According to China's top space administration, the country's first lunar probe, Chang'e-1, will perform its second braking at about 11:00 am on Tuesday.
Officials say the new move is a breakthrough, laying a solid foundation for further space exploration.
CRI Reporter Chen Xi has the details.
Reporter:
"The first braking of Chang'e 1 at its current position is progressing well and it has successfully entered into a 12-hour lunar orbit, according to schedule."
This is an official from the Beijing Aerospace Control Center, announcing Chang'e-1 carried out its first braking at perilune on Monday.
Soon thereafter, China National Space Administration or CNSA , revealed that the country's first lunar probe will perform its second braking at about 11:00 am on Tuesday.
According to a spokesman of CNSA, the second braking will slow down the probe's speed to 1.8 km per second to help it enter a 3.5-hour orbit with a perilune of 200 km and an apolune of 1700 km.
Chang'e-1, named after the legendary Chinese goddess who flew to the moon, launched off on a Long March 3A carrier rocket on October 24 from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in southwestern Sichuan Province.
Sun Laiyan, Director General of China National Space Administration, applauds the success.
"Chang'e-1 entering the moon's orbit is a milestone in the Chinese history of space activities. It marks the first step for China to explore deep space."
The probe is expected to brake for the third time at around 8:00 a.m. on Wednesday. Chang'e-1 will then stay a year in its round orbit, 200 km from the moon's surface, for scientific exploration.
The satellite will fulfill four scientific objectives; create a three-dimensional survey of the lunar surface; analyze the abundance and distribution of elements on the moon; investigate the characteristics of lunar mantle rock and the powdery soil layer on the surface, and explore the relationship between the earth and the moon.
