China goes to asteroid, launches Tianwen-2 spacecraft to collect samples
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China on Wednesday embarked on its first mission to retrieve samples from a nearby asteroid with the nighttime launch of its Tianwen-2 spacecraft, a robotic probe that could make the fast-growing space power the third nation to fetch pristine asteroid rocks.China's Long March 3B rocket lifted off around 1:31 a.m. (local time) from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center carrying the Tianwen-2 spacecraft, which over the next year will approach the small near-Earth asteroid named 469219 Kamoʻoalewa, as per a Reuters report.The spacecraft also has a secondary target, an unusual comet that it could study as part of an extended mission.Visiting these objects will help reveal more about the building blocks of the worlds of the inner solar system. And as asteroids can pose an impact risk to Earth, missions to study the structures and mineral makeups of these objects can aid planning to deflect or vaporize them.Tianwen-2 is more than just a scientific sleuth. It is also a technological steppingstone for China's ambitious Tianwen-3 mission. Due to launch in 2028, it aims to retrieve rock samples from Mars and return them to Earth. A comparable effort led by the United States to achieve the same goal is facing major hurdles.A1. Latest Chinese spacecraft is Tianwen-2.A2. China ambitious mission is Tianwen-3.
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The Hindu
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