Space Program: Space Labs and Government Investment

space program: But in recent decades, as China has grown richer and more powerful, its space program has accelerated, according to CNN. Buoyed by billions of dollars in government investment, Beijing has fired space labs and satellites into orbit and even become the first country to send an unmanned rover to the far side of the moon. The fierce space race between the United States and the Soviet Union had left behind Beijing, which launched its first manned space flight in 2003, more than 40 years after NASA's achievement. This picture released on January 11, 2019, by the China National Space Administration shows the Chang'e-4 lunar probe on the far side of the moon. context Image Object name This picture released on January 11, 2019, by the China National Space Administration shows the Chang'e-4 lunar probe on the far side of the moon. description This picture released on January 11, 2019, by the China National Space Administration shows the Chang'e-4 lunar probe on the far side of the moon. url Private Chinese companies are also investing in space research and technology, with the country's first successful private rocket launch taking place in May 2018. China is just bigger than everyone else -- they have more people, they have more engineers, they have more scientists, said Blaine Curcio, founder of Hong Kong-based space industry research firm Orbital Gateway Consulting. Read More Even greater ambitions are on the horizon -- Beijing is working toward sending astronauts to the moon and, eventually, Mars. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.