NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) recently provided captivating images of China’s Chang’e 6 spacecraft landing on the far side of the Moon. This observation demonstrates the ability of international space agencies to collaborate and share valuable information.
Chang’e 6 spotted from space
On June 7, 2024, the LRO spotted the Chang’e 6 lander in the Apollo basin on the far side of the Moon. The lander is visible as a small cluster of bright pixels at the center of images captured by the orbiter’s high-resolution camera. NASA scientists also noted the presence of two craters of similar size flanking the lander, as well as a more subtle crater about 50 meters wide nearby. Note that the increased brightness of the surrounding terrain is due to disturbances caused by the lander’s enginesa phenomenon also observed around other lunar landing sites.
Members of the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera (LROC) team refined the coordinates of the Chang’e 6 landing site to minus 41.6385 degrees north latitude and 206.0148 degrees east longitude. They also published an image of the same area taken on March 3, 2022 to show the difference before and after the landing of Chang’e 6. These images thus make it possible to visualize the impact of the landing and to confirm the presence of the Chinese spacecraft on the lunar surface.
Note that the Chang’e 6 landing site is located on a marine unit, an expanse of cooled volcanic rock at the southern edge of the Apollo Basin. This region has basaltic lava flows dating back to 3.1 billion years which distorted and lifted the lunar surface, creating wrinkled ridges.
A pioneering mission
Chang’e 6 was launched from Hainan province, China on May 3, 2024, with the aim of bring back the first lunar samples from the far side of the Moon.
The probe’s ascending vehicle left the lunar surface with its precious cargo on June 3, 2024, marking a crucial milestone in this mission. After finding the Chang’e 6 mission orbiter, the latter transferred the lunar samples to the return capsule. It must return to Earth on June 25parachuted into a pre-selected area in Siziwang Banner, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, China.
The importance of this mission cannot be underestimated. The samples brought back by Chang’e 6 will indeed provide crucial information on the geology of the far side of the Moon, a region which remains largely unknown. The data collected could notably help resolve fundamental questions about the history of the Moon and the evolution of its environment.
