China set to launch first asteroid mission Tianwen-2 on Thursday

China's first asteroid probing mission, Tianwen-2, is set for launch this Thursday, according to China Media Group, citing the China National Space Administration (CNSA).

The Long March-3B Y110 carrier rocket, which will carry out the Tianwen-2 launch mission, is currently undergoing propellant loading at the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in southwest China's Sichuan Province.

Designed to tackle multiple deep-space objectives in a single mission, Tianwen-2 will perform a close fly-by and sampling of near-Earth asteroid 2016 HO3 (also known as Kamo'oalewa). The probe will then return the samples to Earth, and then proceed to a rendezvous and fly-by investigation of main-belt comet 311P.

If successful, China will join an elite group of nations – including the United States and Japan – to have achieved asteroid sample-return missions.

According to CNSA, the probe has successfully completed its final assembly, system testing, fueling, transfer, functional checks, and joint pre-launch rehearsals. The launch vehicle has undergone transport, vertical erection, probe integration, fairing encapsulation, and full-system testing. 

Coordinated system drills have also been conducted across all mission units, including the Xichang Satellite Launch Center, the Beijing Aerospace Control Center, the Xi'an Satellite Monitoring Center, and the Yuanwang tracking ship fleet.