Chinese lunar probe is preparing a manned expedition (VIDEO)

The mission of the Chang’e-6 lunar probe is to collect samples from the far side of the Moon and is the first of its kind in human history.

According to the plan, the launch of the mission and the descent of the vehicle to the Moon is planned for May 2024. Chang’e 6 will be China’s second return mission. Like its predecessors, the mission’s spacecraft is named following the Chinese moon goddess Chang’e.

The probe is launched into orbit by the Long March 5 launch vehicle from the Wenchang Satellite Launch Center on Hainan Island. It is planned to land near the south pole of the Moon, take soil samples and deliver them to Earth. The mission will require the help of the Queqiao-2 (Magpie Bridge-2) relay satellite, since the far side of the Moon never faces Earth.
France is involved in creating the payload for the mission.

At first, the device belonged to phase III of the Chinese lunar program (delivery of samples from the Moon to Earth), being a backup to Chang’e-5, but following the success of the Chang’e-5 mission in 2020, it was transferred to phase IV (exploration of the region of the south pole of the Moon to prepare for construction inhabited base there).