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Once all is said and done, China hopes to bring more than four pounds of samples to Earth. To put that context, NASA astronauts brought in approximately 842 pounds of lunar rock and soil between 1969 and 1972. If the mission is successful, China will become the third nation in history to have accomplished that feat. To date, only the US and the Soviet Union have successfully brought back samples from the Moon.
How The New York Times Most notably, in the past, China has generally waited until one of its ships has been successfully put into orbit before sharing any news. This time, the country broadcast the entire takeoff procedure on state television and YouTube, indicating its growing confidence in its space program. Like Chang’e-4 before it, Chang’e-5 is part of China’s ambitious plan for the Moon. By the late 2030s, the country hopes to establish a research facility and human colony on the lunar surface, something that NASA’s Artemis program also hopes to do.
