Image: © Manuel Mata/Stock.adobe.com
Launched on 3 May, the Chang’e-6 mission has been described as one of the most ‘complex and challenging’ missions conducted by the country so far.
China has made history by becoming the first country to bring back samples from the moon’s far side through its Chang’e-6 lunar mission.
Calling the mission a “complete success”, the China National Space Administration said that the Chang’e-6 probe’s returner – the capsule that was intended to return to Earth – touched down yesterday (24 June) landing in a designated area in Siziwang Banner in north China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.
Chang’e-6 was launched on 3 May with the objective of landing on the far side of the moon – the half not visible from Earth – and returning lunar samples for scientific experiments. The mission is part of a broader international lunar race to build public and private bases on the moon and study its conditions for potential human settlement.
Named after the Chinese moon goddess, Chang’e-6 was described by Chinese authorities as one of the most “complex and challenging” missions conducted by the country so far
It consisted of an orbiter, a lander, an ascender and a returner that at various stages performed tasks such as landing on the moon, ascending from its surface and orbiting around it until the time was right to return to Earth.
Supported by the Queqiao-2 relay satellite, the lander-ascender combination landed at the designated landing area in the South Pole-Aitken Basin on the far side of the moon earlier this month and carried out sampling work.
Dr Yang Wei, a researcher at the Institute of Geology and Geophysics at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, said the Chang’e-6 mission represents a “significant milestone” in the history of human lunar exploration that will contribute to a more “comprehensive” understanding of lunar evolution.
“New samples will inevitably lead to new discoveries,” he said. “Fascination with the moon is rooted in Chinese culture down the ages, as evidenced by the mythological narrative of Chang’e, a lady who journeyed to and resided on the moon. Now, Chinese scientists are eagerly anticipating the opportunity to contribute to lunar science.”
China’s latest lunar accomplishment comes less than four years after it became the third country in the world to collect rocks from the moon through its Chang’e-5 mission. Prior to this, only the US and the Soviet Union had achieved the feat.
India became the first country in the world to successfully land a spacecraft – the Chandrayaan-3 – on the south pole of the moon last August. Russia made a similar attempt through its Luna-25 probe, but this crashed into the moon just days prior to India’s landing.
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