YUANWANG-5, Nov. 24 (Xinhua) -- Two space tracking ships from China's Yuanwang fleet completed their maritime monitoring of the Chang'e-5 probe launch in the Pacific Ocean on Tuesday morning.
Launched at 4:30 a.m. (Beijing Time), the spacecraft was sent into its present orbit by a Long March-5 Y5 rocket from the Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Site in south China's island province of Hainan.
About six minutes after liftoff, Yuanwang-6 detected and locked on to the target, and completed its monitoring. After the rocket traveled for more than 30 minutes, Yuanwang-5 continued the task.
The maritime monitoring process lasted a total of 1,100 seconds. The two ships sent accurate real-time data to spacecraft control centers in Beijing and Wenchang, laying the foundation for the Chang'e-5 mission.
Yuanwang-5 and Yuanwang-6 will now sail to their next mission areas, while Yuanwang-3 will participate in the follow-up monitoring work for the lunar probe.