China confirms a 2024 expedition to the moon’s unexplored side.
30 September, Beijing (Prensa Latina) According to today’s local press, China’s upcoming lunar trip, which is slated for next year, calls for the probe to collect samples.
The Chang’e 6 spacecraft will have four parts, according to China Daily: an orbiter, a lander, an ascender, and a re-entry module.
The National Space Administration of China, which provided assurance that the project was moving along as intended, was mentioned by the newspaper.
In the first half of 2024, a new relay satellite called Queqiao 2 will be sent into lunar orbit to help with communications between the Chang’e 6 spacecraft and Earth, according to the agency.
The South Pole-Aitken basin will be the first location on the other side of the moon where dust and rock samples will be collected if everything goes according to plan.
China also volunteered to load a total of 10 kilogrammes of foreign equipment onto the orbiter and lander for the mission.
According to authoritative sources, a Pakistani payload will be put on the orbiter, while the Chang’e 6 lander would carry research instruments from France, Italy, and the European Space Agency.
The only nations that have transported materials from the moon to Earth so far are China, the former Soviet Union, and the United States, but none of them have collected samples from the dark side.
