Chang'E: Chinese Lunar Exploration Program

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Swedish Instrument Has Landed on the Moon
Swedish Institute of Space Physics (IRF) | 2019 Jan 03

On January 3, 03:26 Swedish time, the Chinese Chang’E-4 spacecraft landed successfully on the far side of the Moon. The Swedish Institute of Space Physics (IRF) has developed one of the scientific instruments on board. The aim of the instrument is to study how the solar wind interacts with the lunar surface.

It is an historic event as it is the first time a spacecraft is landing on the far side of the Moon. It is also the second time Swedish instrumentation is used on the lunar surface; 50 years ago Hasselblad cameras were used during the Apollo missions.

The Advanced Small Analyzer for Neutrals (ASAN) instrument was developed by the Swedish Institute of Space Physics in Kiruna -- in collaboration with the Chinese National Space Science Center (NSSC). The instrument investigates how the solar wind, a flow of charged particles from the Sun, interacts with the lunar surface. ASAN is mounted on the rover of Chang’E-4, which makes it possible to perform measurements at different locations. The measurements could shed light on the processes responsible for the formation of water on the Moon. ...

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Chang'e 4 landing within the crater Von Kármán on the Moon's far side

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<<Chang'e 4 is a Chinese lunar exploration mission that achieved the first soft-landing on the far side of the Moon, on 3 January 2019 at 02:26 UTC. The landing site is within the Von Kármán crater (180 km diameter) in the South Pole-Aitken Basin on the far side of the Moo. Theodore von Kármán was the PhD advisor of Qian Xuesen, the founder of the Chinese space program.

The lander also carries a 3 kg sealed "biosphere" with seeds and insect eggs to test whether plants and insects could hatch and grow together in synergy. The experiment includes seeds of potatoes, tomatoes, and Arabidopsis thaliana (a flowering plant), as well as silkworm eggs. Environmental systems will keep the container hospitable and Earth-like, except for the low lunar gravity. If the eggs hatch, the larvae would produce carbon dioxide, while the germinated plants would release oxygen through photosynthesis. It is hoped that together, the plants and silkworms can establish a simple synergy within the container. A miniature camera will photograph any growth. The biological experiment was designed by 28 Chinese universities.>>

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