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Queqiao-2 Relay Satellite
''Queqiao-2'' relay satellite (), is the second of the communications relay and radio astronomy satellites designed to support the fourth phase the Chinese Lunar Exploration Program, after Queqiao-1 launched in 2018. The China National Space Administration (CNSA) launched the Queqiao-2 relay satellite on 20 March 2024 to an elliptical frozen orbit around the Moon to support communications from the far side of the Moon and the Lunar south pole. The name ''Queqiao'' (, "Magpie Bridge") was inspired by and came from the Chinese tale ''The Cowherd and the Weaver Girl''. Background and mission planning The initial phase of the International Lunar Research Station (ILRS), consisting of the Chang'e 7 and Chang'e 8 probes, was scheduled to be built in 2026 and 2028 on the southern edge of the South Pole–Aitken basin located on the far side of the Moon. While the Queqiao so far only had to connect with two probes on the far side of the Moon (Chang'e 4 lander and ''Yutu-2'' rover), fu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
China National Space Administration
The China National Space Administration (CNSA) is a government agency of the People's Republic of China headquartered in Haidian District, Haidian, Beijing, responsible for civil space administration and international space cooperation. These responsibilities include organizing or leading foreign exchanges and cooperation in the aerospace field. The CNSA is an administrative agency under the State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense. Founded in 1993, CNSA has pioneered a number of achievements in space for China despite its relatively short history, including becoming the first space agency to land on the far side of the Moon with Chang'e 4, bringing material back from the Moon with Chang'e 5 and Chang'e 6, 6, and being the second agency who successfully landed a rover on Mars with Tianwen-1. Tianwen-2 is enroute to explore the co-orbital near-Earth asteroid 469219 Kamoʻoalewa and the active asteroid 311P/PanSTARRS and collecting samples of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
International Lunar Research Station
The International Lunar Research Station (ILRS) ( zh , c=国际月球科研站, ) is a planned Moonbase, lunar base currently being led by Roscosmos and the China National Space Administration (CNSA). The ILRS will serve as a comprehensive scientific experiment base built on the lunar surface or in lunar orbit that can carry out multi-disciplinary and multi-objective scientific research activities including exploration and utilization, lunar-based observation, basic scientific experiment and technical verification, and long-term autonomous operation. Statements from Roscosmos and CNSA underline that the project will be "open to all interested countries and international partners." ILRS construction missions are expected to begin after the completion of the Chang'e 8 mission in 2028. History On 9 March 2021, China and Russia signed a “Memorandum of Understanding between the Government of the People’s Republic of China and the Government of the Russian Federation Regarding Coo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Orbital Decay
Orbital decay is a gradual decrease of the distance between two orbiting bodies at their closest approach (the periapsis) over many orbital periods. These orbiting bodies can be a planet and its satellite, a star and any object orbiting it, or components of any binary system. If left unchecked, the decay eventually results in termination of the orbit when the smaller object strikes the surface of the primary; or for objects where the primary has an atmosphere, the smaller object burns, explodes, or otherwise breaks up in the larger object's atmosphere; or for objects where the primary is a star, ends with incineration by the star's radiation (such as for comets). Collisions of stellar-mass objects are usually accompanied by effects such as gamma-ray bursts and detectable gravitational waves. Orbital decay is caused by one or more mechanisms which absorb energy from the orbital motion, such as fluid friction, gravitational anomalies, or electromagnetic effects. For bodies ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chinese Deep Space Network
The Chinese Deep Space Network (CDSN) is a network of large antennas and communication facilities that are used for radio astronomy, radar observations, and spacecraft missions of China. The CDSN is managed by the China Satellite Launch and Tracking Control Center General (CLTC) of the People's Liberation Army Strategic Support Force Space Systems Department. The network was first needed for the lunar mission Chang'e 1, and since has been used to support subsequent missions to the Moon and Mars such as Chang'e 5, Tianwen-1, and Tianwen-2 missions. Similar deep space networks are run by the United States, Russia, European countries, Japan, and India. History In principle, a Chinese deep space network has existed since 1993 with the commissioning of the Nanshan 25-meter telescope in the mountains south of Ürümqi. The 25-meter antenna of the Shanghai Astronomical Observatory was then not only able to participate in the Southern Hemisphere VLBI Experiment program, but also to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Apollo Crater
Apollo, also called the Apollo basin, is a large impact crater located on the far side of the Moon, in the southern hemisphere. It was previously known as Basin XVI; in 1970 it was officially named after the Apollo missions by the International Astronomical Union. The Chang'e 6 spacecraft landed within Apollo basin in 2024, collected samples of the surface, then brought them to Earth for analysis. Geology Apollo is a double-ringed walled plain (or basin) whose inner ring is roughly half the diameter of the outer wall. Both the outer wall and the interior have been heavily worn and eroded by subsequent impacts, so that significant parts of the outer and inner walls now consist of irregular and incised sections of mountainous arcs. The interior floor is covered in a multitude of craters of various sizes, some of which have been named for people associated with the Apollo program or other NASA projects. Sections of Apollo's interior have been resurfaced with lava, leaving pat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sample Return Mission
A sample-return mission is a spacecraft mission to collect and return samples from an extraterrestrial location to Earth for analysis. Sample-return missions may bring back merely atoms and molecules or a deposit of complex compounds such as loose material and rocks. These samples may be obtained in a number of ways, such as soil and rock excavation or a collector array used for capturing particles of solar wind or cometary debris. Nonetheless, concerns have been raised that the return of such samples to planet Earth may endanger Earth itself. To date, samples of Moon rock from Earth's Moon have been collected by robotic and crewed missions; the comet Wild 2 and the asteroids 25143 Itokawa, 162173 Ryugu, and 101955 Bennu have been visited by robotic spacecraft which returned samples to Earth; and samples of the solar wind have been returned by the robotic ''Genesis (spacecraft), Genesis'' mission. In addition to sample-return missions, samples from three identified non-terrestr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Center For Lunar Exploration And Space Projects
Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentricity * Central tendency, measures of the central tendency (center) in a set of data Places United States * Centre, Alabama * Center, Colorado * Center, Georgia * Center, Indiana * Center, Warrick County, Indiana * Center, Kentucky * Center, Missouri * Center, Nebraska * Center, North Dakota * Centre County, Pennsylvania * Center, Portland, Oregon * Center, Texas * Center, Washington * Center, Outagamie County, Wisconsin * Center, Rock County, Wisconsin **Center (community), Wisconsin *Center Township (other) *Centre Township (other) *Centre Avenue (other) *Center Hill (other) Other countries * Centre region, Hainaut, Belgium * Centre Region, Burkina Faso * Centre Region (Cameroon) * Centre-Val de Lo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lagrange Point
In celestial mechanics, the Lagrange points (; also Lagrangian points or libration points) are points of equilibrium for small-mass objects under the gravitational influence of two massive orbiting bodies. Mathematically, this involves the solution of the restricted three-body problem. Normally, the two massive bodies exert an unbalanced gravitational force at a point, altering the orbit of whatever is at that point. At the Lagrange points, the gravitational forces of the two large bodies and the centrifugal force balance each other. This can make Lagrange points an excellent location for satellites, as orbit corrections, and hence fuel requirements, needed to maintain the desired orbit are kept at a minimum. For any combination of two orbital bodies, there are five Lagrange points, L1 to L5, all in the orbital plane of the two large bodies. There are five Lagrange points for the Sun–Earth system, and five ''different'' Lagrange points for the Earth–Moon system. L ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Halo Orbit
A halo orbit is a periodic, non-planar orbit associated with one of the L1, L2 or L3 Lagrange points in the three-body problem of orbital mechanics. Although a Lagrange point is just a point in empty space, its peculiar characteristic is that it can be orbited by a Lissajous orbit or by a halo orbit. These can be thought of as resulting from an interaction between the gravitational pull of the two planetary bodies and the Coriolis and centrifugal force on a spacecraft. Halo orbits exist in any three-body system, e.g., a Sun–Earth–orbiting satellite system or an Earth–Moon–orbiting satellite system. Continuous "families" of both northern and southern halo orbits exist at each Lagrange point. Because halo orbits tend to be unstable, station-keeping using thrusters may be required to keep a satellite on the orbit. Most satellites in halo orbit serve scientific purposes, for example space telescopes. Definition and history Robert W. Farquhar first used the name " ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yutu-2
''Yutu-2'' () is the robotic lunar rover component of China National Space Administration, CNSA's Chang'e 4 mission to the Moon, launched on 7 December 2018 18:23 UTC, it entered lunar orbit on 12 December 2018 before making the first soft landing on the far side of the Moon on 3 January 2019. ''Yutu-2'' is currently operational as the longest-lived lunar rover after it eclipsed (on 20 November 2019) the previous lunar longevity record of 321 Earth days held by Soviet Union's ''Lunokhod 1'' rover. ''Yutu-2'' is the first lunar rover to traverse the far side of the Moon. By January 2022, it had travelled a distance of more than along the lunar surface. Data from its ground penetrating radar (GPR) has been used by scientists to put together imagery of multiple layers deep beneath the surface of the far side of the Moon. As of September 2024, the ''Yutu-2'' was still active. Overview The total landing mass is . Both the stationary lander and ''Yutu-2'' rover (literally: "Moon r ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chang'e 4
Chang'e 4 (; ) is a robotic spacecraft mission in the Chinese Lunar Exploration Program of the CNSA. It made a soft landing on the far side of the Moon, the first spacecraft to do so, on 3 January 2019. A communication relay satellite, , was first launched to a halo orbit near the Earth–Moon L2 point in May 2018. The robotic lander and '' Yutu-2'' () rover were launched on 7 December 2018 and entered lunar orbit on 12 December 2018, before landing on the Moon's far side. On 15 January it was announced that seeds had sprouted in the lunar lander's biological experiment, the first plants to sprout on the Moon. The mission is the follow-up to Chang'e 3, the first Chinese landing on the Moon. The spacecraft was originally built as a backup for Chang'e 3 and became available after Chang'e 3 landed successfully in 2013. The configuration of Chang'e 4 was adjusted to meet new scientific and performance objectives. Like its predecessors, the mission is named after Chang'e, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Queqiao
''Queqiao'' relay satellite (), is the first of the pair of communications relay and radio astronomy satellites for the Chinese Lunar Exploration Program. The China National Space Administration (CNSA) launched the Queqiao relay satellite on 20 May 2018 to a halo orbit around the Earth–Moon L2 Lagrangian point Queqiao is the first communication relay and radio astronomy satellite at this location. The name ''Queqiao'' ("Magpie Bridge") was inspired by and came from the Chinese tale ''The Cowherd and the Weaver Girl''. Design and development Queqiao was designed to function as a communication relay for the Chang'e 4 mission to the far side of the Moon, as well as a deep space radio astronomy observatory for the Chinese space program. Direct communication with Earth is impossible on the far side of the Moon, since transmissions are blocked by the Moon. Communications must go through a communications relay satellite, which is placed at a location that has a clear view of both ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
