The China National Space Administration (CNSA) Tianwen-2 probe is currently at a distance of about 43 million km from Earth. This puts it into a stable geosynchronous orbit (GSO) and almost halfway to its first target, the Near Earth Asteroid (NEA) 469219 Kamo’oalewa, which is still 45 million km away. As is typical for interplanetary missions, its controllers use the flight phase to test the spacecraft’s instruments and ensure they are operational.
However, this most recent “selfie” portrait (taken on October 1) was also timed with China’s national celebrations. The image shows the country’s five-star red flag, the white return capsule and the distant blue Earth in the same frame. The image was taken from the probe’s surveillance camera mounted on the robotic arm. Previously, the mission captured a “Lookback at Earth” (on May 30) using its narrow field-of-view navigation sensor to test its functionality.
The Tianwen-2 mission was launched on May 28 from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in southwest China. This will be China’s first asteroid sample retrieval mission, which will then orbit and land on the main belt comet 311p/Panstarrs. The probe is scheduled to arrive at 469219 Kamo’oalewa on June 7, 2026, where it will receive 100 grams (0.2 lbs) of material with the return capsule to be launched back to Earth.
The probe will depart from this NEA by April 2026 and perform a gravity assist maneuver with Earth to propel itself toward the main asteroid star, where it will surrender in January 2035 at 311p/Panstarrs in January 2035. Once there, the probe is expected to last at least a year. This mission is a further demonstration of China’s growing presence in space and its ability to conduct interplanetary missions. The Tianwen-2 probe will also set a new record for China, surpassing the Tianwen-1 probe, which previously held the record for reaching Mars in February 2021.
According to the CNSA and Chinese state media, Tianwen-2 has been in orbit for 131 days and is operating smoothly. The probe conducted several instrument and system checks, including a deployment test of the equipment used to obtain samples, and the mission team managed to collect significant scientific data about the near-Earth space environment.
Further reading: CGTN
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