China’s Chang’e-6 Probe Begins Return Journey From Moon’s Far Side

China’s national space agency today announced that its Chang’e-6 probe has lifted off from the far side of the moon, starting its journey back towards Earth. The probe’s successful departure from the moon means China is closer to becoming the first country to return samples from the far side of the moon, which permanently faces away from Earth. The probe, which departed the moon at 7:38 am local time (2338 GMT) successfully completed its sample collection from June 2-3.

China National Space Administration (CNSA) said in a statement that Chang’e-6 “withstood the test of high temperature on the far side of the moon” Compared with its predecessor Chang’e-5, which retrieved samples from the near side of the moon, Chang’e-6 faced an additional technical challenge of operating without direct communications with ground stations on Earth.