Chang'E 6- Sample Return Options

[Phil Stooke]

https://www.chinaspaceflight.com/satellite/.../CE-6/CE-6.html

CE-6 now being touted for 2020 and a south polar target. The rim of Shackleton crater is suggested, probably just for a mission simulation rather than serious site planning at this stage. I had been hearing about two polar landers in the 2023-2025 period (roughly) in addition to and following CE-6, which I had assumed was going to the same general region as CE-4. It will be interesting to see how this all plays out.

[A.Nemo]

as a copy and backup of CE-5, CE-6 will be launched in 2024.
if CE-5 fails in 2019 or 2020, CE-6 will be launched within two years.

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[bobik]

The French DORN (Detection of Outgassing RadoN) experiment got a ticket for a flight to the Moon on Chang'e-6.

[Huguet]

Since long time we have Chang'e 6, 7 and 8 with focus on solar south pole, now we get Nasa with the south pole water rich findings.

This will be interesting.

https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/planetary/lunar...oon_future.html

https://www.space.com/water-on-moon-shadow-...traps-discovery

[Steve G]

On the subject of the water on the moon announcement, here is a screenshot from the CBS website. Is this a picture of the moon or Mercury that they used?

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[Phil Stooke]

Moon - Rheita Valley is the linear feature. Mare Australe on the limb.

Phil

[Steve G]

Awesome, thanks!

[Phil Stooke]

Heard at LPSC: CE7 will fly before CE6. CE7 is an ambitious mission with lander, rover and a hopping component which can fly over a shaded area. CE6 is a second sample return mission.

Phil

[vjkane]

Heard at LPSC: CE7 will fly before CE6. CE7 is an ambitious mission with lander, rover and a hopping component which can fly over a shaded area. CE6 is a second sample return mission.

Phil

Phil, I'm not finding that talk at the LPSC site. Do you recall which section it was in.

For those not registered, here's a link to the abstract: Chang'E 7 plans

[Phil Stooke]

It was reported verbally in the plenary session on March 17th:

The Scientific Achievements by Chang’E-4 and the New Lunar Samples Returned by Chang’E-5
Lin Y.

This statement was towards the end of the talk. I have to say the talk was not particularly useful if you have been following these missions, no CE5 results reported, just a summary of what to expect. Lin did say in response to a question that the CE5 results would be reported soon, probably waiting for a paper to be accepted.

Phil

[Phil Stooke]

Here is an abstract about an instrument to be carried on CE6.

https://meetingorganizer.copernicus.org/EPS...SC2022-992.html

For me the most important thing is a statement about a landing site:

"Chang’E-6 is expected to launch in 2024 and will soft-land on the lunar far-side at approximately 41°S and 180°E."

That's the first specific statement I have seen. It may change but it's a start. Many other reports say it will go to the South Pole but in the press the pole is often confused with the 'South Pole-Aitken basin' so it's not always easy to know what is intended.

That location is not far from Chang'e 4, inside Leibnitz crater but on the ejecta of Finsen crater (which also provided most of what Yutu 2 has seen so far). Samples would include material from Finsen, Leibnitz and SPA.

Phil

[vjkane]

That location is not far from Chang'e 4, inside Leibnitz crater but on the ejecta of Finsen crater (which also provided most of what Yutu 2 has seen so far). Samples would include material from Finsen, Leibnitz and SPA.

Phil

Here is map showing Leibnitz crater and the two reference traverses for the proposed NASA Endurance SPA sampling rover. Chang-E-6 would sample a different area of the SPA.

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[Explorer1]

A nice article about the replacement for the current relay satellite, in preparation for Chang'E 6. Looks like a NRHOorbit instead of the Lagrange point this time.

https://spacenews.com/china-to-launch-relay...nding-missions/

Not sure exactly how the 1st one will be disposed off though.

[Cosmic Penguin]

Landing site has apparently been moved to S43º ±2º, W154º ±4º. Launch scheduled for May 2024 for a 53 days mission.

[bobik]

The French DORN (Detection of Outgassing RadoN) instrument is going to be delivered to the Chinese Space Agency (CNSA) in July 2023.

[Phil Stooke]

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41550-023-02038-1

Open access paper on the landing area. Note that it is not south polar, the thread title is incorrect.

Phil

[nprev]

Agreed. Topic title changed.

[Phil Stooke]

Chang'e 6 is preceded by its relay satellite Queqiao 2 and two little companions, Tiandu-1 and Tiandu-2. The large Queqiao 2 is in a frozen highly elliptical orbit which spends much of its time high over the southern farside, where it will be able to relay data from Chang'e 4 and 6 as well as the polar landers CE-7 and 8. Its companions are in different orbits and are designed to test technologies for future relay systems.

Tiandu-2 took a far infrared image of part of the Moon and a distant Earth:



(CNSA image, contrast stretched)

The largest crater is Landau on the northern far side.

Phil

[Thorsten Denk]

Cháng'é-6 launch next "early Friday, May 3"?
https://spacenews.com/china-ready-to-launch...return-mission/

Thorsten

[Hungry4info]

The Planetary Society has a good article on the mission, including an interesting tidbit I wasn't aware of until now:https://www.planetary.org/articles/change-6...-what-to-expect

Finally, a student-built Pakistani CubeSat named ICUBE-Q will separate from Chang’e-6 into lunar orbit and take images of the orbiter, the Moon, and the Earth. It will also measure the Moon’s magnetic field.

The landing site experiences sunset on May 12/13. So we'll see this landing occurring in the evening rather than the morning.

[Explorer1]

A successful launch and deployment to lunar trajectory.

[Hungry4info]

Chang'e 6 carries a rover! The rover has an infrared imaging spectrometer. https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/P7yuVn34KsJeEE3AAdxHUQ

https://twitter.com/CNSAWatcher/status/1786450700651626587

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[Hungry4info]

The landing site experiences sunset on May 12/13. So we'll see this landing occurring in the evening rather than the morning.

SegerYu says the landing won't be this month. So I was likely incorrect.

[kenny]

Small rover strapped to the side of the lander.

Chang'e 6 Mini Rover

[kenny]

Scott Tilley on Twitter/X is reporting continued tracking of Chang'e 6 on 4th day of its outward leg to the Moon.
Expecting arrival into lunar orbit around 03:00 UTC on May 8th.

[kenny]

Mission timeline on Weibo:

Arrival at the moon on May 8,
Lander separates on June 1,
Samples collected on June 2,
Ascent to lunar orbit on June 4,
Docking with orbiter on June 6,
Return to Earth on June 25.

Thanks to CNSA Watcher on X/Twitter.
Source: https://m.weibo.cn/status/OdeLu1Mwe

[Hungry4info]

Chang'e 6 has successfully entered lunar orbit.

https://m.weibo.cn/detail/5031700936265747#&video

[Hungry4info]

Pakistan's ICUBE-Q has been deployed at the apogee of the initial high lunar orbit.
https://www.thenews.com.pk/latest/1186687-p...ployed-in-orbit

[Hungry4info]

Images have been received from ICUBE-Q.

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