China’s Chang’e 6 mission has landed on the moon’s mysterious far side, marking a significant milestone in the country’s ambitious space program. The robotic mission touched down inside Apollo Crater, within the giant South Pole-Aitken basin, at 6:23 a.m. Beijing Time on Sunday (June 2). This is the second successful far-side landing for China, the first being Chang’e 4 in January 2019.
The Chang’e 6 mission aims to collect samples from the moon’s far side and return them to Earth for analysis. This is the first time that any country has attempted to collect samples from the far side of the moon. The returned samples will provide valuable information about the moon’s history and evolution, and could help to explain why the far side is so different from the near side.
The far side of the moon is of particular interest to scientists because it is largely unexplored. It is always facing away from Earth, so we cannot see it from our planet. This makes it difficult to communicate with and control spacecraft operating on the far side. However, China has developed special relay orbiters that allow them to communicate with the Chang’e 6 mission.
The Chang’e 6 lander is equipped with a variety of scientific instruments that will be used to study the moon’s surface and collect samples. The lander will spend the next few days conducting these experiments and collecting samples before launching them back to Earth. The sample return capsule is expected to land on Earth on June 25.
The Chang’e 6 mission is a major step forward for China’s space program. It demonstrates China’s growing capabilities in space exploration and its commitment to becoming a leading space power. The mission is also significant for the international scientific community, as it will provide valuable new data about the moon’s far side.
