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- | Inside the tiny corner of Spain that lies in the middle of North Africa | + | China’s Chang’e-6 probe lifts off with samples from moon’s far side in historic first [[https://kraken13i.at/ |
+ | China’s Chang’e-6 lunar probe departed from the far side of the moon on Tuesday, moving a step closer to completing an ambitious mission that underlines the country’s rise as a space superpower. | ||
- | In ancient Greek and Roman legend, the Pillars of Hercules –marking | + | In a symbolic moment before takeoff, China also reportedly became |
- | One was on the Rock of Gibraltar, a pocket of British territory next to mainland Spain, and the other was Ceuta, a prominent outcrop on the North African coastline. | + | The probe, carrying the first lunar rocks ever collected from the far side of the moon, took off and entered lunar orbit early Tuesday Beijing time, following successful sample collection over the previous two days, according to a statement from the China National Space Administration (CNSA). |
- | Today, Ceuta is a Spanish exclave, a piece of a country entirely surrounded by another, | + | Its return journey to Earth is estimated to take about three weeks, with a landing expected |
- | Surrounded on three sides by water, Ceuta is protected by high medieval walls, stone citadels | + | The successful return of the samples would give China a head start in harnessing the strategic |
- | With an area of just seven square miles and a population of around 85,000 people, this peninsula jutting abruptly into the Mediterranean Sea has been in the possession of Spain since 1580. | + | This is the second time China has collected samples from the moon, after the Chang’e-5 brought back rocks from the near side in 2020. |
- | But the exclave is more than just a colonial hangover; with architecture, culture | + | Earlier this year, Nelson appeared to acknowledge China’s pace – and concerns about its intentions – were driving |
- | “Ceuta was given the title of the most loyal city in Spain,” Mila Bernal, | + | A photo posted by CNSA Tuesday and trending on China’s X-like Weibo platform shows the drilled surface |
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+ | The Chang’e-6 probe withstood “the test of high temperatures” and collected the samples by drilling into the moon’s surface and scooping the soil and rocks up with a mechanical arm, CNSA said. | ||
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+ | After collecting | ||