Chang'e-5 Lands on the Moon

On Tuesday evening (Beijing time), Chang’e-5 landed on the Moon, where it will carry out its mission of gathering samples for return to Earth. Video footage of the landing is now available. If everything goes according to plan, China will join the United States and the Soviet Union as the third nation to have returned lunar rocks to Earth. It will collect samples over the next few days. The U.S. lunar program returned 382 kg of rocks, which are still yielding new discoveries. Chang’e-5 will be the first mission in over 40 years to bring lunar samples back to Earth.