Chang'e 5-T1
Chang'e 5-T1 (Chinese: 嫦娥五号T1; pinyin: Cháng'é wǔhào T1) was an experimental robotic spacecraft that was launched to the Moon on 23 October 2014, by the China National Space Administration (CNSA) to conduct atmospheric re-entry tests on the capsule design planned to be used in the Chang'e 5 mission. As part of the Chinese Lunar Exploration Program, Chang'e 5, launched in 2020, was a Moon sample return mission. Like its predecessors, the spacecraft is named after the Chinese Moon goddess Chang'e. The craft consisted of a return vehicle capsule and a service module orbiter.
Chang'e 5-T1's re-entry module after vacuum thermal tests | |
| Mission type | Chang'e 5 precursor mission, lunar flyby and Earth reentry |
|---|---|
| Operator | CNSA |
| COSPAR ID | 2014-065A |
| SATCAT no. | 40283 |
| Mission duration | 8 days |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Bus | DFH-3A |
| Manufacturer | CAST |
| Launch mass | 3,300 kg ; (Service Module approximately 2,215 kg, return capsule under 335 kg) |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | 23 October 2014, 18:00 UTC |
| Rocket | Long March 3C/G2 |
| Launch site | Xichang LC-2 |
| End of mission | |
| Landing date | 31 October 2014, 22:42 UTC Return capsule |
| Landing site | Siziwang Banner, Inner Mongolia |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Geocentric |
| Regime | Lunar free return |
The return capsule of Chang'e 5-T1, named Xiaofei (Chinese: 小飞), meaning "little flyer" in Chinese, landed in Siziwang Banner, Inner Mongolia, on 31 October 2014, 22:42 UTC. The CE-5-T1 Service Module entered lunar orbit on 13 January 2015. Its initial orbit was 200 x 5,300 km with a period of 8 hours.