BEIJING • China successfully landed a spacecraft on the moon's surface yesterday in a historic mission to retrieve lunar surface samples, Chinese state media reported.

China launched its Chang'e-5 probe on Nov 24. The uncrewed mission, named after the mythical Chinese goddess of the moon, aims to collect lunar material to help scientists learn more about the moon's origins. It is the first bid by any country to retrieve lunar surface samples since the 1970s, a mission underscoring Chinese ambitions in space.

The mission will attempt to collect 2kg of samples in a previously unvisited area on a massive lava plain known as Oceanus Procellarum, or "Ocean of Storms". If successful, the mission would make China only the third country to have retrieved lunar samples, joining the United States and the Soviet Union.

The lander vehicle that touched down on the moon's surface was one of several spacecraft deployed by the Chang'e-5 probe. The plan is for the lander to drill into the lunar surface, with a robotic arm scooping out soil and rocks. This material would be transferred to an ascender vehicle, which is due to carry it from the surface and then dock with an orbiting module. The samples then would be transferred to a return capsule for the return trip to Earth, with a landing in China's Inner Mongolia region.

The probe is due to be on the lunar surface for about two days, while the entire mission is scheduled to take around 23 days.

The latest Chang'e-5 probe is among a slew of ambitious targets set by Beijing which include creating a super-powerful rocket capable of delivering payloads heavier than those the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and private rocket firm SpaceX can handle, a moon base, a permanently crewed space station by 2022, and a Mars rover.

The original mission, planned for 2017, was delayed due to an engine failure in China's Long March 5 launch rocket.

REUTERS, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE