Chang'e-6 to Collect the First Lunar Far Side Samples

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

China’s Chang’e-6 lunar probe successfully landed on the far side of the moon – the South Pole-Aitken Basin (SPA) – at 06:23 AM Beijing time on Sunday, a landmark mission which aims to retrieve rocks and soil from the lunar surface, China’s National Space Administration (CNSA) announced.

 

The lunar south pole is attracting a lot of attention these days, mainly because of the possibility of the presence of game-changing amounts of water ice trapped in shadowed craters. Water reserves could make lunar habitats much more viable and potentially be used for propellant for sending missions farther out into the Solar System. 

 

And scientists say the moon’s dark side – so-called because it is invisible from Earth, not because it never catches the sun’s rays – holds great promise for research because its craters are less covered by ancient lava flows than the near side. Material collected from the dark side may better shed light on how the moon formed in the first place.

 

The landing elevates China’s space power status in a global rush to the moon, where countries, including the US, are hoping to exploit lunar minerals to sustain long-term astronaut missions and moon bases. 

 

On Friday, Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze (left) finally revealed that the United States has been behind two failed ‘color revolutions’, i.e. in 2020-2021, and then in 2022 and therefore, Tbilisi needs to “reconsider” its relationship with Washington.

 

So, there you have it – hostile acts perpetrated by the US to effect regime change in the former Soviet republic. The US just won't stop!