--- title: "China Cracks Open First Ever Sample From Moon’s Far Side" description: "After boldly going to the Moon's far side, China is now in possession of more than four pounds of lunar samples." date: "2024-07-01" modified: "2024-07-01" authors: - name: "Noor Al-Sibai" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/nooralsibai" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/china-moon-far-side-samples" categories: - "Astronomy" - "Moon" - "Space" tags: - "chang'e 6" - "far side of the moon" - "lunar samples" - "the digest" --- # China Cracks Open First Ever Sample From Moon’s Far Side ![After boldly going to the Moon's far side, China is now in possession of more than four pounds of lunar samples.]() *\Image: Jin Liwang / Xinhua via Getty\* ## Thicker and Stickier After boldly going to the Moon's far side, China is now in possession of more than four pounds of unprecedented lunar samples — the first ever collected in human history from that mysterious region. The state-run [*China Daily* newspaper reports]() that samples from the Chang'e 6 robotic lunar lander, which [touched down back on Earth]() last week, brought back 1.953 kilograms (or roughly 4.3 pounds) from the side of the Moon that permanently faces away from our planet — and already, they're proving to be stranger than expected. Ge Ping, a senior space official overseeing China's lunar programs, told reporters after an unveiling ceremony that the samples appear to be "thicker and stickier" than ones collected from the Moon's near side. He added that they contain some "lumps." While the Chang'e 6 mission was the first ever to collect samples from the Moon's far side — sometimes referred to as its "dark" side because we never see it from the Earth, though the Sun [does indeed shine upon it]() — it wasn't the first time a human craft has breached its mysterious territory. That distinction also belongs to China, which in 2019 became the first country in the world to land on the Moon's mountainous far side with its [Chang'e 4 rover mission](). With the return of these groundbreaking samples, the country is making history yet again. ## Analysis Pending In another press statement [quoted by the *South China Morning Post*](), the deputy designer of the China National Space Administration mission to the far side of the Moon said that although the samples have yet to be analyzed, they "may have very different mineral chemical compositions" than previous samples collected before. "In other words," said the official, Li Chunlai, "we only know about half of the moon from the samples collected in the past." Now that the samples are back on terra firma, CNSA officials say scientists in China should be able to study them by the year's end. After that, China plans to open the samples up to the international community. American researchers, however, [likely won't be included]() once the international community gets access to the four pounds of unexplored Moon rocks, due to a 2011 law passed in the United States barring any government funding for direct cooperation with China. **More on Moon missions:** [*China Finds Something Strange in Sample Retrieved From Moon*]() ## Author At Futurism, I've often been drawn to unpacking the narratives that underlie technological, scientific and medical progress, with a special interest in areas of conflict and ambiguity that end up setting agendas and steering the fates of both elites and the hoi polloi. I'm a committed generalist, but I often find myself returning to work involving NASA and the private space sector, the effects of AI on media and society, and the mechanics of the pharmaceutical industry, with a specific focus on the spread of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. Prior to Futurism, I worked for publications ranging from Media Matters and Truthdig to Raw Story and Bustle. I'm also the author of "Myspace Scene Queens," a 2024 title in Instar Books' acclaimed "Remember the Internet" series. My work at Futurism has been cited by outlets including the New Yorker, Slate, Nieman Lab, the Verge, the MIT Technology Review, the Sunday Times, and the Daily Beast. I grew up in North Carolina, attended the University of North Carolina at Asheville, and now live in Brooklyn, New York. In my free time, I'm an avid reader and music fan; you can probably find me at a local poetry reading, concert, underground rave, or DJ set. I'm the proud parent of an ineffable orange cat named Mee-Mow. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()