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China launched an ambitious mission on Tuesday to bring back rocks and debris from the lunar surface for the first time in more than 40 years, a feat that could improve human understanding of the moon and the solar system.
The Long March-5, China’s largest carrier rocket, took off at 4:30 am Beijing time (20:30 GMT on Monday) in a launch from the Wenchang Space Launch Center on the southern Chinese island of Hainan carrying the spacecraft Chang’e-5.
The China National Space Administration (CNSA) called the launch a success and said in a statement that the rocket flew for nearly 37 minutes before sending the spacecraft on its intended trajectory.
The Chang’e-5 mission, named after the ancient Chinese moon goddess, will seek to collect lunar material to help scientists better understand the moon’s origins and formation. The mission will test China’s ability to remotely acquire samples from space, before more complex missions.
If the mission were completed as planned, it would make China only the third country to have recovered lunar samples, joining the United States and the Soviet Union.
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