China is on track in its space exploration agenda, as the country is looking to push forward several missions to the moon and beyond by 2030. (Photo : Getty Images)
A new Chinese company is planning to launch space tours by the ChinaRocket Co. Ltd, a subsidiary of China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology. The company is the largest developer of ballistic missiles and carrier rockets.
Li Hong, president of the academy, said, "Chinese commercial space enterprises are lagging behind the global market due to lack of complete production chain in the commercial space industry and experience in commercial space activities like space tourism."
"Commercializing rocket launches will help develop the industry as many private companies will be interested in the sector," Jiao Weixin, a professor at the School of Earth and Space Science of Peking University.
According to a news report, the tours will be done through a space plane. It said, "The vehicle will take off vertically like a rocket and land on the runway automatically without any ground or onboard intervention.
"China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology team leader Han Pengxin said that it will burn liquid methane and liquid oxygen. Han's team has designed two versions of their rocket plane. The first has a mass of 10 tons and a wingspan of 6 meters."
Han added, "This one, he says, should be able to fly five people to an altitude of 100 kilometers--where space officially begins--at speeds up to Mach 6, giving 2 minutes of weightlessness. But a scaled up 100-tonne version, with a 12-metre wingspan, could fly 20 people to 130 kilometers at Mach 8, giving 4 minutes of weightlessness."
According to the academy, the flights will cost around $200,000 to $250,000. The price is similar to Virgin Galactic's space tourism package.
The amount spent in space is also the same.
