Chang'e-6 achieved "three major technological breakthroughs" and "a world first"
After 11 stages and 53 days of challenges, at 14:07 on June 25, the Chang'e-6 returner carrying humanity's first sample from the back of the moon landed precisely in Siziwang Banner, Inner Mongolia, and the mission was a complete success.
Bian Zhigang, deputy director of the National Space Administration, said at a press conference held by the State Council Information Office this afternoon that the Chang'e-6 mission is the most technologically advanced lunar exploration mission in China's space history to date, achieving "three major technological breakthroughs" and "one world first", namely, breakthroughs in the design and control technology of the lunar retrograde orbit, the intelligent sampling technology on the far side of the moon, and the take-off and ascent technology on the far side of the moon, achieving the world's first automatic sampling and return on the far side of the moon, and once again creating a world record for China's space program. At the same time, new materials such as "basalt fiber" used to display the national flag on the moon, and new technologies such as intelligent mobile cameras can be widely used in the fields of national economy and people's livelihood, promoting space program to create a better life.
The Chang'e-6 mission is a journey of exploration. The geological structure, material composition and early cosmic environment of the far side of the moon are full of mysteries. This time, Chang'e-6 chose to land on the edge of the Apollo crater in the northeast of the South Pole-Aitken Basin on the far side of the moon, which is the largest, deepest and oldest known impact crater on the moon. Bian Zhigang introduced that scientists are conducting research on the lunar samples drilled and collected from here, and are expected to discover more major scientific mysteries such as the evolution of the solar system and the moon.
The Chang'e-6 mission is also a journey of cooperation. The mission carried out cooperation on four scientific payloads with the European Space Agency, France, Italy, and Pakistan, obtained valuable first-hand scientific data, and carried out collaborative cooperation in the field of measurement and control. Multinational space agencies, ambassadors to China, and officials from international organizations were invited to observe the launch. After the success of the mission, heads of multinational space agencies and international organizations, international peers, and friends sent congratulations to the National Space Administration, looking forward to deepening cooperation. "We also encourage scientists at home and abroad to jointly carry out scientific research on lunar samples and data, and strive to obtain more original results." Bian Zhigang said.
This year marks the 20th anniversary of the CPC Central Committee's decision to implement the lunar exploration project. Over the past 20 years, the project has brought together thousands of units and tens of thousands of scientific and technological workers across the country, cultivated and condensed the spirit of lunar exploration, created a large number of outstanding scientific and technological and management talents, formed a successful model for the implementation of major scientific and technological projects, built my country's core capabilities for deep space exploration, and embarked on a high-quality and high-efficiency lunar exploration path. After achieving the established goals, each mission carried out expansion experiments to lay the foundation for subsequent engineering tasks. Taking scientific discoveries as an example, Chinese and foreign scientists have published more than 1,900 papers using China's lunar exploration data. From the Chang'e 5 lunar samples, Chinese scientists discovered the sixth new mineral on the moon and named it "Chang'e Stone"; research has proved that there was still magma activity on the moon 1.96 billion years ago, which "extended" the currently known geological life of the moon by 1 billion years. The study of lunar samples has entered the "Chang'e era", which has greatly enriched human cognition of the moon and even the universe.
Deep space is vast and boundless, and human exploration is endless. Bian Zhigang revealed that the subsequent Chang'e 7 and 8, and the planetary exploration project Tianwen 2 and 3 missions are proceeding as planned. "The China National Space Administration will adhere to the principle of equality, mutual benefit, peaceful use, and inclusive development, and carry out in-depth international exchanges and cooperation in aerospace in various forms."
