Chang’e-4 will be tasked with studying the geological conditions of the moon’s dark side. “We have also made some changes accordingly in the probe design”, Liu Jizhong, head of China’s Lunar Exploration and Aerospace Engineering Center, told CCTV.
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Radio transmissions from Earth can not reach the moon’s far side, which makes it a good spot for sensitive instruments.
The far side was first seen in 1959, when Soviet spacecraft Luna 3 sent back 17 low-quality photographs depicting the moon’s mountainous terrain and craters.
If successful, this will be the first probe ever to land on the dark side of the moon.
Although the new probe was built as the engineering backup to the Chang’e-3 lander, Chinese officials said the structure could handle a larger payload.
Chang’e 4 is being created to explore the dark side of the moon, which is never visible from Earth.
Along with the announcement, Xinhua expressed the nation’s interest in cooperating with “international society” to accomplish the mission.
A CCTV report states a rover will be included in the mission, but there has been no official word from SASTIND or leading scientists to confirm this.
Certainly, the fact that the Chinese space program is run by the military is cause for concern in some corners, even though China insists its space program is entirely peaceful.
In early 2015, China invited other countries to cooperation in its space projects.
This will facilitate communication and control of the Chang’e-4 mission on the far side, with the distance meaning a delay of around two seconds.
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By 2022, China also plans set up its own space station rival to Russia’s space station Mir that is jointly operated with the US.
