China Launches Asteroid Sample Mission
(MENAFN) China has initiated its pioneering mission to gather materials from a nearby asteroid, marking a major milestone in its space exploration endeavors, as reported by state-run media on Thursday.
The spacecraft, named Tianwen-2, launched aboard a Long March-3B rocket from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center, located in Sichuan province, according to the media.
Roughly 18 minutes after liftoff, the probe successfully unfolded its solar panels and entered its intended orbit, based on information provided by the China National Space Administration (CNSA).
The Tianwen missions represent a series of unmanned space initiatives developed by the CNSA to investigate various celestial bodies throughout the solar system.
The term "Tianwen" translates to "heavenly questions" or "questions to heaven," reflecting the philosophical nature of the program.
Previously, the Tianwen-1 mission to Mars, which commenced in July 2020, was lauded as a comprehensive success.
It "achieved all designated goals, including orbiting, landing and deploying a rover to survey the Martian surface in a single mission," the publication noted.
The current Tianwen-2 project is aimed at collecting physical samples from the near-Earth asteroid known as 2016HO3.
Additionally, it is set to investigate the main-belt comet designated 311P, as detailed by the CNSA.
Liu Jianjun, deputy chief designer of the Tianwen-2 initiative, emphasized the critical importance of asteroid research.
He noted that studying these space objects offers substantial scientific benefits and contributes significantly to humanity’s understanding of the cosmos.
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