The team of designers, scientists and engineers responsible for China’s Chang’e-5 robotic lunar mission has received the International Academy of Astronautics’ highest team award.

At the organisation’s annual conference, the Chinese team was presented with the Laurels for Team Achievement Award, which was established to recognise the outstanding service and achievements of a team of scientists, engineers and managers in the field of astronautics to promote its use for peaceful and international purposes, said a statement from the academy.

The certificate awarded to the Chinese team said that during the 23-day mission, the Chang’e-5 team successfully completed a complex task that included rocket launch, flight from the Moon to Earth, lunar sample collection, takeoff from the lunar surface, docking, sample transfer and many other processes. It is also noted that the Chinese team has made outstanding contributions to humanity’s exploration of the Moon and deep space.

Hu Hao, chief designer of the Chang’e-5 mission and senior planner of the China National Space Administration, expressed hope at the award ceremony that more scientists and engineers from the international space community could participate in China’s lunar exploration projects.

The samples extracted by the Chang’e-5 probe will soon be open to foreign researchers, he said.

One of the world’s most notable space projects of 2020, the launch of the Chang’e-5 robotic spacecraft, took place in November 2020. It was one of the most complex and challenging space missions. It delivered 1,731 grams of rock and soil to Earth on 17 December 2020, marking the first lunar material for humans since Apollo.

Before the “Chang’e-5”, China had deployed two landers and two rovers on the Moon. “Yutu 2” of the “Chang’e 4” mission has been working on the Moon to this day and continues to transmit data and images, remaining the longest-lived lunar rover of all time, as reported by China Daily, a partner of TV BRICS.

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