iCube-Qamar: Pakistan’s Historic Lunar Mission Achieves First Image Transmission from Lunar Orbit
iCube-Qamar, Pakistan’s premier lunar mission, has achieved a significant milestone by transmitting the first-ever image captured from the lunar orbit, as confirmed by the Institute of Space Technology (IST).
This groundbreaking achievement marks the entry of Pakistan’s first satellite into lunar orbit, completing a full rotation in just 12 hours.
The iCube-Qamar satellite, designed to capture images of the lunar orbit from a distance of 200 kilometers above the moon’s surface, has successfully completed three orbits around the moon.
The initial image transmission occurred two days following the satellite’s deployment into orbit on May 8th.
Celebrating this remarkable feat, the Chinese Embassy in Pakistan expressed congratulations and highlighted the solid foundation laid for future cooperation in moon and deep space exploration between China and Pakistan.
Led by a dedicated team of scientists, the iCube-Qamar mission aims to capture images of specific lunar surfaces in a meticulously chosen 12-hour elliptical orbit. Launched aboard China’s Chang’e-6 from Hainan, China, on May 3rd, the satellite’s successful integration with China’s lunar exploration mission underscores the fruitful collaboration between IST, Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU), and Pakistan’s national space agency Suparco.