Why is it in news?

By 2018, China will have done something no other space-faring superpower has been able to do: land on the far side of the moon. 

Details

In 2018, they will launch a pair of missions known collectively as Chang’e 4. It is the fourth mission in a series named after the Chinese moon goddess. The first component of Chang’e 4 is scheduled to lift off in June. It will be a relay satellite stationed some 60,000km behind the moon and will provide a communications link between Earth and the lunar far side. Once this link is established, it will allow China to send the second part of the mission: a lander to the far side’s surface.

China’s lunar exploration programme started in 2007 with Chang’e 1, a simple lunar orbiter

So far, all China had done was catch up with the achievements of the US and USSR. Chang’e 4, however, will be a space first.

Nobody has landed on the far side of the moon, mainly because of the communications difficulty. Yet the scientific payoff is huge. Being in the shadow of the moon allows stray radio signals from Earth to be blocked so the view of the radio universe is unparalleled. It could greatly help in exploring outer space due to lack of stray radio signals from earth, hence, no interference in observations.

Conclusion

In the long run, The success of this mission could help scientists unravel some of the biggest secrets the universe has. It could significantly help augment the world’s knowledge about space.

Source: The Guardian