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China postpones Chang’e-7 lunar mission

By Thomson Reuters Aug 23, 2026 | 8:00 AM

BEIJING, Aug 23 (Reuters) – China said on Sunday it has ​postponed its Chang’e-7 ‌lunar mission after a “comprehensive assessment”, according to state-run Xinhua news agency.

• ‌The ​uncrewed ⁠Chang’e-7 mission “does not ⁠meet the conditions for launch and therefore cannot be carried ​out within the launch window scheduled ⁠for this ⁠year”, Xinhua said, ​citing authorities.

• Before Sunday’s ​announcement, the Chang’e-7 spacecraft, ‌named after a mythical Chinese goddess of the moon, ⁠had been expected to be launched as early as ⁠next ‌week.

• The ⁠spacecraft was expected ​to ‌search for frozen ​water ⁠near the moon’s south pole.

(Reporting by Xiuhao Chen and Ryan Woo; Editing by Emelia ​Sithole-Matarise)