khoji parkSpace · Inner Mongolia · 2020
China Sent a Robot to Bring the Moon Back in a Capsule
A robotic spacecraft retrieved young volcanic rocks from the lunar surface
Read in slides1. Mission Launch
China launched the Chang'e 5 lunar exploration mission on November 23, 2020. A Long March 5 rocket lifted the spacecraft from the Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Site. The complex probe comprised four primary modules for landing and return. The spacecraft set a course for the Moon to collect surface materials.
The probe entered lunar orbit several days after launch.
2. Descent to Oceanus Procellarum
The lander and ascender modules separated from the orbiter in lunar orbit. On December 1, 2020, the lander touched down on the Moon. The landing site sat in the northern Oceanus Procellarum near Mons Rümker. This volcanic complex featured some of the youngest mare basalts on the lunar surface.
The region had never been sampled by earlier American or Soviet missions.
3. Sampling Operations
The lander utilized a drilling tool and a robotic scoop to gather material. It collected approximately 1,731 grams of lunar rocks and regolith. Samples included subsurface material from a core drilling operation. The collected specimens were transferred to a container inside the ascender module.
The automated collection process proceeded according to mission plans.
4. Lunar Orbit Docking
The ascender lifted off from the lunar surface on December 3, 2020. It carried the sample container into lunar orbit for rendezvous. The ascender completed an automated docking maneuver with the orbiter and returner combination. Technicians transferred the sample container into the re-entry return capsule.
The ascender subsequently separated and deorbited onto the Moon.
5. Return Journey
The orbiter fired its engines to leave lunar orbit and head toward Earth. The spacecraft completed a multi-day journey across cislunar space. As it approached Earth, the returner capsule separated from the service module. The service module performed an avoidance burn to enter a solar orbit.
The return capsule prepared for atmospheric entry.
6. Atmospheric Skip Entry
The return capsule entered the Earth's atmosphere on December 16, 2020. It performed a ballistic skip re-entry, bouncing off the upper atmosphere over the Arabian Sea. This maneuver decelerated the capsule before final descent. Main parachutes deployed to slow the craft for touchdown.
Surveillance drones tracked the descent trajectory toward the ground.
7. Successful Recovery
The return capsule landed safely in the grasslands of Siziwang Banner in Inner Mongolia. Recovery teams located the capsule shortly after touchdown. Officials confirmed the capsule contained the sealed lunar sample container. Helicopters transported the retrieved materials to a secure facility for inspection.
Ground crews secured the capsule in the Inner Mongolia grasslands.
8. Handover Ceremony
Chinese space officials held a formal handover ceremony for the lunar samples in Beijing. The China National Space Administration transferred the material to the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Scientists initiated storage, analysis, and research protocols for the samples. Researchers began examining the physical properties of the rocks.
The samples were distributed to specialized lunar laboratories.
9. Scientific Analysis
Preliminary analysis dated the basalt lava samples to approximately 1.96 billion years old. These young samples filled a critical age gap in available lunar geological data. Researchers discovered evidence of hydroxyl molecules within the returned regolith. The findings enhanced scientific understanding of lunar volcanic and thermal evolution.
International research consortia gained access to the sample materials.
10. Extended Mission Operations
Chang’e 5’s return capsule brought approximately 1,731 grams of lunar material to Earth in December 2020. The lander, ascender and orbiting vehicles had completed separate stages of the return sequence. Laboratory work later dated sampled volcanic rocks to about two billion years old. Those were measurements on returned material, rather than conclusions drawn only from pictures of the landing area.
The robotic sequence delivered physical samples for laboratory study.