There are rumours going around among Pakistanis that their country is about to launch a moon mission, and that it will land on the moon similar to India’s Chandrayaan-3 project, making Pakistan the second nation in South Asia to do so after India.
Verified accounts on twitter, including @_FaridKhan added “South Asian countries to land on the moon: – India – Pakistan (soon)” in a twitter post on May 2, 2024. The tweet has received an about 132.5k views on X.
South Asian countries to land on the moon:
— Farid Khan (@_FaridKhan) May 2, 2024
– India
– Pakistan (soon)
Pakistan's moon mission ICUBE-Q launches tomorrow In Shaa Allah 🇵🇰❤️
Padosiyo, be ready. We will surpass you 🇮🇳🔥 #LunarMission #PakistanLunarMission pic.twitter.com/MFk4IJHAsE
Several other posts, including @_FaridKhan, @NewsSports_35, @ShaniInfluncer, @PrinceZaheerAw2 made the same claim that country is planning to launch a moon mission and land on the lunar surface, similar to India’s Chandrayaan-3. Pakistan will be the second country in South Asia to do so after India. The archive can be read from above.
What is the Actual Truth About this Incident? : Fact
In actuality, Pakistan’s ICUBE-Q satellite will be carried by China’s Chang’e-6 lunar mission in order to capture pictures of the lunar surface. The Institute of Space Technology (IST) in Pakistan has worked with SUPARCO, the country’s national space agency, and Shanghai University in China to design and create the ICUBE-Q satellite. Optical cameras is carried by ICUBE-Q are used to take pictures on the lunar surface. The Chang’e 6 lunar probe will carry payloads from France, the European Space Agency, and Pakistan on a round-trip, the Chinese embassy in Pakistan verified the fact. We visited CGTN, which published on this on May 1, 2024 with the headline “China to launch Chang’e-6 lunar probe on May 3”. The picture is added with the caption “The Long March-5 carrier rocket and the Chang’e-6 probe on top of it, was moved to its launch service tower at the Wenchang Space Launch Site in Hainan Province on April 27, 2024. /CFP”. The China National Space Administration (CNSA) announced that the Chang’e-6 lunar probe will launch on May 3.The probe will collect samples from the moon’s far side, marking the first expedition in human history.Preparations for the mission are already underway at the Wenchang Space Launch Site in south China’s Hainan Province, and the Long March-5 Y8 carrier rocket will be refuelled with propellant shortly, according to the CNSA.The mission’s rocket team has planned ten trajectories due to the limited launch window on two consecutive days, with only 50 minutes available each day, according to the CNSA. Money control posted about this on May 1, 2024 with the heading “Pakistan’s first-ever Moon mission set for launch aboard Chinese lunar probe”.The satellite was developed by IST in partnership with China’s Shanghai University SJTU and Suparco, which is the national space agency of Pakistan. It carries two optical cameras and will capture images of the Moon’s surface.The Chinese embassy in Pakistan also confirmed the development and said the Chang’e 6 lunar probe will carry payloads from France, European Space Agency and Pakistan on a round trip. Further, Business Today posted the pictures, with one of the headings as “Pakistan’s Maiden Moon Mission”.
@CathayPak tweeted “Pakistan Space & Upper Atmosphere Research Commission, #SUPARCO’s logo is seen on China’s most powerful rocket #LongMarch5! Together with China’s #ChangE6 lunar probe and payloads from France and #ESA, Pakistan’s CubeSat is ready to go to the moon in just a few days!” on April 29, 2024.
Pakistan Space & Upper Atmosphere Research Commission, #SUPARCO’s logo is seen on China’s most powerful rocket #LongMarch5! Together with China’s #ChangE6 lunar probe and payloads from France and #ESA, Pakistan’s CubeSat is ready to go to the moon in just a few days! pic.twitter.com/tlOebD5wVf
— Chinese Emb Pakistan (@CathayPak) April 29, 2024
Check out the Youtube Video:
D-Intent’s Fact-Checking Results:
1913
— D-Intent Data (@dintentdata) May 2, 2024
ANALYSIS: Misleading
FACT:Pakistanis are circulating news claiming that Pakistan is set to launch its moon mission & will land on the lunar surface like India's Chandrayaan-3 & Pakistan will be the second country in South Asia to land on the lunar surface after India.(1/4) pic.twitter.com/kYHKi1PadF
Intent:
Pakistani accounts are circulating misleading claims about ICUBE-Q and China’s Chang’e-6 lunar mission to set their narrative to get the spotlight on social media. Pakistanis are circulating news claiming that Pakistan is set to launch its moon mission & will land on the lunar surface like India’s Chandrayaan-3 & Pakistan will be the second country in South Asia to land on the lunar surface after India. This is China’s Chang’e-6 lunar mission, which will carry Pakistan’s ICUBE-Q satellite to gather pictures of the lunar surface. Even the ICUBE-Q satellite was planned and designed by Pakistan’s Institute of Space Technology (IST) in partnership with China’s Shanghai University and Pakistan’s national space agency, SUPARCO. ICUBE-Q has optical cameras that collect photographs of the lunar surface. The Chinese embassy in Pakistan has verified the development, stating that the Chang’e 6 lunar probe will be carrying payloads from France, the European Space Agency, and Pakistan on a round trip.
Conclusion:
Claim : Pakistanis are spreading the word that the country is planning to launch a moon mission and land on the lunar surface, similar to India’s Chandrayaan-3. Pakistan will be the second country in South Asia to do so after India.
Fact : Fact is that this is China’s Chang’e-6 lunar mission, which will carry Pakistan’s ICUBE-Q satellite to capture images of the lunar surface. Even ICUBE-Q satellite has been designed and developed by Pakistan’s Institute of Space Technology (IST) in collaboration with China’s Shanghai University and Pakistan’s national space agency, SUPARCO. ICUBE-Q carries optical cameras to capture images of the lunar surface.
