View source for China Launches Robotic Spacecraft To Retrieve Rocks From The Moon

<br>WENCHANG, China, Nov 24 (Reuters) - China on Tuesday launched a robotic spacecraft to bring back rocks from the moon in the first bid by any country to retrieve samples from the lunar surface since the 1970s, a mission that underscores Chinese ambitions in space.<br> <br>The Long March-5, China's largest carrier rocket, blasted off at 4:30 a.m.<br>Beijing time (2030 GMT on Monday) in a pre-dawn launch from Wenchang Space Launch Center on the southern Chinese island of Hainan carrying the Chang'e-5 spacecraft.<br> <br>The Chang'e-5 mission, named after the [https://openclipart.org/search/?query=ancient%20Chinese ancient Chinese] goddess of the moon,  [https://www.kynghidongduong.vn/tours/du-lich-trung-quoc-gia-re/ kynghidongduong.vn] will seek to collect lunar material to help scientists understand more about the moon's origins and formation. The mission will test China's ability to remotely acquire [http://www.channel4.com/news/samples samples] from space,  [https://www.kynghidongduong.vn/tours/du-lich-trung-quoc-gia-re/ tour trung quoc] ahead of more complex missions.<br> <br>If successful, the mission would make China only the third country to have retrieved lunar samples, joining the United States and the Soviet Union. (Reporting by Martin Quin Pollard; Writing by Tom Daly; Editing by Will DUNham)<br>