Official: China's moon probe will carry French, Russian gear
China says it will launch its next robot lunar lander in 2024, and it will carry equipment from France, Sweden, Russia and Italy
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.China will launch its next robot lunar lander in 2024, and it will carry equipment from France Sweden Russia and Italy the official news agency reported.
Plans call for Chang’e 6 to land near the lunar south pole and collect samples for return to Earth, the program’s chief designer, Hu Hao, said at a conference Saturday, according to the Xinhua News Agency.
The Chang’e landers are part of Chinese space exploration efforts that also include a probe that is preparing to land a robot rover on Mars. There are also plans for a crewed orbital station, landing a human on the moon and retrieving soil from an asteroid.
In December, the previous moon probe, Chang’e 5, returned lunar rocks to Earth for the first time since the 1970s.
Chang’e 6 is to “collect lunar samples automatically for comprehensive analysis and research,” Hu was quoted as saying at the conference in the eastern city of Nanjing.
The lander is expected to carry instruments developed by scientists from France, Sweden, Italy and Russia, Hu said. He gave no details of what they will do.
The announcement reflects growing interaction between China’s secretive, military-linked space program and other countries.