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  • Category: Tech

The 2026 Space Day of China was a high-profile event that showcased the nation's latest achievements and its growing commitment to international cooperation in space exploration.

📅 Event Overview

Held on April 24, 2026, this was the 11th annual Space Day of China. The date commemorates the launch of China's first satellite, Dongfanghong-1, on April 24, 1970. The main event was hosted in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, and carried the theme, "A Seven-Decade Celestial Path, A Shared Cosmos Faith," reflecting on 70 years of China's space endeavors and a vision for shared future exploration.

🚀 Key Announcements and Highlights

Several major developments were announced during the opening ceremony, underscoring China's ambitions in deep-space exploration and commercial spaceflight:

  • New Lunar Minerals: Two new minerals, magnesio-changesite-(Y) and changesite-(Ce), were discovered from the Chang'e-5 lunar samples. These are the second and third lunar minerals found by Chinese scientists, respectively.
  • Tianwen-3 Mars Mission: International collaboration took center stage with the announcement of selected projects for the Tianwen-3 Mars sample-return mission, scheduled to launch around 2028. Cooperative payloads include contributions from Macau University of Science and Technology and the Chinese University of Hong Kong, among others.
  • Commercial Space Standards: The country's first commercial space standard system (Version 1.0) was released to guide and promote high-quality development in the commercial space sector.

🌍 International Collaboration

A key theme of the 2026 event was openness and international partnership.

  • Guest of Honor: Brazil was the featured guest country, with Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva sending a letter hailing the two nations' space partnership as "exemplary". Both sides confirmed plans to continue developing the China-Brazil Earth Resources Satellite (CBERS) program.
  • Foreign Astronaut Training: Two Pakistani astronauts arrived in China to begin training with Chinese counterparts. One of them is set to become the first foreign astronaut to visit the Tiangong space station as a payload specialist. A Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson reiterated the principle of "equality, mutual benefits, peaceful use and inclusive development" in such partnerships.

🎉 Special Activities and Personalities

To inspire the next generation, three individuals were appointed as "China Space Public Welfare Ambassadors": Xie Jun (Deputy Chief Designer of the BeiDou project), Zhang Bing (Academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences), and Ye Guangfu (a veteran taikonaut). Meanwhile, the Shenzhou-21 crew sent a video message from the Tiangong space station, encouraging all space enthusiasts to "journey bravely toward the vast universe".

Throughout the Space Day period, over 30 activities, including a space science exhibition, academic forums, and educational campus visits, were scheduled to engage the public and professionals alike.

The 2026 Space Day illustrated China's vision of advancing its space capabilities through technological independence while actively shaping a collaborative global space community.