Space launch live: China blasts Chang'e-6 spacecraft to far side of moon (2024)

We've come to the end of our space launch coverage.

Here is a recap of what happened:

• China launched a lunar probe to land on the far side of the moon and aims to return with samples;
• The rocket carrying the Chang'e-6 lunar probe lifted off from the Wenchang launch centre on the island province of Hainan;
• Huge numbers of people crowded Hainan's beaches to view the launch;
• China declared the launch mission a "complete success";
• The journey will last for around 53 days and will collect about 2kg of material using a scoop and a drill.

China has launched a lunar probe to land on the far side of the moon and will return with samples that could provide insights into differences between the less-explored region and the better-known near side.

Here is the moment the rocket carrying the Chang'e-6 lunar probe lifted off from the Wenchang launch centre.

The solar panels on the probe have opened and the spacecraft is on course to the moon.

Scientists at the space centre have declared the launch mission a "complete success".

It is widely accepted that the moon was created when a rock the size of Mars slammed into the earth several billion years ago.

The moon is the Earth's only natural satellite, but it is moving about an inch further away each year.

It is known as "the moon" because people did not know other moons existed until Galileo Galilei discovered four orbiting the planet Jupiter in 1610.

Many missions have explored the moon, and none have found any evidence of life there.

However, it could be the site of future colonisation by humans.

The discovery that the moon has water ice, and that the highest concentrations occur within darkened craters at the poles, has made it more hospitable for potential colonists.

Chang'e-6 could signal a move from an "era of exploration" to an "era of exploitation", according to the mission's launch commander.

One space scientist isn't sure that's a good idea.

"Exploration is driving the science but the possibility of seeing the moon as a resource is another thing," saidMark McCaughrean, former advisor at the European Space Agency.

"I'm a little bit sceptical about making it a fully commercial thing, I'm not sure how that would work.

"It shouldn't be a free-for-all where everybody can go and just get rich.

"The same applies to Mars. We don't know if there's life on Mars yet so should we be going there with human beings until we've investigated it properly?"

The scientists are smiling and there is some chatter inside the flight control centre, which means the riskiest parts of the mission have passed.

The spacecraft is carrying loads from four different space agencies, including Pakistan's first-ever lunar mission. Their ICUBE-Q will orbit the moon and try to take pictures of the Earth and moon.

Khalil Hashmi, Pakistan's Ambassador to China celebrated the successful launch on X.

Teams inside the flight control centre appear relieved as the probe continues on its journey.

We are still in the second stage of the mission.

Exploring the hidden side of the moon could help us understand lunar history, says science correspondent Thomas Moore.

"It is quite an extraordinary mission if China pulls it off because the far side does hold some mysteries of the moon.

"It's pock-marked, it's much more mountainous, it's rugged. It is unprotected by the Earth so it has had bombardments from asteroids in the past.

"One of the things this mission could solve by bringing back a sample is to try and age the old Aitken Basin, perhaps the oldest in the solar system."

If this Chang'e-6 is a success, those mysteries could be revealed.

We are now in the second stage of the mission and a 3D animation shows the spacecraft is flying above the Pacific Ocean.

When it reaches the equator it will enter lunar orbit insertion - this ismanoeuvre used to achieve lunar orbit.