China has started unmanned navigation Chang’e 6 lunar probe It departed from the southern island province of Hainan on Friday at 5:27 p.m. local time (5:27 p.m. ET), accelerating the ongoing space race with the United States. If successful, the lander would detach once it reaches lunar orbit and descend to the surface to scoop up samples from the vast Antarctic Aitken Basin impact crater. Once completed, the lander will be launched to Chang’e 6, dock, and return to Earth with the first ever sample. Overall, this mission will take approximately 56 days to complete.
China’s possible return to the moon marks a significant development in international efforts to establish a permanent presence on the moon. As the United States moves forward with its Artemis mission in tandem with help from Japan and commercial partners, China and Russia are also seeking to build their own lunar research stations. Who does this first could have a huge impact on the future of lunar exploration, resource extraction, and scientific advancement.
[Related: Why do all these countries want to go to the moon right now? ]
China National Space Administration (CNSA)’s previous Chang’e 5 mission successfully landed the probe on a volcanic plain on the moon’s near side, but Chang’e 6 aims to go even further technologically and logistically. ing. To accomplish the Far Side feat, CNSA mission controllers will need to use satellites already in lunar orbit to communicate with Chang’e 6 in the event that direct relay is blocked. But if they can manage it, the rewards could be substantial.
as NBC News On Friday, it was explained that the far side of the moon has far less volcanic activity than the near side. All previous samples of the moon have been taken from the near side, so experts hope to collect new samples elsewhere to better understand potential information about the moon’s history and the origins of the solar system. I think it will deepen.
But when it comes to putting actual humans back on the moon, NASA likely still has the upper hand. Despite recent mission delays, Artemis 3 astronauts are currently on track to reach the moon’s ice-covered south pole by 2026. China has no plans to send its own Tyco astronauts to the moon until at least 2030, and a joint research station with Russia remains. It is still in the conceptual stage.
The same year also marks the official decommissioning of the International Space Station. After NASA remotely guides its violent re-entry into Earth’s atmosphere, the only remaining orbital station will be the three-module Tiangong facility in China.
In an interview with Yahoo Finance Earlier this week, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson didn’t mince words about the potential impact on who will be the first to land on the moon.
“I don’t think it’s out of the blue for China to suddenly say, ‘We’re here.’ Stay home,” Nelson said at the time. “It’s very unfortunate. You’re taking away what’s been done for years on Earth, you’re taking territory, you’re claiming it’s mine, and people are fighting over it. ”
