China launched a probe on Friday to collect samples from the far side of the Moon, a world first, which would represent a great success for this country's ambitious space program, reports AFP.
China also managed to place a rover on the planet Mars. Photo: pixabay (Archive)
A rocket carrying the Chang'e 6 probe into space was launched from the Wenchang Space Center on the tropical island of Hainan in southern China shortly before 17:30 local time (09:30 GMT), AFP journalists present said. on the spot, writes Agerpres.
Hundreds of spectators gathered nearby to witness the latest achievement of the Chinese space program.
The New China News Agency hailed the launch, stating that it is “the first of its kind in the history of human exploration of the Moon”.
“The entire mission includes numerous challenges, each of the stages being linked to each other and is a real challenge for our nerves” said Wang Qiong, deputy chief coordinator of the Chang'e 6 mission.
It is China's latest project, which, according to Washington, would disguise a military space program under the guise of a civilian program.
The Chang'e 6 mission aims to collect approximately 2 kilograms of samples from the far side of the Moon and then bring them back to Earth for analysis.
It is a very complex mission from a technical point of view, lasting 53 days, which mainly consists in launching a probe towards that hemisphere of the Moon which remains permanently hidden from Earth.
“Chang'e 6 will collect samples from the far side of the Moon for the first time”said Ge Ping, deputy director of the Chinese Center for Lunar Exploration and Space Engineering.
In 2019, China already managed to place a device on the hidden side of the Moon, but it did not bring samples to Earth.
The Chinese probe is set to crash into the huge South Pole-Aitken Basin, one of the largest known impact craters in the Solar System. After landing, it will collect samples of lunar crust and rocks and conduct experiments in the landing zone. Once its mission is complete, the Chinese probe will then return to Earth and land at the Wenchang Space Launch Center.
President Xi Jinping wanted to accelerate “the space dreaml” of China in recent years. This country, the world's second economy, has injected billions of dollars into its military space program to catch up with the United States and Russia.
“A Military Program”
Beijing has since had several successes, most notably building its own Tiangong (“Heavenly Palace”) space station, aboard which it sent a new crew of astronauts last week.
China also managed to place a rover on the planet Mars and became the third country in the world to send a man into space by its own means.
The United States plans to send astronauts to the moon in 2026 with the Artemis 3 mission. China also wants to send humans to the moon by 2030.
China has been excluded from the International Space Station project since 2011, when the United States banned NASA from collaborating with Beijing. China has since developed its own space station project.
The rapid development of the Chinese space program is causing concern in Washington.
In April, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said the United States was now committed to “in a race” with China.
“We believe that much of what they call the civilian space program is actually a military program.”said Bill Nelson in front of an expenditure committee in the House of Representatives in Washington.
“A great value and importance for mankind”
Chang'e 6 is the first of three unmanned missions that China plans to send to the moon this decade.
Chang'e 7 will then explore the Moon's South Pole in search of water, while Chang'e 8 will try to establish the technical feasibility of building a base on Earth's natural satellite, with Beijing claiming that a “basic model” will be completed by 2030.
According to scientists, the hidden side of the Moon – so called because it is invisible from Earth, not because it would never catch the Sun's rays – is very promising for scientific research because its craters are less covered by ancient lava flows than those on the near side of the Moon.
This could therefore mean that it would be easier to collect material to better understand how the Moon formed.
“The samples collected by Chang'e 6 will have a geological age of about 4 billion yearsGe Ping estimated.
“Collecting lunar samples from different regions and different geological ages, as well as conducting experiments, are actions of great value and importance to mankind“, he added.
