neutron Gamma Spectrometer
Lunar Orbit Magnetometer
Lunar Surface Material Hyperspectral Imager (jointly developed by the Egyptian Space Agency and the Bahrain National Space Science Agency)
Moon-based Dual-channel Earth Radiation Spectrometer (developed by the Physical Meteorological Observatory in Davos, Switzerland)
Space Weather Global Monitoring Sensor Device (Developed by the Ministry of Higher Education, Research and Innovation of Thailand and the National Astronomical Research Institute of Thailand)

Lunar lander

Landing Camera
Topography Camera
Lunar Surface Environment Detection System
- Electric field probe
- Low-energy ion probe
- Low-energy electron probe
- Intermediate/high energy particle probe
- Dust probe
Lunar Seismograph
Laser Corner Reflector Array (developed by the Italian National Institute of Nuclear Physics-Frascati National Laboratory)
Lunar Dust and Electric Field Probe (developed by the Russian Academy of Space Sciences)
Moon-based Astronomical Observation Telescope (developed by the International Association of Lunar Observatories)

Lunar rover

Panoramic Camera
Rover Magnetometer
Lunar Penetrating Radar
Lunar Raman Spectrometer
In-situ Measuring System of Volatiles and Istopes on Lunar Surface

Mini-hopping probe

Water Molecule and Hydrogen Isotope Analyzer

Launch

The probe is planned to be launched by a Long March 5 rocket in 2026, from the Wenchang Satellite Launch Center on Hainan Island.

Notes and References

Web site: The Space Review: What is China doing at the lunar distant retrograde orbit? . 2022-04-12 . www.thespacereview.com.
Web site: Jones . Andrew . UAE rover to fly on China's Chang'e-7 lunar south pole mission . . 19 September 2022 . 19 September 2022.
Web site: Philleafspace . 2023-04-25 . weibo . zh-hans . 2023-04-25.
Web site: McCarthy . Simone . 2024-06-25 . China’s Chang’e-6 moon mission returns to Earth with historic far side samples . 2024-06-25 . CNN . en.
Web site: Jones . Andrew . Next China moon mission will need precision landing to target ice at south pole . . 29 March 2022 . 8 April 2022.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v7FiaHwv-BI Chang'e 4 press conference
http://epizodsspace.airbase.ru/bibl/inostr-yazyki/Chinese_Journal_of_Space_Science/2018/5/Xu_et_al_China's_Planning_---_before_2030_Chin_J_Space_Sci_38_(2018).pdf China's Planning for Deep Space Exploration and Lunar Exploration before 2030
http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2018cosp...42E3886Z A Tentative Plan of China to Establish a Lunar Research Station in the Next Ten Years
Web site: China lays out its ambitions to colonize the moon and build a "lunar palace" . Echo . Huang . Quartz . 26 April 2018.
Web site: Jones . Andrew . 2024-01-30 . China’s Chang’e-7 moon mission to target Shackleton crater . 2024-08-19 . SpaceNews . en-US.
Web site: Announcement of Opportunity Solicitating for Payloads onboard Chang'E-7 Mission . CNSA . 22 September 2022 . 22 September 2022.
Web site: Overview of China's Upcoming Chang'e Series and the Scientific Objectives and Payloads for Chang'e-7 Mission . Yongliao . Zou . Yang . Liu . Yingzhuo . Jia. 51st Lunar and Planetary Science Conference (2020) . 2023-08-26.
Web site: 月函〔2020〕号. 中国探月工程网. 2021-08-17. 2021-07-30. https://web.archive.org/web/20210730083521/http://www.clep.org.cn/n6020511/c6810049/part/6784772.docx. live.
Scientific objectives and payload configuration of the Chang'E-7 mission . Wang . Chi . Jia . Yingzhuo . Xue . Changbin . Lin . Yangting . Liu . Jianzhong . Fu . Xiaohui . Xu . Lin . Huang . Yun . Zhao . Yufen . Xu . Yigang . Gao . Rui . Wei . Yong . Tang . Yuhua . Yu . Dengyun . Zou . Yongliao . 2024 . National Science Review . 11 . 2 . 10.1093/nsr/nwad329 . 38384740 . en . 2024-01-17. 10880881 .
Web site: 國際月球科研站再添3成員　嫦娥七號將搭載6台國際載荷 . 2024-04-24 . 文匯網. zh-hants . 2024-04-24.