China reveals Chang’e-5 probe details

Beijing: China’s Chang’e-5 probe, to be launched by 2019-end, will undergo multiple flight phases before the mission is completed, the media reported. China National Space Administration (CNSA) plans to launch the mission with the goal of collecting samples from the near side of the Moon. They would be the first samples to be retrieved since 1976, Xinhua news agency reported. The probe will enter the Earth-Moon transfer orbit. It will slow near the Moon to enter the lunar orbit and descend and land on a pre-selected area for ground research work, including collecting lunar samples, Peng Jing, deputy chief designer from the China Academy of Space Technology said. After finishing its work on the Moon, the ascender will rise from the lunar surface for rendezvous and docking with the orbiter flying around the Moon. (IANS)

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