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00:32
After weeks of space travel, China’s Chang’e-5 probe returned to Earth with fresh samples of lunar rock and soil on Thursday morning Beijing time.
The precious cargo is the first lunar samples humanity has obtained in more than four decades.
The return capsule landed at the designated landing site in Siziwang Banner in northern China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.
The search and recovery team on the ground, which had conducted multiple simulation exercises before, moved quickly to locate the target and recover the capsule.
An aerial team aboard helicopters detected the capsule using infrared cameras, while a ground team followed by SUV to reach the snow-covered landing site.
Read more: Landing site in northern China ready for return of Chang’e-5 with lunar sample
00:59
As planned, the capsule with lunar samples inside will be airlifted to Beijing and opened there.
In Beijing, the China National Space Agency (CNSA) will transfer lunar materials to a lunar sample laboratory at the National Astronomical Observatory (NAO) under the Chinese Academy of Sciences, which has been specially built for storage, processing and analysis. .
The laboratory has special facilities that will prevent the sample from becoming contaminated with the Earth’s atmosphere and water.
Laboratory scientists will first unpack, sort, and store the materials. They will then begin long-term studies of the sample according to a strict and scientific experiment design, including analysis of its mineralogical and chemical composition.
Read more: Everything you need to know about the lunar sample that Chang’e-5 collected
00:42
Chinese President Xi Jinping praised the success of the Chang’e-5 mission in a letter of congratulations to all who contributed to the historic achievement.
He called China’s mission’s most complicated space project and mission success another major achievement in overcoming difficulties by making the most of the advantages of the new national system.
It marks a major step forward in China’s space industry and will contribute to deepening understanding of the moon’s origin and the evolutionary history of the solar system, Xi noted.
The Chang’e-5 probe, consisting of a lander, an ascendant, an orbiter, and a return, was launched on November 24. Its lander and ascendant combination successfully landed on the near side of the moon on December 1 and collected samples from both the lunar surface and below.
