HELSINKI – China is preparing for future deep space missions after receiving nearly two kilograms of lunar samples from the far side of the Moon.
The Chang’e-6 reentry capsule returned to Earth on June 25, successfully completing a 53-day mission. The capsule was found as planned in the grasslands of Siziwang Banner, Inner Mongolia.
The capsule was airlifted to Beijing and opened on June 26 to retrieve the sample box. The China National Space Administration (CNSA) announced on Friday that it contains 1,935.3 grams of samples.
The mission aimed to collect up to 2000 grams. The side mission near Chang’e-5 2020 collected 1731 grams. That mission encountered a drilling problem that affected the amount collected.
The National Astronomical Observatories of the Chinese Academy of Sciences will then open the sample container. NAOC will then prepare the samples obtained from the drilling and surface sampling and package them for storage.
It is expected that domestic research institutions will be able to apply for samples after six months. The samples will be opened for international applications two years later, according to CNSA regulations for the management of lunar samples.
Ge Ping, spokesman for the CNSA, stated that the samples are stickier and more compacted than previous lunar samples.
Mysteries of the South Pole-Aitken
It is hoped, according to a 2023 paper on the target landing site, that the samples will “resolve questions about the many lunar near-far dichotomies and provide new insights into both the early impact history of the Solar System and in geological evolution. on Monday.”
“The samples collected from the South Pole-Aitken Basin may be very different from the samples collected from the front side, which is favorable for a more complete understanding of the moon’s geological evolution history,” Li Chunlai, deputy chief designer of the Chang’e-6 Mission, said during a press conference in Beijing, June 27.
How revealing the samples will be remains to be seen. “There is no doubt that the return of the far side samples will provide unique insights into the nature of the moon’s evolution. And the fact that they just landed safely on Earth is a tremendous achievement for China,” said Clive Neal, a professor and lunar scientist at the University of Notre Dame. SpaceNews.
Neal notes, however, that the landing site is one of the oldest terrains on the Moon. As such, material originating from the South Pole–Aitken Basin impact—a large basin created by a large, ancient impact of great scientific interest—is likely to be diluted, darkened, and redistributed by processing. later geological.
“Whether they will unequivocally demonstrate the age of South Pole’s Aitken Basin or determine the first mantle sample returned from the Moon remains to be seen, but these samples will reveal secrets in the coming decades, as as did the Apollo samples.”
Deep space missions ahead
CNSA officials announced Thursday that its second Tianwen mission will launch in 2025. Tianwen-2 is a combined asteroid sample return and comet rendezvous mission. It is currently scheduled to lift off on a Long March 3B rocket in May 2025.
The mission will target the near-Earth asteroid 469219 Kamoʻoalewa, collecting samples and returning to Earth about 2.5 years after launch. The spacecraft will deliver samples and then head toward the main belt comet 311P/PANSTARRS.
It was also reiterated that the third and fourth Tianwen missions will be launched around 2030. These are the Tianwen-3 Mars sample return and the Tianwen-4 Jupiter mission. The latter, currently, will include a solar-powered Jupiter orbiter and a smaller, radioisotope-powered spacecraft to make a flyby of Uranus.
Bian Zhigang, deputy administrator of CNSA, said China will also implement major national aerospace science and technology projects and programs. These include heavy lift launch vehicles and reusable space transport systems. In addition, China aims to strengthen basic research, accelerate research and development of key key technologies, and promote innovative development in space science, space technology, and space applications.
Future missions to the mooncollaboration
Next for the moon, China is preparing for the Chang’e-7 lunar mission to the south pole that is expected to target Shackleton Crater. It will be supported by the Queqiao-2 relay satellite that facilitated the Chang’e-6 mission.
CNSA published an opportunity announcement in late 2023 for its Chang’e-8 lunar mission to the south pole in 2028. It has 200 kilograms of payload capacity for international cooperation. CNSA revealed Thursday that it has received more than 30 letters of intent regarding mission cooperation.
It was also said that CNSA has signed cooperation documents with more than 10 countries regarding the China-led International Lunar Research Station (ILRS). The countries were not named. The SpaceNews report lists 10 countries besides China.
In response to a question on cooperation with the United States, Bian said the US should remove obstacles. He specifically pointed to the so-called Wolf Amendment.
“If the US side sincerely hopes to carry out normal space exchanges with China, it should take practical measures to remove obstacles. As for China’s future space plans, they will be carried out at China’s own pace for peaceful use. We are always eager to develop equal and mutually beneficial cooperation in an open and inclusive attitude,” said Bian.