Chang'e-6 far-side samples
China's Chang'e-6 returned the first samples from the Moon's far side in June 2024, from the South Pole-Aitken basin region.
Open in the interactive tree →It landed at 22:23 UTC on 1 June 2024 in the Apollo basin inside the South Pole-Aitken region, scooped and drilled 1,935.3 g of material, and returned to Inner Mongolia on 25 June 2024 after 53 days. The South Pole-Aitken basin is the Moon's largest and oldest impact scar, so the samples constrain its early history. Chinese and international teams are analysing them.
As of October 2026
A Nature paper of 15 November 2024 dated basalt fragments from the landing site to about 2.8 billion years and one fragment to 4.2 billion years, showing that far-side volcanism lasted a long time. China's next lunar mission, Chang'e-7 (south pole, search for water ice), was due to launch on 23-24 August 2026 but was scrubbed because it did not meet launch conditions; no new date has been announced (reports range from a one-month slip to 2027). China plans its first crewed lunar landing around 2029-2030.
Open steps
- Far-side geology from returned samples Low AI leverageCharacterise returned samples from the lunar far side to understand early lunar evolution and ancient magnetic fields.
- South Pole water and volatile mapping Low AI leverageFollow up with orbiters and landers to map water ice and volatiles at lunar south pole for ISRU planning.
- Global lunar sample database Low AI leverageBuild a public archive linking Apollo, Luna and Chang'e samples with metadata, imagery and analytical results.
Where AI could help
Low AI leverage. Remaining work is lab analysis of the samples and the next landers; AI helps mineral mapping and target choice at the margins.
- Map minerals and rock types automatically in thin sections and electron-microscope images
- Date and map craters from orbiter images to choose landing sites
- Plan rover paths and sample choices for Chang'e-7 and later missions
- Combine orbital spectra and sample data to extend findings across the far side
Shown so far
- In 2026, a deep-learning model identified minerals with over 80% accuracy and rock types with over 78% in electron-microscope images of Apollo mare basalts (not Chang'e-6 samples). source
Prerequisites
- Moon landing1969
- Deep-space probes (Voyager)1977
- Far-Side & Polar Moon Landings2019-2023Chang'e-4's far-side landing and relay satellite paved the way for Chang'e-6