Chang’e 6 Mission : Status
The China National Space Administration (CNSA) recently announced that the Chang’e 6 sample return mission is on track to land on the surface of the Moon in the first half of 2024.
- The Chang’e 6 mission is a planned lander designed to return samples from the lunar south pole.
- The mission aims to land on the Moon, collect samples from the lunar surface, and return them to Earth.
- This process will contribute crucial data to unravel the Moon’s geological mysteries.
- Representing the first attempt to retrieve samples from the far side of the Moon, Chang’e 6 is set to bring back up to two kilograms of lunar samples, adopting a configuration similar to the successful Chang’e 5 mission.
- The mission involves international collaboration, with payloads from the European Space Agency (ESA) and the French space agency CNES.
- ESA contributes a lunar surface ion tester, while CNES provides equipment for measuring radon gas and its decay products.
- Additionally, an Italian laser corner reflector for radar instrument calibration and Pakistan’s ICUBE-Q CubeSat will be part of the mission.
