Chang’e 5 Ascent Vehicle Lifts Off from Moon with Lunar Samples Written 4 December 2020

SPACE reports that the Chang’e 5 ascent vehicle lifted off from the moon Thursday at 10:10 a.m. EST, “carrying with it the first fresh lunar samples since 1976.” The spacecraft reached lunar orbit six minutes after liftoff. The ascent vehicle’s “job now is to meet up with the Chang’e 5 orbiter while still circling the moon, and then transfer its precious cargo to a return capsule for the journey home.” That “next stage is an extremely challenging rendezvousing and docking between the small ascent vehicle and the Chang’e 5 orbiter while orbiting the moon. The activity needs to be automated due to the time delay in communicating across the roughly 236,000 miles (380,000 kilometers) between the Earth and the moon.” The orbiter and ascent vehicle are scheduled to make their final approach before docking on Saturday.
Full Story (SPACE)