YUANWANG-5 — Two space tracking ships from China's Yuanwang fleet completed their maritime monitoring of the Chang'e-5 probe launch in the Pacific Ocean on the morning of Nov 24.

Launched at 4:30 am (Beijing Time), the spacecraft was sent into its present orbit by a Long March-5 Y5 rocket from the Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Site in South China's island province of Hainan.

About six minutes after liftoff, Yuanwang-6 detected and locked on to the target, and completed its monitoring. After the rocket traveled for more than 30 minutes, Yuanwang-5 continued the task.

The maritime monitoring process lasted a total of 1,100 seconds. The two ships sent accurate real-time data to spacecraft control centers in Beijing and Wenchang, laying the foundation for the Chang'e-5 mission.

Yuanwang-5 and Yuanwang-6 will now sail to their next mission areas, while Yuanwang-3 will participate in the follow-up monitoring work for the lunar probe.