Flight with taikonauts to Mars planned

By 2033, China plans to add another feather in its cap to its successes in space. The country’s space agency plans to send a spacecraft with humans on board to Mars. As many as five missions are planned from that date, according to Wang Xiaojun, the head of the prestigious China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology (abbreviated CALT), a spacecraft manufacturer. With this tight schedule, China could beat the US in the race to the red planet. Speaking at a space conference, Wang said the goal of the mission is to return ground samples, among other things, as FAZ and Financial Times report.