Yang is widely known for leading the design work on the Chang’e 5 robotic spacecraft that fulfilled China’s first lunar sample retrieval mission.
He was speaking on the side-lines of the second session of the 14th National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, which concluded in Beijing on Sunday. He is a member of the CPPCC National Committee, the top political advisory body in China.
China began its lunar programme in 2004 and has launched six robotic probes since 2007. The most recent mission, Chang’e 5, landed on the moon in December 2020 and soon brought 1,731 grams of lunar rocks and soil back to Earth, achieving a historic accomplishment about 44 years after the last lunar substances were brought back from our nearest celestial neighbour.