China’s Chang’e 5 probe has completed its sample collection on the moon



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The Chinese National Space Administration reported that on 3 December the Chinese Chang’e 5 probe finished its maneuvers to collect and store samples from the lunar surface. The mission will conclude with their return to Earth at the end of this month.

On Thursday, the National Space Administration of China (ANEC) reported that the Chang’e-5 lunar probe finished collecting samples from the lunar surface, it did so more than a day ahead of schedule on the first sample recovery mission. polka dots made from the 70s.

“At 22:00 on December 2 (14:00 GMT), after 19 hours of work on the lunar surface, the Chang’e 5 successfully completed the collection of the samples, which were packaged and stored as intended,” ANEC indicated in a statement.

The Chang’e-5, named after a goddess who lives on the moon, according to Chinese mythology, has collected samples from both the lunar surface and others two meters deep. The first maneuver was performed with a robotic arm, while the second with a drill. Both samples were vacuum packed to maintain their external conditions.

According to the Chinese portal ‘China Daily’, “the lunar samples collected by the robotic mission Chang’e 5 embarked on their journey to Earth” Thursday night (China time), hours after the spacecraft ended. collected.

The return of the spacecraft to Earth is scheduled for December, although a landing date has not yet been set. What is expected is the place: the northern Chinese region of Inner Mongolia.

China would become the third country to collect lunar samples

If the expedition is successful, this would be the third that a country has committed to collecting samples from the surface of the Moon. The United States and the former Soviet Union had already done so in the 1970s.

The Chang’e program began in 2007 with Beijing’s launch of a first orbital probe around the Moon. Then, in 2013, the Asian giant landed for the first time and last year another Chinese probe touched the moon. That occasion was the first time in history that a mission has reached the far side of the satellite, where the probe still remains.

The ultimate goal of the Chang’e program is to achieve a manned mission to the Moon and subsequently build a scientific base on Earth’s natural satellite. At present, the Chinese National Space Administration has not set a date for the completion of these goals.

With Reuters and EFE

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