China Poised to Launch Next Moon Mission

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China Poised to Launch Next Moon Mission on Thursday


By Leonard David, Space.com's Space Insider Columnis

China is set to launch a robotic moon mission this week, a "trial by fire" test of re-entry technology for the country's future lunar sample-return efforts.

To date there has been little official word on this unmanned mission, which may launch as early as Thursday (Oct. 23). It will apparently send a spacecraft around the moon; on its way back toward Earth, the probe will release a capsule to perform a high-speed plunge through the planet's atmosphere. The capsule will parachute onto terra firma to complete its voyage.

The soon-to-launch moon probe is based on China's Chang'e 2 lunar orbiter design and modified to carry the re-entry test capsule. The mission, which some China space watchers are calling "Chang'e 5 T1," is to last some nine days. [Most Awesome Moon Missions of All Time]

Narrow launch windows

Chang'e 5 T1 has three potential liftoff dates, experts say: Thursday, Friday or Saturday (Oct. 23, 24 or 25). The mission will launch atop a Chinese Long March 3C rocket from Xichang Satellite Launch Center.

The goal is to validate re-entry technology for Chang'e 5, a robotic mission targeted for a 2017 launch that will land on the moon, collect samples and return those specimens to Earth.

"We have begun to study how the Chang'e 5 will blast off from the moon and dock with the in-orbit re-entry capsule," said Wang Pengji, a space expert at the China Academy of Space Technology.

A central piece of China's moon plans is having hardware return to Earth at a scorching speed of more than 25,000 mph (40,230 km/h).  Read more >>

Source:   http://www.space.com/27503-china-moon-mission-launch-thursday.html

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