"嫦五"将择机月面软着陆
Probe prepares to land on moon China's Chang'e-5 probe is preparing for a soft landing on the moon to undertake the country's first collection of samples from an extraterrestrial body. The lander-ascender combination of the spacecraft separated from its orbiter-returner combination at 4:40 am Monday, according to the China National Space Administration (CNSA). The spacecraft is performing well and communication with ground control is normal, CNSA said. The lander-ascender combination will execute a soft landing on the moon and engage in automatic sampling. The orbiter-returner will continue orbiting about 200 km above the lunar surface and wait for rendezvous and docking with the ascender. Launched on Nov 24, Chang'e-5 is one of the most complicated and challenging missions in China's aerospace history, as well as the world's first moon-sample mission in more than 40 years. |