China and Saudi Arabia Jointly Unveil Lunar Images

China National Space Administration (CNSA) and the King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST) of Saudi Arabia held an image release ceremony for a small lunar optical imaging detector in Beijing on June 14. The Director of CNSA ZHANG Kejian and the President of KACST Prince Turki unveiled the lunar images.

This signifies an important cooperation achievement between China and Saudi Arabia for the Chang’e 4 relay satellite mission.

The Saudi camera has made great achievements in the Chang’e 4 relay satellite mission. It has obtained clear images of the moon and Earth-moon group images, successfully initiating the cooperation between the two countries in lunar and deep space exploration.

The ceremony released three images including one local image of the moon and two Earth-moon group images. The camera, which began to work on May 28, has conducted observations of the moon, acquired a series of clear lunar images and finished the interpretation and processing of image data. The technical indicators meet the requirements of the MOU signed between China and Saudi Arabia.

This is the first cooperation between China and Saudi Arabia in lunar and deep space exploration. The release of the images marks the success of the cooperation.

The two countries will share the scientific data and jointly publish the results.This is another achievement by China in space cooperation with countries participating in the “Belt and Road” Initiative. Prince Turki expressed appreciation for the cooperation between China and Saudi Arabia, and looked forward to further strengthening cooperation in space in the future.

The Saudi camera was equipped on the Longjiang 2 micro-satellite that launched together with the Chang’e 4 relay satellite on May 28, 2018. At present, the Saudi camera has entered the lunar orbit with the microsatellites. The Chang’e 4 mission also carried scientific payloads from Sweden, Germany, the Netherlands and other countries to jointly complete the first soft-landing and exploration of lunar farside.