Chang’e-6 to collect the first lunar far side samples

China plans to launch Queqiao-2, a relay satellite designed to enable communications between the far side of the moon and the Earth, alongside the Chang’e-6 lunar probe to collect the world’s first samples from the South Pole-Aitken basin in 2024.

Unlike previous missions, direct communications between Chang’e-6 and the Earth will be lost when Chang’e-6 undertakes its sampling task. During this critical phase, the Queqiao-2 relay satellite will play a vital role in maintaining communications between Chang’e-6 and Earth.