The Chinese device Chang 'e 5, which landed on the Moon, successfully carried out drilling operations on the surface of the Earth's satellite and collected mineral samples. This was reported by the National Space Administration of China (CNSA).
The device took samples and loaded them into a container on the lifting modules, completing the main stage of the mission on the lunar surface. The total weight of drilling samples and surface material should be about 2 kg.
The probe is located about 150 km northeast of Rumker Peak on a lava plateau in the Ocean of Storms. The geological units there are estimated to be about 1.2 billion years old, compared to 3.1-4.4 billion years old for samples from the Apollo missions.
Very soon, the takeoff module of the Chang 'e 5 mission, together with the capsule, will detach from the landing one, enter an elliptical orbit of 15x180 km, within two days it will dock with the orbital module at an altitude of about 200 km and deliver the capsule to it.
After that, the geological exploration vehicle will lie on a return course to the Earth and split with the capsule only in near-Earth space. Landing is scheduled for December 15-16 in northern China in the Xijiwang area.
