Chang'e-6 Returns Ancient Moon Samples

China's Chang'e-6 spacecraft has returned the first samples from the far side of the moon, revealing significant insights into its geological history and confirming volcanic activity that dates back as far as 4.2 billion years. Researchers found volcanic rock fragments indicating a prolonged period of activity, with eruptions occurring at least until 2.8 billion years ago, contrasting with previous assumptions that volcanism ended much earlier. The samples were collected from the South Pole-Aitken Basin, an impact crater with a thin crust, which has now provided essential data for understanding the moon's evolution. This groundbreaking mission has enabled precise dating of lunar eruptions, enhancing our knowledge of the moon's volcanic past and its differences from the near side. The findings, published in the journals Nature and Science, indicate that the far side was geologically dynamic in its early history, similar to the more studied near side. China's lunar exploration efforts are part of a broader competition in space research with the United States.