China completes first spacecraft rendezvous, docking in lunar orbit

The ascender of China’s Chang’e-5 probe successfully rendezvoused and docked with the orbiter-returner combination in lunar orbit at 5:42 a.m. (Beijing Time) on Sunday, the China National Space Administration (CNSA) has announced. This is the first time Chinese spacecraft have carried out rendezvous and docking in lunar orbit. The samples collected on the moon had been transferred from the ascender to the returner safely by 6:12 a.m., said the CNSA. Chang’e-5 is one of the most complicated and chal