BEIJING, April 22 — In an announcement made at a Beijing press conference this week, a senior leader from China’s lunar exploration program has revealed that Chinese space engineers are set to launch preliminary research into constructing a functional greenhouse on the surface of the moon.
Wang Qiong, senior space engineer and deputy chief designer of China’s groundbreaking Chang’e 6 mission at the China National Space Administration (CNSA) Lunar Exploration and Space Program Center, outlined that the initiative leverages cutting-edge lunar construction technologies to address one of the most persistent hazards of lunar exploration: the extreme environment of the lunar night. Spanning 14 Earth days, the lunar night sees temperatures plummet to as low as minus 200 degrees Celsius, creating life-threatening and equipment-damaging conditions for lunar rovers, robotic systems, and any future human expeditions. The proposed greenhouse would act as a temperature-controlled shelter, allowing robotic assets to survive the long, frigid dark period more reliably than existing power and thermal management systems.
As China’s lunar exploration program shifts its long-term strategy from short-duration robotic missions to sustainable infrastructure that will support eventual human stays on the moon, this research fills a critical gap in current lunar habitat design, Wang noted. A functional lunar greenhouse could also lay early groundwork for testing in-situ resource utilization and closed-loop life support systems that will be essential for future crewed lunar bases.
The announcement of the greenhouse research comes on the heels of a series of major scientific breakthroughs achieved by the Chang’e 6 mission, which made history as the first human mission to return geological samples from the far side of the moon. In June 2024, the Chang’e 6 return capsule touched down in northern China, carrying 1,935.3 grams of far-side lunar material back to Earth. Analysis of these unprecedented samples has already allowed Chinese scientists to reconstruct, for the first time in global lunar science, the complete evolutionary geological history of the moon’s little-studied far side.
Wang also highlighted the collaborative, open nature of China’s lunar exploration efforts, noting that the Chang’e 6 mission successfully carried international payloads from partner space agencies across the globe. The mission hosted a Pakistani CubeSat, plus three independent scientific instruments from France, the European Space Agency (ESA), and Italy. All international cooperative instruments have already returned data that exceeded pre-mission performance expectations, demonstrating the value of global collaboration in advancing deep space exploration.
The plan to research a lunar greenhouse marks another step forward in China’s expanding lunar exploration roadmap, building on the historic success of Chang’e 6 to push the boundaries of what is possible for long-term lunar activity.