Pakistan made history by launching its first lunar mission. The satellite will be orbiting the moon and aims to explore the dark side of the moon. The Pakistan Institute of Space and Technology, in association with Shanghai University of China, designed the satellite iCube-Q.
The lunar mission gets its name from the Chinese moon goddess Chang’e. Chang’e is set to collect 2 kg of lunar samples and bring them back for research purposes. Some claim that this mission is the first of its kind in history.
China will also send a robotic spacecraft in a few days. It will land on the South pole of Aitken Basin which is the largest crater in the solar system. It will collect soil and rocks from there and perform other experiments. These experiments will be done on the landing zone.
US law bans NASA from collaborating with China in any way. NASA launched the Artemis program and the US astronauts will land near the South Pole in 2026.
The satellite iCube-Qamar contains two cameras for lunar imaging. These are smaller in size and have low cost as compared to the others. So, they can help research institutes and students to gather data for research purposes. The space dream of China came true by launching the lunar mission. China has invested a great amount in space programs in the last few years.
China has also built a space station named Tiangong also known as Heavenly Palace. The country has also launched rovers Moon and Mars. China also plans to build a lunar base on the moon to establish a habitat. They are also thinking of sending the crew to the moon by 2030.
