Chinese probe Chang’e-6 launched with samples from the far side of the Moon

(CNN) — China’s Chang’e 6 lunar probe left the far side of the moon on Tuesday, taking another step toward completing an ambitious mission that underscores the country’s rise as a space superpower.

In a symbolic moment before liftoff, China also became the first country to fly its national flag on the far side of the moon, which faces permanently away from Earth.

The probe carrying the first lunar rocks collected on the far side of the moon took off and entered lunar orbit early Tuesday morning Beijing time after successfully collecting samples over the previous two days, according to a statement from the China National Space Agency. Administration (CNSA).

Its return journey to Earth is estimated to take about three weeks, and it is expected to land in China’s Inner Mongolia region around June 25.

A successful sample return would give China an advantage in reaping the strategic and scientific benefits of expanded lunar exploration, an increasingly competitive field that has fueled what NASA chief Bill Nelson calls a new “space race.”

This is the second time China has collected samples from the Moon after Chang’e 5 brought back rocks from the near side in 2020.

Earlier this year, Nelson appeared to acknowledge that China’s pace – and concerns about its intentions – were driving America’s desire to return to the moon decades after the manned Apollo missions.

The photo, published by CNSA on Tuesday and trending on China’s X-like platform Weibo, shows a perforated surface whose shape is similar to the Chinese character for “zhong,” or “middle” in English, the first character of the word “China.” for “China”.

The Chang’e 6 probe withstood “high temperature testing” and collected samples by drilling into the lunar surface and scooping out soil and rocks with a mechanical arm, CNSA said.

After collecting the samples, Chang’e 6 extended its robotic arm to raise the Chinese flag, according to an animation released by CNSA.

The flag, made from basaltic volcanic rock, was designed to withstand corrosion and extreme temperatures on the far side of the moon for future lunar missions, a Chang’e-6 engineer explained to state broadcaster CCTV.

The stone “was crushed, melted and stretched into threads with a diameter of one-third of a human hair, then twisted and woven into cloth,” explained engineer Zhou Changyi.

“The surface of the moon is rich in basalt,” Zhou added. “As we look to build a lunar base in the future, we will likely have to process the basalt into fibers and use it as a building material.”

Historical mission

Chang’e 6 successfully landed Sunday morning in the South Pole Aitken Basin, the oldest impact basin on the Moon, formed about 4 billion years ago. This is the second time the mission has successfully reached the far side of the moon, after China first accomplished the historic feat in 2019 with its Chang’e-4 probe.

If all goes according to plan, the mission, which began on May 3 and is expected to last 53 days, could become a key milestone in China’s bid to become the dominant space power.

The country’s plans include landing astronauts on the moon by 2030 and building a research base at its south pole, a region believed to contain water ice.

Experts say samples collected by the Chang’e 6 lander could provide key information about the origins and evolution of the Moon, Earth and solar system, and the mission itself will provide important data and technical practice to advance China’s lunar ambitions.

“The mysterious far side of the Moon is so different from the near side of the Moon in many ways that without returned samples, lunar scientists cannot fully understand the Moon as a complete planetary body,” said James Head, professor emeritus at Brown University. collaborated with Chinese scientists leading the mission. “The samples returned by Chang’e 6 will allow us to make big strides in solving these problems.”

The far side of the moon is out of range of normal communications, meaning Chang’e 6 must also rely on the Queqiao 2 satellite, launched into lunar orbit in March.

China plans to launch two more Chang-e missions as it moves closer to its goal of sending astronauts to the Moon by 2030.

space race

Some countries are expanding their lunar programs, increasingly focused on providing access to deep space resources and exploration.

Last year, India landed a spacecraft on the Moon for the first time, while Russia’s first lunar landing mission in decades ended in failure when its Luna 25 probe crashed into the lunar surface.

In January, Japan became the fifth country to place a spacecraft on the Moon, although its Moon Sniper lander experienced power problems due to an incorrect landing angle. The following month, the IM-1 mission, funded by NASA and developed by private Texas company Intuitive Machines, landed near the moon’s south pole.

The landing, the first by a U.S.-made spacecraft in more than five decades, is one of a number of commercial missions planned to explore the lunar surface before NASA attempts to return American astronauts there as early as 2026 and build its science camp.