China’s next moon mission to include Egypt and Bahrain, member of US Artemis Accords
- Egypt and Bahrain will contribute hyperspectral camera to Chang’e-7 hunt for water, despite Bahrain’s close ties with Washington
A cooperation agreement was signed last week between the Egyptian Space Agency, Bahrain’s National Space Science Agency, and the Changchun Institute of Optics, Fine Mechanics and Physics for the joint development of a hyperspectral camera.
According to the CNSA statement, Egyptian space officials said the project is the first opportunity for Egypt and Bahrain to work together on lunar exploration, and that Egypt looks to deepen its collaboration with China in future space exploration.
The hyperspectral camera, to be built by Egypt and Bahrain with the help of Chinese engineers, is among six international payloads selected by the CNSA to fly on board Chang’e-7.
Thailand, Russia, Italy, Switzerland, and a Hawaii-based NGO known as the International Lunar Observatory Association will provide the other five.