China will launch the Shenzhou-23 crewed mission to the Tiangong space station on Sunday night, marking the first time a Hong Kong astronaut, Li Jiaying, will travel to orbit. He joins Chinese astronauts Zhu Yangzhu and Zhang Zhiyuan.
China is rapidly advancing toward its first crewed lunar landing by 2030, developing new spacecraft, rockets, and spacesuits. Its steady progress rivals NASA’s Artemis program, raising geopolitical stakes and highlighting Beijing’s growing technological, strategic, and symbolic ambitions in space exploration
