China's latest spacecraft aims to bring 'groundbreaking' samples back from asteroid near Mars

By Euronews pinch AP

Published on 30/05/2025 - 21:32 GMT+2

China launched a spacecraft that promises to return samples from an asteroid adjacent Mars and output "groundbreaking discoveries and grow humanity’s knowledge of nan cosmos," nan country's abstraction agency said.

The Tianwen-2 probe launched early connected Thursday from confederate China aboard nan workhorse Long March 3-B rocket.

The probe will cod samples from nan asteroid 2016HO3 and research nan main-belt comet 311P, which lies moreover farther from Earth than Mars, according to nan China National Space Administration.

Shan Zhongde, caput of nan CNSA, was quoted arsenic saying nan Tianwen-2 ngo represents a "significant measurement successful China’s caller travel of interplanetary exploration" and complete its decade-long ngo will "yield groundbreaking discoveries and grow humanity’s knowledge of nan cosmos".

Samples from 2016HO3 are owed to beryllium returned successful astir 2 years. The asteroids, chosen for their comparatively unchangeable orbits, hopefully will connection clues into nan statement of Earth, specified arsenic nan origins of water.

China earlier returned stone samples from nan moon's acold broadside backmost to Earth successful a historical ngo and has welcomed world cooperation.

However, immoderate practice pinch nan US hinges connected removing an American rule banning nonstop bilateral practice pinch NASA.

China's different abstraction endeavours

The adjacent broadside of nan Moon is seen from Earth, and nan acold broadside faces outer space. The acold broadside is besides known to person mountains and effect craters, and is overmuch much difficult to reach.

China besides operates nan 3 person-crewed Tiangong - aliases "Heavenly Palace" - abstraction station, making nan state a awesome subordinate successful a caller era of abstraction exploration and nan usage of imperishable stations to behaviour experiments successful space, particularly since nan position was wholly Chinese-built aft nan state was excluded from nan International Space Station complete US nationalist information concerns.

China’s abstraction programme is controlled by nan People’s Liberation Army, nan subject branch of nan ruling Communist Party.

The country’s abstraction programme has grown quickly successful nan much than 20 years since it first put a man successful space, only nan 3rd state to do truthful nether its ain speed.

The abstraction agency has landed an unmanned explorer connected Mars and a rover connected nan acold broadside of nan Moon. It intends to put a personification connected nan satellite earlier 2030.

A early Tianwen-4 Jupiter ngo will research Jupiter, though specifications haven't been released.