June 2, 2024 9:38 AM

China lands on moon’s far side in sample retrieval mission

China landed an uncrewed spacecraft on the far side of the moon on Sunday (June 2), a landmark mission aiming to retrieve the world's first rock and soil samples from the dark lunar hemisphere, China's space agency said. The landing elevates China's space power status in a global rush to the moon, where countries, including the United States, are hoping to exploit lunar minerals to sustain long-term astronaut missions and moon bases within the next decade. The Chang'e-6 craft, equipped with an...