China’s Chang’e 6 has successfully taken off from the far side of the moon after collecting samples.
According to BBC, the state media of China has informed that its lunar probe lifted off at about 07:38 on Tuesday (23:38 GMT Monday) to begin the journey back to Earth.
The international space community celebrated when the spacecraft landed on the south pole of the moon on Sunday for the first time in history.
The Chinese National Space Administration (CNSA) called this lunar mission an ‘unprecedented feat in human lunar exploration.’
CNSA said, “The mission has withstood the test of high temperature on the far side of the moon.”
The module, after taking off, will enter a ‘pre-set orbit around the moon.’ The craft is expected to return in about three weeks and land in Inner Mongolia.
As per CNSA, the mission aimed to collect 2kg (4.4lb) of material using a drill and a mechanical arm.
Professor John Pernet-Fisher, who specialises in lunar geology at the University of Manchester, told BBC, “Everyone is very excited that we might get a look at these rocks no one has ever seen before.”
Additionally, earlier in 2020, China’s Chang’e 5 mission brought back 1.7kg of material from an area on the near side of the moon called Oceanus Procellarum.
