Chinese Rocket Returns to Earth by Bringing Soil from the Moon

BEIJING – Exploration spacecraft module China carrying samples from a remote region on the Moon landed on Earth today.

Thus, this mission brought to an end a technically complex 53-day mission, which was declared the world’s first mission.

The landing module of the Chang’e-6 spacecraft landed at a designated location in Inner Mongolia at 14:07 (local time), according to the China National Space Administration.

As reported by AFP, Tuesday (25/6/2024), Chang’e-6 returned with soil and rock samples from the far side of the Moon facing Earth.

The material is believed to help scientists better understand how the Moon formed and how it evolved over time.

The China National Space Administration said: “The module functions normally, marking the complete success of the Chang’e-6 lunar exploration mission.”

Chang’e-6 lifted off from the space center in Hainan province on May 3.

It then landed in the Moon’s large South Pole Aitken Basin almost a month later.

It used a drill and a robotic arm to take samples, took several pictures of the mottled surface, and installed a Chinese flag on the gray ground.

(wbs)