Successful arrival after long cruise
The China National Space Administration announced that its Tianwen-2 probe completed a deep-space pursuit lasting about 400 days. The spacecraft closed in on the near-Earth asteroid Kamoʻoalewa, also designated 2016 HO3, to a distance of roughly 20 kilometers, marking the official start of scientific exploration.
Distance covered and target
Over the course of the mission, the vehicle traveled approximately one billion kilometers to intercept the small, tumbling object. Kamoʻoalewa is a near-Earth asteroid located hundreds of thousands of kilometers from our planet on its own solar orbit.
- Mission: Tianwen-2 by CNSA
- Travel time: around 400 days
- Distance covered: about 1 billion kilometers
- Closest approach: some 20 kilometers
With the probe now holding station near the asteroid, the planned observation and measurement program has commenced. Officials confirmed that the spacecraft is steadily accompanying the rocky body and that its instruments are ready for operation.