--- title: "Watch China Launch Its Lunar Sample Return Mission Live" description: "China is about to launch an ambitious mission to the Moon in an attempt to retrieve the first lunar samples and bring them back to Earth since the 1970s." date: "2020-11-23" modified: "2020-11-23" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/watch-china-launch-lunar-mission-live" categories: - "Off-World" - "Space" tags: - "chang'e 5" - "china" - "long march-5" - "lunar lander" - "the digest" --- # Watch China Launch Its Lunar Sample Return Mission Live ![China is about to launch an ambitious mission to the Moon in an attempt to retrieve the first lunar samples and bring them back to Earth since the 1970s.]() *\Image: CCTV\* ## Ready for Liftoff China is about to launch an ambitious mission to the Moon in an attempt to retrieve the first lunar samples [since the 1970s](). The Chang'e-5 mission will kick the mission off by launching a massive Long March-5 rocket from the Wenchang Space Launch Site in southern China's Hainan Province. You can follow the event live via [a livestream]() provided by Chinese state-run broadcaster *CCTV*, which shows the rocket already on the pad. Launch is expected to occur [around midafternoon Eastern time](). ## Rock Collector If all goes according to plan, the Chang'e-5 spacecraft will touch down on the lunar surface near the western edge of the near side of the Moon, where the surrounding natural formations are far younger than the ones sampled by Apollo astronauts in the 1960s and 70s. The launch follows the success of its predecessor Chang'e-4, which made history by [becoming]() the first manmade object to land on the far side of the Moon in January 2019. Chang'e-5 will only stay on the Moon for about 14 Earth days, or half a lunar Day, as it won't be able to keep itself warm during the following 14 Earth day cycle. It will attempt to scoop up about two kilograms (4.4 pounds) of rock samples before returning them back to Earth in mid-December. **READ MORE:** [China's most ambitious moon mission yet attempts to bring back lunar rock]() \[*Associated Press*\] **More on the launch:** *[China Is About to Launch a Lunar Sample Return Mission]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()