China
Chang´e completes 1st orbital transfer
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Source: CCTV.com | 10-26-2007 09:19
Special Report: Chang'e I -Journey to the Moon |
China's first lunar probe Chang'e-1 completed its first orbital transfer on Thursday afternoon: another key move in its 2 million kilometer journey to the moon orbit.
At 5:55 pm Thursday--24 hours into its mission--Chang'e 1 got the instruction to change its orbit.
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Ma Yongping,deputy director of Beijing Aerospace Command & Control Center, said, "The transfer was successful. The probe moved to an orbit with a perigee of about 600 km, up from the former 200-km perigee."
The orbiter still has to undergo three accelerations in the coming week, which will further shorten its distance to the moon orbit.
The next orbital transfer will happen on Friday, in which it will enter a 24-hour trajectory and orbit the earth along the new trajectory for three days.
It is expected to enter earth-moon transfer orbit on October 31st and enter the moon's orbit on November 5th. The orbiter will relay the first lunar picture in late November and will then continue scientific explorations for a year.
Editor:ZhangNing
