China Plants a Flag on the Far Side of the Moon

UPDATE Jun 4, 2024 11:17 AM CDT

A Chinese spacecraft is headed back to Earth after collecting soil and rocks from the far side of the moon—a first for any nation, reports the Guardian. The unmanned Chang'e-6 lander took off from the moon on Tuesday after wrapping up its two-day gathering mission. The China National Space Administration added that "a Chinese national flag carried by the lander was unfurled for the first time on the far side of the moon." China is the only nation to land on the far side—sometimes called the dark side because it doesn't face Earth.

Jun 3, 2024 7:57 AM CDT

China is the only nation that has managed to land a spacecraft on the far side of the moon—and it not only matched the feat over the weekend, it plans to go one step further and collect the first-ever samples of rock and soil.

• Video: China's National Space Administration released this video of the Chang'e-6 unmanned probe touching down Sunday in a large crater called the South Pole-Aitken Basin, reports the AP.

• History: A predecessor called the Chang'e-4 touched down on the far side in 2019, but this lander will one-up that mission by scooping up about 4 pounds of rock and dirt, reports Space.com. Some will be scraped off the surface and some will come from roughly 6 feet deep. Assuming all goes well, the canister of samples will arrive back on Earth on June 25, giving humans their first-ever look at far-side soil.
• Daunting: Every mission to the moon with the exception of Chang'e-4 and Chang'e-6 has focused on the near side of the moon because it is much easier, relatively speaking, to explore. The lunar far side never faces the Earth and requires a relay satellite for communications, and it's generally more rugged with a thicker crust and more craters. The soil samples could go a long way in helping astronomers understand why it is so different than the near side, per the New York Times.

(More moon stories.)