China's Tianwen-2 space probe has reached its target, the near-Earth asteroid Kamo'oalewa, after a yearlong journey of about 1 billion kilometers. The mission is part of President Xi Jinping's so-called 'space dream' and marks a significant milestone in China's efforts to match or surpass the US and Europe in deep-space exploration.

The China National Space Administration (CNSA) announced on Monday that the probe had successfully arrived at a distance of 20 kilometers (12 miles) from the asteroid, also designated 2016 HO3. Discovered from Hawaii in 2016, the asteroid measures just a few dozen meters in diameter and is a quasi-satellite of Earth, orbiting the sun at a similar distance.

Launched in May 2025, Tianwen-2 is China's first attempt to collect samples from an asteroid. Scientists believe that asteroid samples could provide clues about the formation and evolution of the solar system.

CNSA stated that the probe will conduct detailed scientific exploration to gather data on the asteroid's morphology, material composition, and internal structure, laying the groundwork for sample collection. After samples are collected, a module will be released to transport them back to Earth, with arrival scheduled for late 2027.

Following operations at the asteroid, the main spacecraft is expected to travel to a comet in the asteroid belt, continuing a mission planned to last about a decade. China has invested billions in its space program, aiming to catch up with US and Japanese missions that have already collected asteroid samples.

Source: www.dw.com