BEIJING: China's Chang'e-6 probe on Tuesday lifted off from the far side of the Moon for its journey back to Earth carrying the first rock samples ever collected from the rarely explored terrain, in an ambitious mission that underscored the country’s rise as a major space power.
The ascender has entered a pre-set orbit around the Moon after taking off from the far side this morning, the China National Space Administration (CNSA) announced.
At 7:38 a.m. (Beijing Time) on Tuesday, it lifted off from the lunar surface, carrying samples collected from the Moon's far side, the state-run Xinhua news agency reported. Its return journey to Earth is estimated to take about three weeks, with a landing expected in China’s Inner Mongolia region around June 25.
