CHANG’E-10 CREWED LUNAR LANDING MISSION — CONFIRMED SURFACE LANDING — SHACKLETON CRATER RIM, LUNAR SOUTH POLE REGION — 14 JUNE 2029
The China National Space Administration confirms that the Chang’e-10 Lunar Descent Module Jianhong (建鸿, “Soaring Crane”) achieved successful powered descent and surface landing at the Shackleton Crater rim, lunar south polar region, at 10:52:34 CST on 14 June 2029.
Landing coordinates: 89.47°S, 124.31°E. Altitude above lunar datum: −1,847 metres. Surface slope at landing site: 2.3°. All landing systems nominal. This is the first crewed landing on the lunar surface since Apollo 17, 11 December 1972, and the first crewed landing in the lunar south polar region in the history of human spaceflight.
Crew
Commander: Liu Biao (刘彪) — Colonel, PLA Air Force. Third spaceflight. Prior missions: Shenzhou-17 (2023, 183 days aboard MTSS); Shenzhou-19 (2026, 97 days, lunar orbital mission). Age at landing: 46.
Mission Specialist: Wang Fang (王芳) — Senior Engineer, CNSA Astronaut Corps. Second spaceflight. Prior mission: Shenzhou-18 (2025, 147 days aboard MTSS). Designated primary EVA crew member for surface operations. Age at landing: 39.
Lunar Module Pilot: Chen Haotian (陈昊天) — Lieutenant Colonel, PLA Air Force. Second spaceflight. Prior mission: Shenzhou-20 (2027, 92 days, systems qualification for Chang’e-10 descent module avionics). Age at landing: 37.
Mission Profile
- Launch: 28 May 2029, Wenchang Space Launch Centre, Hainan Island. Long March 10B heavy-lift vehicle.
- Translunar injection: 28 May 2029. Coast duration: 6 days, 4 hours.
- Lunar orbit insertion: 3 June 2029. Crew transferred from Command Service Module Tianqiong (天穹, “Celestial Vault”) to Descent Module Jianhong on 12 June.
- Landing: 14 June 2029, 10:52 CST. See above.
- Surface operations: 9 hours, 30 minutes nominal. EVA duration: 4 hours, 30 minutes.
- Return to Earth: Ascent module ignition 20:31 CST 14 June. Earth splashdown 24 June 2029, South China Sea.
Surface Operations
EVA conducted by Wang Fang (lead) and Liu Biao (support), while Chen Haotian remained aboard Jianhong for systems readiness and communication relay.
Deployed instruments:
- Chang’e South Polar Science Package (CSPSP), including:
- Helium-3 Concentration and Distribution Spectrometer (HDS-3), principal investigator Dr. Wu Mingzhe, Institute of Lunar and Planetary Science, CAS
- Seismic monitoring array (SMA-4), four-node passive deployment
- Regolith thermal gradient probe (RTGP-1)
- Navigation and landing beacon (NLB-10) to guide future Chang’e-11 and -12 precision landings
Samples collected: 14.7 kg from three designated surface sites within 200 metres of landing point, the largest lunar sample return since Apollo 17.
MTSS Coordination
The Mir-Tian Space Station, passing within direct communication range during the EVA window, provided communication relay support. MTSS Commander Alexei Voronov (Roscosmos) and Flight Engineer Zhang Wei (CNSA) conducted real-time surface observation. Voronov’s transmission to the surface crew: “From Mir-Tian to Jianhong — we see you. The whole station is at the windows.”
Administrator’s Statement
CNSA Administrator Zhang Kejian issued the following at a Beijing press conference approximately forty minutes after landing confirmation:
Jianhong has landed. […] Today, Chinese taikonauts stand beside them — not beside those specific footprints, which are far from here, but in the same silence, under the same black sky, on the same ancient surface. […] We are not here to win a race. The race framing has never been ours. We are here because the Moon is the next place, and we intend to be there.
First Words from the Surface
Wang Fang: “为中国，为所有仰望星空的人。” / “For China, and for all who look up.”
Liu Biao: “我们来了。我们留下。” / “We have come. We will remain.”
Next Steps
Chang’e-11, the second crewed south polar mission, currently in systems integration at Wenchang. Launch window: Q2 2031.