China is the first in history to land a probe on the far side of the moon, fueling the space race with the United States

China's Chang'e-4 probe is the first in the history of mankind to successfully land on the far side of the moon, according to the Chinese state agency Xinhua. It will help Chinese astronomers to more thoroughly study the structure of the Earth's satellite and the origin of stars and the universe. The successful mission is part of China's ambitious agenda to become one of the top 3 space powers in the world.

More. The landing took place on Thursday at 10:26 China time (5:26 Moscow time), the China National Space Administration said. With the help of the Queqiao satellite, the probe managed to send the first pictures of the far side of the moon.

https://twitter.com/XHNews/status/1080802740429680641

https://twitter.com/XHNews/status/1080737179079327744

• The spacecraft landed on the largest crater on the far side of the moon. The South Pole Basin - Aitken. Previously, this part of the moon remained a mystery to mankind, the satellite always faces the Earth with the same side.
• The location of the probe on the other side of the moon will help it better understand the structure of the satellite, and with the help of its observations, scientists will be able to understand how the first stars and space appeared, the agency notes. The spacecraft will also conduct an experiment to see if plants can be grown in lower gravity.
• Quote: “Landing on the far side of the Moon carries more risks than on the one close to the Earth. We encountered many problems due to the uneven surface on the other side,” said Song Zezhou, chief designer of the probe. “But high landing accuracy is essential for further exploration of the Moon and asteroids. We hope to reach every corner of the moon and even the entire solar system.”

Reaction. China on the successful landing . congratulated NASA chief Jim Bridenstine and SpaceX founder Elon Musk

Why is it important. This is China's most successful lunar mission, launched as part of a program to transform the country into one of the world's three aerospace powers by 2030, notes Bloomberg . The landing of the probe fuels competition between China and the US in the race to become the first power to land a man on the moon in the last 50 years, the WSJ points out . By 2025, China also plans to build its own lunar base and populate it with people by 2030, while the United States intends to return to the Moon by 2023.

• The confrontation between the United States and China in outer space also has a military aspect - the Pentagon accuses China of intending to deprive other countries of the opportunity to use space resources in the event of a crisis, writes Reuters.
• Now China ranks second after the United States in investments in the space industry - $ 8 billion a year. In 2018, China became the leader in the number of space launches.
• By the end of 2020, China is also set to launch its probe to study the surface of Mars and build its own space station in 2022.

Liana Faizova