Russia, China Sign Cooperation Agreement to Explore Moon, Deep Space
Russian State Space Corporation Roscosmos and the China National Space Administration on Tuesday signed an agreement to create a joint research center to explore the Moon and deep space, a Sputnik correspondent reported from the signing ceremony
The two space agencies have also signed an agreement on coordinating Russia's Luna Resurs-1 orbiter mission (Luna-26) and the Chinese mission for exploring the polar region of the Moon, Chang'e-7.
In January 2019, head researcher of the Russian Space Research Institute Lev Zeleny told Sputnik that the two nations were discussing the possibility of using Russia's Luna-26 lunar orbiter as a responder for Chinese lunar landing stations.
The Chang'e-7 mission involves a general study of the Moon's south pole, including its terrain and landforms.
Roscosmos head Dmitry Rogozin said earlier that the Luna-26 spacecraft would fly to the Moon in 2024 to map and remotely study its surface. The obtained data will help determine the composition of the lunar surface.