Chang'e 6 capsule opened in Beijing, unveiling far side Moon samples

The reentry capsule of the Chang'e 6 mission was opened in Beijing on Wednesday afternoon, reported China Central Television.

The capsule was transported to Beijing earlier on Wednesday morning by airplane and subsequently taken to the China Academy of Space Technology, where it was designed and constructed.

During a brief ceremony at the academy on Wednesday afternoon, engineers opened the capsule and retrieved the precious samples collected from the far side of the moon, according to CCTV.

Next, scientists from the National Astronomical Observatories, a subsidiary of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, will commence storage, analysis, and research of these samples, CCTV noted.

The Chang'e 6 robotic mission, marking the world's first attempt to return samples from the far side of the moon, was launched on May 3 by a Long March 5 heavy-lift carrier rocket from the Wenchang Space Launch Center in Hainan province.

The spacecraft, weighing 8.35 tons, comprised four components: an orbiter, a lander, an ascender, and the reentry capsule.

Following a series of complex maneuvers, the lander successfully touched down at the South Pole-Aitken Basin, one of the largest-known impact craters in the solar system, on June 2.

Operating for 49 hours on the moon's far side, the lander utilized a mechanical arm and drill to collect surface and subsurface materials. Several scientific instruments were also activated to conduct surveys and analyses.

After completing its tasks, the ascender, loaded with samples, lifted off from the lunar surface and rendezvoused with the reentry capsule in lunar orbit.

In the final phase of the mission, the orbiter-reentry capsule combination returned to Earth's orbit before separating. The reentry capsule successfully touched down on Tuesday afternoon at its designated landing site in Siziwang Banner, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, concluding the 53-day voyage.