Chang'e-6 takes off from Moon with first samples
The spacecraft finished its intelligent and rapid sampling work, and the samples were stowed in a container inside the ascender of the probe as planned
image for illustrative purpose
Beijing: The ascender of China's Chang'e-6 probe lifted off from the lunar surface on Tuesday morning, carrying samples collected from the Moon's far side, an unprecedented feat in human lunar exploration history.
According to the China National Space Administration (CNSA), the ascender has entered a preset orbit around the Moon, Xinhua news agency reported.
The ascender took off at 7:38 a.m. (Beijing Time) from the Moon's far side. A 3,000-newton engine, after working for about six minutes, pushed the ascender to the preset lunar orbit, the CNSA said.
The Chang'e-6 probe, comprising an orbiter, a lander, an ascender, and a returner -- like its predecessor Chang'e-5 -- was launched on May 3. The lander-ascender combination, separated from the orbiter-returner combination on May 30, touched down at the designated landing area in the South Pole-Aitken (SPA) Basin on June 2.
The spacecraft finished its intelligent and rapid sampling work, and the samples were stowed in a container inside the ascender of the probe as planned, the CNSA said.
During sampling and packaging, researchers conducted simulated sampling in a ground lab, based on the detection data sent back by the Queqiao-2 relay satellite, providing important support for decision-making and operations in every link.
"The mission has withstood the test of high temperature on the far side of the Moon," the CNSA said.
It adopted two methods of Moon sampling, including using a drill to collect subsurface samples and grabbing samples on the surface with a robotic arm. It automatically gathered diverse samples at different sites.
The multiple payloads installed on the lander, including the landing camera, panoramic camera, lunar soil structure detector and lunar mineral spectrum analyzer, worked well and carried out scientific exploration as planned, the CNSA said.
The report said that the lunar soil structure detector analysed and judged the underground lunar soil structure of the sampling area, providing data reference for the sample drilling.
