On May 1st, the China National Space Administration announced that, following comprehensive analysis and decision-making by the engineering task command, the Chang'e-6 mission of the lunar exploration project Phase Four is scheduled for launch on May 3rd. The launch window refers to the time range suitable for rocket launches.
Taking into account factors such as the relationship between the Earth and the Moon, the engineering team applied the "narrow window, multiple orbits" launch technology for this mission. They designed a total of 10 lunar transfer orbits for the rocket to ensure the mission can proceed smoothly within 50-minute windows on both May 3rd and May 4th.
Currently, the Chang'e-6 mission has completed the final system-wide rehearsal before launch. All preparations are steadily progressing, and the Long March-5 Y8 carrier rocket, which will carry out this launch, is about to be fueled. This will be the second time the Long March-5 carrier rocket executes a lunar exploration launch mission, transporting the Chang'e-6 probe to the Earth-Moon transfer orbit to carry out the task of sampling and returning from the far side of the Moon.
In 2017, Lunar Exploration Makes Breakthroughs!
China's lunar exploration project, initiated in January 2004 and named the "Chang'e Project," marks another milestone in China's aerospace development after the successful launch of artificial Earth satellites and manned spaceflight, ushering in an era of deep space exploration and unraveling the mysteries of the universe.
As Chang'e 6 is set to launch, let's take a look back at the lunar exploration journey of the "Chang'e" missions.
Chang'e-1
Launch Date: October 24, 2007, 18:05
Launch Site: Xichang Satellite Launch Center
Chang'e-1, China's first self-developed lunar probe satellite, marked a significant step in China's lunar exploration project, paving the way for China's deep space exploration capabilities.
Chang'e-2
Launch Date: October 1, 2010, 18:59
Launch Site: Xichang Satellite Launch Center
Chang'e-2, the second satellite in China's lunar exploration program, achieved a historic close encounter with the asteroid 4179 Toutatis, becoming China's first interplanetary explorer.
Chang'e-3
Launch Date: December 2, 2013, 1:30
Launch Site: Xichang Satellite Launch Center
Chang'e-3 successfully landed on the moon's Mare Imbrium with China's first lunar rover, Yutu (Jade Rabbit), making China the third country to achieve a soft landing on the moon.
Chang'e-4
Launch Date: December 8, 2018, 2:23
Launch Site: Xichang Satellite Launch Center
Chang'e-4 made the first-ever soft landing on the far side of the moon in the Von Kármán crater within the South Pole-Aitken Basin, unveiling the mysterious far side of the moon to humanity.
Chang'e-5
Launch Date: November 24, 2020, 4:30
Launch Site: Wenchang Space Launch Center
Chang'e-5 successfully returned with 1,731 grams of lunar samples, marking China's first extraterrestrial sample collection and the first new lunar sample return in 44 years.
Chang'e-6, originally a backup for Chang'e-5, will embark on a new mission to collect lunar samples from the far side of the moon, marking humanity's first attempt at sampling the far side.
Chang'e-6 will explore the South Pole-Aitken Basin on the far side, conducting morphology and geological surveys to collect samples from different regions and ages of the moon.
To enhance international cooperation, Chang'e-6 carries payloads and satellite projects from four countries, including France, the European Space Agency, Italy, and Pakistan.
To ensure smooth communication between the lunar spacecraft and Earth, China has developed the Queqiao-2 relay communication satellite, which successfully completed in-orbit testing in April.
