CHINA APPROVES APPLICATIONS FROM RESEARCH INSTITUTIONS FOR LUNAR SAMPLES

Wed 06 August 2025:

China has approved the ninth batch of applications from research institutions for borrowing lunar samples returned by the Chang’e-5 and Chang’e-6 Moon missions, state media reported Monday.

The Lunar Exploration and Space Engineering Center, which operates under the China National Space Administration, released the approved list, said state-run Xinhua News Agency.

A total of 30,881.8 milligrams of lunar samples will be lent to 32 research groups from 25 research institutions.

China’s Chang’e-6 mission collected 1,935.3 grams of samples from the far side of the Moon — the first time in human history. The Chang’e-5 mission retrieved about 1,731 grams of lunar samples.

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China’s lunar samples come from its Chang’e missions, specifically Chang’e-5 and Chang’e-6. Chang’e-5, launched in 2020, returned about 1.7 kilograms of lunar soil from the near side of the Moon, the first sample return since the Soviet Union’s Luna 24 in 1976.

Chang’e-6, in 2024, made history by collecting nearly 2 kilograms from the far side, a region never sampled before due to its inaccessibility and communication challenges. These samples, gathered from the Oceanus Procellarum and South Pole-Aitken basin, respectively, offer insights into the Moon’s geological history, volcanic activity, and differences between its near and far sides.

The far-side samples are particularly valuable, showing a looser, more porous structure with more feldspar and glass, suggesting unique impact histories. China has shared small portions with international scientists, including U.S. universities, despite restrictions like the Wolf Amendment, to study the Moon’s evolution and inform future missions

Since July 2021, China has lent eight batches of lunar samples to institutions for research purposes.

Last month, China released a string of research findings by Chinese scientists following studies of the samples collected by the Chang’e-6 mission — in categories such as volcanic activity, the ancient magnetic field, water content and geochemical characteristics of the moon mantle.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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