China will launch its Chang'e-6 probe to the moon in around two hours. The Chang'e-6 mission is tasked with collecting and returning samples from the moon's far side, the first endeavor of its kind in history. The probe will lift off from the Wenchang Space Launch Center in southern China's Hainan Province. Our reporter Sun Ye has the details.

If you know Chang'e 5 probe, the probe for China's first lunar sample-return mission that started in 2020, then you would find the Chang'e 6 probe very familiar. It had started as a back-up probe for the 2020 mission. But the Chang'e 6 probe is now facing a whole different terrain. To sample-retrieve for the first time from the lesser known far side of the moon, it needs a relay satellite for communication and needs to be even more efficient and time-sensitive. It is also coping with more rugged moon surface.

Researchers and developers behind the Chang'e 6 probe also say that it has everything that is required of it, because it is "standing on the shoulders of giants".

LU YUNTONG, China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation "For example, the far side of the moon is more rugged, but we can choose a relatively better place to land. This is a process called 'from rough to more defined' in which we first rely on images coming from the ground and satellites to select a general area. Then there are sensors that would help specify the landing place and ensure that it lands right."

Chang'e 6 also has multiple international science payloads with it.

HUANG HAO, China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation "The interface of international payloads and the probe are all standardized. The power circuit has also been designed for safety. The international payload team, both Chinese and foreign teams, and us, have together conducted deep and detailed testing work on the payload's connection and more to ensure that they can complete their tasks."

The mission is viewed as a "golden opportunity" for research. Until now, no probe had ever touched down on the far side of the moon until China's Chang'e 4 mission, in 2019. SY, CGTN, Wenchang, Hainan Province.