Another step forward as satellite returns to Earth
Print Edition
THE re-entry capsule of China’s first retrievable microgravity satellite, SJ-10, returned safely to Earth yesterday, marking a solid step forward in space science research and application.
The capsule, which was launched on April 6, touched down about 4:30pm at the planned landing area in Siziwang Banner in north China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. It was transferred to the China Academy of Space Technology, which will hand over the equipment aboard the capsule to the Chinese Academy of Sciences for analysis.
The capsule separated from the orbital module of the probe about 15 minutes before landing. The latter will remain in orbit before burning away.
It is the 24th retrievable satellite China has successfully recovered.
During its 12-day journey in space, 19 experiments on microgravity and life sciences were carried out.
The experiments included one on the early development of mouse embryos in microgravity to shed light on human reproduction in space, and another on space radiation’s effect on the genetic stability of fruit flies and rat cells.
Chinese scientists said on Sunday that the experiment to develop mouse embryos was a success.
The SJ-10 probe took off with more than 6,000 mouse embryos aboard, according to Duan Enkui, a researcher with the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
Of those, 600 were put under a high-resolution camera, which took pictures every four hours for four days and sent them back to Earth.
The images showed that the embryos developed from the two-cell stage, an early embryonic cleavage stage, to blastocyst, a stage where noticeable cell differentiation occurs, about 72 hours after SJ-10’s launch.
The timing was largely in line with embryonic development on Earth, Duan said.
The rest of the embryos loaded on the satellite were injected with fixatives at 72 hours after the launch for studies on the effects of space environment on embryonic development, he said.
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