On Monday morning, China launched a rocket carrying a relay satellite into space, taking another step on its mission to land an unmanned mission on the dark side of the moon. According to CNN, China announced its intention to explore the far side of the moon with a lunar probe back in 2015. The China National Space Administration satellite, dubbed Queqiao, successfully entered a transfer orbit on Monday and deployed its solar panels and communication antennas.
The next decade will be a be a crucial one in the history of Chinese space exploration, as the government plans to launch a Mars probe around 2020, and to have a fully-operational space station by 2022. Should the current mission succeed, China’s rover will be the first to ever touch down on the moon’s dark side.
Thanks for reading InsideHook. Sign up for our daily newsletter and be in the know.
