China rover returns historic samples from far side of the moon — and they may contain secrets to Earth's deep past

Officials prepare to recover the Chang'e-6 moon probe in its landing spot in Inner Mongolia on June 25, 2024.

China has become the first nation to collect material from the far side of the moon and return it to Earth.

The Chang'e-6 lunar module, which collected the sample, completed its historic mission with a touchdown in China's northern Inner Mongolia region around 2pm local time on Tuesday (June 25).