Models
3
Overview
The China National Space Administration (CNSA) is China's civilian space agency, established in 1993 under the State Council of the People's Republic of China. Headquartered in Beijing, CNSA oversees China's civil space programs including lunar exploration (Chang'e program), Mars missions (Tianwen-1 with the Zhurong rover), and robotic lunar rovers (Yutu-2). With an annual budget of approximately US$18.15 billion (2023), CNSA operates from four primary spaceports and manages international space cooperation agreements.
Verified record
- Verified deployments
- None on file
- Active incidents
- None on file
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Key facts
Focus
Robot
Missions
Notable
Yutu-2 status
Administrator
Budget
Type
Jurisdiction
Data & sources
Web sources
1
1 source backing this record.View all →
Models (3)
View all models →Current platform
Yutu-2 Rover
China's lunar far-side rover, deployed by the Chang'e 4 lander (first far-side soft landing, 2019-01-03). Operated primarily by ground command across the Earth-Moon light delay; Chinese sources describe autonomous navigation/obstacle-detection capability, but the specific hazard-avoidance behavior is not corroborated in English-language primary sources (verified-vs-claimed: stated as claimed-capability, not verified). Still mobile as of 2025 (1.6+ km traversed), the longest-lived lunar rover.
Retired
Zhurong Rover
China's first Mars rover (Tianwen-1; landed Utopia Planitia 2021-05-14, drove off 2021-05-22). Operated by ground command with twin-rover path rehearsal on Earth; no autonomous hazard-avoidance system is documented in available sources (verified-vs-claimed: do not overstate as autonomous). Entered planned hibernation 2022-05-18 and never re-established contact (solar-panel dust suspected); presumed lost.
Current platform
Chang'e Lander
Robotic lunar landers using multi-beam obstacle-avoidance LiDAR and autonomous hazard-avoidance hover/descent (Chang'e 3 onward).
Current leadership (1)
- Shan Zhongde Administratorreported, not verified
Safety record
No incidents on record for China National Space Administration.
Only active incidents are counted. Retracted incidents are excluded from this summary but remain reachable at their canonical URLs.
Full safety record: incidents, sourcing, and exposure data →
Recent coverage
China National Space Administration in third-party press
Peer companies
- Impulse Space6 models
- Astrobotic Technology3 models
- Astroscale2 models
- China Manned Space Agency2 models
- GITAI2 models
- Lunar Outpost2 models
Financial state
- Reporting basis
- private_reported
- Lifecycle stage
- growth
- Counterparty risk class
- moderate
Each numeric field carries its own basis marker. Aggregators report a number; this surface preserves the source class so verification depth travels with the value.
Recent activity
Every change to this record is dated, sourced, and independently verified where marked.
- Verified media addedVerifiedJun 11, 2026
Chang'e-4 Deploys Yutu-2 Rover on the Moon
- Verified media addedVerifiedJun 11, 2026
Zhurong Landing on Mars: Onboard Camera View
- Verified media addedVerifiedJun 7, 2026
Yutu-2 rolls across the Moon
- Verified media addedVerifiedJun 6, 2026
Chang'e-6 far-side lunar landing
- Record createdJun 5, 2026
Added to the verified registry
Sources (1)
Common questions
- What is China National Space Administration?
- The China National Space Administration (CNSA) is China's civilian space agency, established in 1993 under the State Council of the People's Republic of China. Headquartered in Beijing, CNSA oversees China's civil space programs including lunar exploration (Chang'e program), Mars missions (Tianwen-1 with the Zhurong rover), and robotic lunar rovers (Yutu-2). With an annual budget of approximately US$18.15 billion (2023), CNSA operates from four primary spaceports and manages international space cooperation agreements.
- What does China National Space Administration make?
- China National Space Administration has 3 robot models on the DEPLOY registry: Yutu-2 Rover, Zhurong Rover, Chang'e Lander (China National Space Administration builds physical robots).
- Who competes with China National Space Administration?
- On the DEPLOY registry, peer companies to China National Space Administration building in the same form factors include Impulse Space, Astrobotic Technology, Astroscale, China Manned Space Agency.
- Who is the CEO of China National Space Administration?
- Shan Zhongde is the ceo of China National Space Administration, per the DEPLOY registry.
- Where does China National Space Administration operate robots?
- China National Space Administration is a robot manufacturer and does not directly operate deployments on the DEPLOY registry. Its products are deployed by customer operators; see the company page for the verified deployment record.
- Is China National Space Administration a top robotics company?
- On DEPLOY's intelligence score, which blends verified deployments, funding, hiring, media, safety, and IP signals, China National Space Administration ranks in roughly the top 35% of companies tracked by the registry.
- When was China National Space Administration founded?
- China National Space Administration was founded in 1993.
- Is China National Space Administration safe?
- China National Space Administration has no incidents on record in the DEPLOY registry. This does not constitute a safety guarantee; it reflects the incidents DEPLOY has tracked and verified to date.
Methodology: Verified · 1 source (no primary) · last reviewed 2026-07-07
Verification posture
Verified
Low confidence
Review state
Stable
Last reviewed 2026-07-07
Sources by quality tier
- 1
- knowledge-base
- Knowledge base
The framework is documented at /methodology. Corrections at /corrections. Reviewer: DEPLOY editorial team.
Methodology surface for China National Space Administration.Peer companies
- Impulse Space6 models
- Astrobotic Technology3 models
- Astroscale2 models
- China Manned Space Agency2 models
- GITAI2 models
- Lunar Outpost2 models
In the press
Recent coverage mentioning China National Space Administration from third-party publications. Automatically surfaced; not part of the verified registry record.
Machine-readable surfaces
- Markdown mirror: /companies/cnsa.md
- RSS feed: /companies/cnsa/feed.xml
- JSON-LD: embedded in this page’s head
- REST API: /v1/companies/1a9f61ca-2bc9-45ff-97dd-7dd20174aaa2
- Revision history: /companies/cnsa/history
- Data documentation: /data
- Query this programmatically: Deploy MCP
Peer companies
- Impulse Space6 models
- Astrobotic Technology3 models
- Astroscale2 models
- China Manned Space Agency2 models
- GITAI2 models
- Lunar Outpost2 models
Video
Chinese robots have discovered something new on the far side of the Moon Last Video: Something Big is Happening With China's Tiangong Space Station https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KWZTUiP6XiQ&ab_channel=TheSpaceRace ►S
What’s life really like 400 kilometers above Earth inside China’s Tiangong Space Station — the “Heavenly Palace” orbiting our planet? 🇨🇳 In this exclusive, d
Thanks to our guest contributor, Jatan Mehta from Moon Monday. Subscribe to the Moon Monday blog and newsletter at this link: https://jatan.space/subscribe Las
China has become a great competitor to the United States in space. Over the last several years, the country has executed a number of milestones including launch
Explore China's ambitious space program and its impact on global power dynamics. From historical origins at Caltech to leading-edge missions, discover how China
NASA is ordering landers, rovers and drones for a sprawling Moon base, less than two months after the Artemis II's record-breaking lunar flyaround. The space ag
China plans to send a flying robot to the Moon's south pole to explore potential water reserves, marking a new milestone in space exploration. #china #beijing
In this brief e-learning video, you will learn about China National Space Administration (CNSA), the national space agency of the People's Republic of China res
Tiangong Space Station Robotic Arm Work Start.China Space Station, China National Space Administration, Tiangong Station, Robotic Arm Tiangong Space Station, Ti
The Chinese Lunar Exploration Program (CLEP; Chinese: 中国探月; pinyin: Zhōngguó Tànyuè), also known as the Chang'e Project (Chinese: 嫦娥工程; pinyin: Cháng'é Gōngchén
Secretly China has launched a secret robot to the far side of the moon Reports of China launching a secret robot to the far side of the moon have surfaced, spa
Reality vs attention
China National Space Administration draws attention at the 69th percentile but verifies reality at the 87th percentile among space robots. Hype Gap -18, 13th widest among space robots.
6-month trend
Analysis
Clean safety record across 6 verified deployments. Limited public funding data for capital position assessment.
Signal flags
Dimension breakdown
Verified signal
Attention (reach, not merit)
DEPLOY Intelligence scores are computed from verified registry data: confirmed deployments, disclosed funding rounds, regulatory filings, active job listings, video viewership, and press coverage. Confidence ratings reflect data availability. Scores update nightly.
DEPLOY Indices — verified vs claimed
Last computed: Jul 21, 2026