China has successfully landed a robotic spacecraft on the far side - or ‘dark side’ - of the moon, the first ever such attempt and landing. The un-crewed Chang’e-4 probe, named after the Chinese goddess of the moon, touched down at 10:26 Beijing time in the Moon’s South Pole-Aitken Basin.
The landing is seen as a major mile stone in space exploration.
The Chang’e-4 probe is carrying instruments to analyse the unxplored region’s geography, as well as to conduct biological experiments. The lander is carrying a container with six live species from Earth – cotton, rapeseed, potato, fruit fly, yeast and the Arabidopsis plant. The intention is to try and form a mini biosphere, the Arabidopsis plant may produce the first flower on the Moon.
The UK space industry has been working with the Chinese Space Agency on technologies and
experimentation in space since 2005. Their work and has been supported by UK Research & Innovation’s £27 million ‘Newton Fund’, with particular emphasis paid to supporting research into technologies from the space sector that can help agricultural practises in China.
The experiments carried out by the Chang-e’4 probe on the far side of the moon have direct relevance to China because, like the Moon, only a small part of the country’s surface is arable. The Chinese government hopes that by carrying out experiments in space, scientists will be able to solve some of the challenges facing a country which has only 7% of the world’s arable land and water resources but has to feed 22% of the world’s population.
The UK and China are currently collaborating on 12 joint research projects: the Agri-technology programme (that includes initiatives such as Chang’e-4), a prospective lunar mission, as well as a lunar base and further technological developments that can provide scientists with a better understanding of the planet Mars.
The two countries recently came together in the Chinese city of Ningbo, Zhejiang Province, to hold the 13th UK-China Workshop on Space Science & Technology, from December 11 to 13. Speaking at the event, the vice president of the China National Space Administration, Tian Yulong said: “China has expertise in space technology, engineering and applications, while the UK has a solid foundation in scientific culture and training, […] the collaboration has formed a very good complementarity and will further boost the Sino-British cooperation.”
Professor Anu Ojha, director of the UK National Space Academy said: “The Agri-Technology programme is a great example of how we can use data from space to benefit life on earth. […] the UK and China have worked with support from both our governments, and it [has] made real difference for farmers on the ground, both in Europe and critically in China’s less developed regions.”
The Chang’e-4 probe will continue to test the Moon’s service for agricultural potential over the coming months, and will share data with China’s Beihang University and the university’s UK partner, Rutherford Appleton Laboratory in Didcot, Oxfordshire.
The mission is part of a larger Chinese programme of lunar exploration. Missions Chang’e-5 and Chang’e-6 are already in the pipeline, and they will focus on delivering lunar rock and soil to laboratories on Earth.
The landing of the Chang’e-4 is only ‘one small step’ for China, however. The country plans to take ‘one giant leap’ in 2022 by launching a manned space station as a precursor to a manned mission to the Moon.
Further reading:
China Moon mission lands Chang’e-4 spacecraft on far side – BBC
What’s left behind on the Moon? – BBC
Great leap forward for China with landing on far side of Moon – Financial Times
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