The first picture of the moon captured by China's first lunar
orbiter, Chang'e-1, is expected to be ready for publication within
three days, the country's space administration said on Friday.
Data of the original picture taken by the satellite has now been
transmitted back to Earth, the China National Space Administration
(CNSA) said.
On Tuesday, the stereo camera aboard Chang'e-1 was put into
operation and afterward, the satellite sent back its first batch of
data for the moon picture.
"The data is currently being processed and analyzed to produce
the first real picture of the moon," said a CNSA official. "The
picture would need official assessment before it could be published
in accordance with international practice."
The image's processing and production would take two to three
days, the official said, adding that the camera could cover the
whole moon surface within a month.
By 8 a.m. on Friday, Chang'e-1 had orbited the moon 189 times
and was working properly at a stable altitude of 200 kilometers,
its final working orbit.
The satellite adjusted its position to point its probing
equipment towards the moon on Monday. Since it entered the moon's
orbit on Nov. 7 it has gone through a number of tests.
Monday's maneuvers also positioned the probe's solar panel
toward the sun for power generation and the directional antenna
toward the Earth for data transmission.
The 2,350-kg satellite carries eight probing facilities,
including a stereo camera and interferometer, an imager and
gamma/x-ray spectrometer, a laser altimeter, a microwave detector,
a high-energy solar particle detector and a low-energy ion
detector.
The satellite aims to fulfil four scientific objectives. They
include a three-dimensional survey of the moon surface, analysis on
the abundance and distribution of elements on the lunar surface, an
investigation of the characteristics of lunar regolith and the
powdery soil layer on the surface, and an exploration of the
circumstance between the Earth and moon.
Chang'e-1, named after a mythical Chinese goddess who, according
to legend, flew to the moon, blasted off a Long March 3A carrier
rocket at 6:05 p.m. on Oct. 24 from the Xichang Satellite Launch
Center in the southwestern Sichuan Province.
The satellite traveled nearly two million kilometers in its 15
day flight to the moon before it reached its final working
orbit.
Chang'e-1 was designed to stay on its final working orbit for
one year. Scientists estimated the smooth operations and precise
maneuvers may have saved 200 kg of fuel and helped prolong the
probe's lifespan.
(Xinhua News Agency November 24, 2007)