Apple News Facebook Twitter 新浪微博 Instagram YouTube Wednesday, Mar 15, 2023
Search
Archive
English>>

Chang’e 4 probe to carry out experiments in unexplored lunar territory

(Xinhua)    08:17, April 17, 2018

China's Chang'e-4 lunar probe is expected to touch down softly on the far side of the Moon, marking a first in human history. Photo: IC

China's Chang'e-4 lunar probe is expected to accomplish feats that are unprecedented in space history after it launches later this year, such as touching down softly on the far side of the Moon and taking the first flowers to blossom on the lifeless lunar surface.

The probe will carry a tin containing seeds of potato and arabidopsis, a small plant related to cabbage and mustard, and probably some silkworm eggs to conduct the first biological experiment on the Moon.

The "lunar mini biosphere" experiment was designed by 28 Chinese universities led by Southwest China's Chongqing University, according to a conference on scientific and technological innovation of Chongqing Municipality.

Blossoming hopes

Researchers hope the seeds will blossom on the Moon, with the process captured on camera and transmitted to Earth.

Although astronauts have cultivated plants on the International Space Station, and rice and arabidopsis were grown in China's Tiangong-2 space lab, those experiments were conducted in low-Earth orbit, at an altitude of about 400 kilometers. The environment on the Moon, 380,000 kilometers from the Earth, is more complicated.

Liu Hanlong, chief director of the experiment and vice president of Chongqing University, said that as the Moon has no atmosphere, its temperature ranges from below minus 100 C to above 100 C.

"We have to keep the temperature in the 'mini biosphere' within a range of 1 to 30 degrees, and properly control the humidity and nutrition. We will use a tube to direct the natural light on the surface of Moon into the tin to make the plants grow," said Xie Gengxin, chief designer of the experiment.

"We want to study the respiration of the seeds and the photosynthesis on the Moon," said Liu.

"Why potato and arabidopsis? Because the growth period of arabidopsis is short and convenient to observe. And potatoes could become a major source of food for future space travelers," said Liu. "Our experiment might help accumulate knowledge for building a lunar base and long-term residence on the Moon."

The far side

With its special environment and complex geological history, the far side of the Moon is a hot spot for scientific and space exploration.

However, landing and roving there requires a relay satellite to transmit signals.

It has been reported that China plans to send a relay satellite for Chang'e-4 to the halo orbit of the Earth-Moon Lagrange Point L2 in late May or early June 2018, and then launch the Chang'e-4 lunar lander and rover to the Aitken Basin of the south pole region of the Moon about half a year later.

The Von Karman Crater in the Aitken Basin was chosen as the landing site for Chang'e-4 as the region is believed to have great scientific research potential. As a gravitational equilibrium can be maintained there, it will be able to stay in stable orbit and operate for a long time.

"We will make efforts to enable the relay satellite to work as long as possible to serve other probes, including those from other countries," said Ye Peijian, a leading Chinese aerospace expert and consultant to China's lunar exploration program.

The Lunar Exploration and Space Program Center of the China National Space Administration (CNSA) has invited the public to write down their hopes for lunar and space exploration. More than 100,000 people have taken part, according to the center.

International cooperation

As the far side of the Moon is shielded from electromagnetic interference from the Earth, it's an ideal place to study the space environment and solar bursts, and the probe can "listen" to the deeper reaches of the cosmos, said Liu Tongjie, deputy director of the Lunar Exploration and Space Program Center of CNSA.

The Chang'e-4 probe will also carry scientific payloads developed by the Netherlands, Sweden, Germany and Saudi Arabia.

"The Chinese and Dutch low-frequency radio spectrometers might help us detect 21-cm hydrogen line radiation and study how the earliest stars were ignited and how our cosmos emerged from darkness after the Big Bang," said Chen Xuelei, an astronomer with the National Astronomical Observatories of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

A German neutron dosimeter will be installed on the lander to measure radiation at the landing site.

(For the latest China news, Please follow People's Daily on Twitter and Facebook)(Web editor: Liang Jun, Bianji)

Add your comment

We Recommend

Most Read

Key Words