Chinese probe Tianwen-2 is traveling 45 million kilometers to touch Earth's quasi-satellite Kamoʻoalewa and bring 100 grams of sample back home.

Chinese probe Tianwen-2 is traveling 45 million kilometers to touch Earth’s quasi-satellite Kamoʻoalewa and bring 100 grams of sample back home.

Written by Douglas Avila

Published on 13/05/2026 at 06:32

Updated on 13/05/2026 at 06:33

1 person reacted to this.

Orbital insertion planned for June 7 and sample collection between July 4 and April 2027

The Chinese probe Tianwen-2 Kamoʻoalewa is weeks away from making history. After 12 months of travel and 45 million kilometers covered, it will touch Earth’s quasi-satellite and collect at least 100 grams of material.

The schedule was confirmed on April 17, 2026, by the China National Space Administration. Liu Yunfeng, deputy director of CNSA’s engineering department, spoke during China Space Day.

According to the official Chinese statement, the mission is now entering its most delicate phase. Orbital insertion is planned for June 7, 2026.

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The Long March 3B rocket lifted off on May 28, 2025, at 17:31 UTC. The launch took place at the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in China’s Sichuan province.

As reported by Wikipedia, the probe is in healthy condition. It is the third asteroid sample return mission in history, after Japan’s Hayabusa and Hayabusa2 and America’s OSIRIS-REx.

Thus, China enters the select club of three space powers capable of collecting extraterrestrial material. But the Chinese mission adds something unprecedented: after returning the capsule, the probe continues its journey to a comet.

Tianwen 2 Kamooalewa probe approaches Earth's quasi-satellite asteroid, CNSA illustration — Tianwen-2’s approach to the Kamoʻoalewa asteroid, CNSA illustration reference

What is the Kamoʻoalewa asteroid that Tianwen-2 will visit

Tianwen 2 Kamoʻoalewa’s target is a small and rare body. It is between 40 and 100 meters in diameter, according to the International Astronomical Union’s technical record.

It rotates on its own axis every 28 minutes. This rate is ten times faster than most main-belt asteroids.

Kamoʻoalewa was discovered on April 27, 2016, by the PanSTARRS telescope, installed in Haleakalā, Hawaii. The Hawaiian name means “oscillating fragment”.

That’s why the asteroid entered the group of Earth’s seven quasi-satellites. It’s not a moon, but it orbits the Sun with a period almost identical to that of our planet.

According to a paper published in Nature Astronomy on April 19, 2023, there is an unusual hypothesis about the body’s origin. Kamoʻoalewa may be a piece of the Moon.

According to Space.com, the asteroid’s spectral composition matches samples from the Apollo 14 mission. The fragment would have been ejected from the Giordano Bruno crater on the far side of the Moon.

Instead of visiting just any asteroid, Tianwen 2 Kamoʻoalewa may be bringing the first sample from a “hidden moon” to Earth.

Chinese probe Tianwen-2 is traveling 45 million kilometers to touch Earth’s quasi-satellite Kamoʻoalewa and bring 100 grams of sample back home.

Orbital insertion planned for June 7 and sample collection between July 4 and April 2027

What is the Kamoʻoalewa asteroid that Tianwen-2 will visit

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Chinese probe Tianwen-2 is traveling 45 million kilometers to touch Earth’s quasi-satellite Kamoʻoalewa and bring 100 grams of sample back home.

Orbital insertion planned for June 7 and sample collection between July 4 and April 2027

What is the Kamoʻoalewa asteroid that Tianwen-2 will visit

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