According to CCTV News, Su Meng, executive director of the Space Research Laboratory of the University of Hong Kong, recently revealed that,During the 15th Five-Year Plan period, Hong Kong will continue to be deeply involved in major national aerospace projects such as Chang'e-7, Chang'e-8, and Tianwen-3. In addition, Hong Kong will head to the moon and launch the "Moon Flash" probe around 2028 to observe meteors on the moon.
Su Meng also introduced in detail the participation of the Space Research Laboratory of the University of Hong Kong in China's lunar exploration and fire detection programs.
The HKU Laboratory is cooperating with the International Lunar Observation Association to jointly develop the ILO-C small wide-angle optical telescope camera for Chang'e-7, which is expected to be launched with the mission in 2026 and used to photograph the Milky Way from the moon.
The laboratory also cooperates with Shenzhen University and COSPAR (Council for Space Research) to jointly promote the development of the Tianwen-3 payload.
In the next five years, the laboratory will offer a master's course in "New Space Economy", strengthen cooperation with mainland and overseas space centers, and may be deeply involved in the research and development of observation equipment and data research related to lunar scientific research stations.
What is particularly eye-catching is that the Space Research Laboratory of the University of Hong Kong is planning to launch Hong Kong's first lunar orbiter - Moon Flash around 2028.
Su Meng revealed that Moon Flash aims to observe meteors on the moon, which are instantaneous optical phenomena caused by the impact of micrometeorites on the moon.
Since the moon has no atmosphere, such observations are crucial to the assessment of the Earth-lunar space environment and the safety of future human lunar surface activities.
Currently, there is no specialized lunar observation equipment in the world, and Hong Kong's "Moon Flash" mission is expected to fill the gap.
The moon flash mission will be jointly carried out by Hong Kong and the mainland. The detector's telescope will be manufactured locally in Hong Kong, and the spacecraft design will also be carried out in Hong Kong. The specific manufacturing and testing will be completed in conjunction with multiple institutions in the mainland.
As for the rocket that will transport the "Moon Flash" to the lunar orbit, many mainland space agencies have expressed interest in this.
In addition, HKU is also conducting in-depth demonstrations on using the far side of the moon to carry out very low-frequency radio astronomy observations, which is expected to fill in the last "missing electromagnetic spectrum of the universe" for mankind.