<p>A Chinese space probe sent to gather material from a previously unexplored part of the moon has completed its mission and is preparing to send back the world's first lunar samples in four decades, Beijing said Thursday.</p>.<p>China has poured billions into its military-run space programme, with hopes of having a crewed space station by 2022 and eventually sending humans to the Moon.</p>.<p>The Chang'e-5 spacecraft, named after the mythical Chinese moon goddess, landed on the moon Tuesday and has now completed its gathering of lunar rocks and soil, the China National Space Administration said.</p>.<p>The spacecraft had been due to collect two kilograms (4.5 pounds) of material from an area known as Oceanus Procellarum -- or "Ocean of Storms" -- a vast lava plain, according to the science journal Nature.</p>.<p>Scientists hope the samples will help them learn about the Moon's origins, formation and volcanic activity on its surface.</p>.<p>State media said this week that the craft was preparing for "around 48 hours" of tasks on the lunar surface.</p>.<p>If successful, China will be only the third country to have retrieved samples from the Moon, following the United States and the Soviet Union in the 1960s and 1970s.</p>.<p>This is the first such attempt since the Soviet Union's Luna 24 mission in 1976.</p>.<p>The CNSA on Thursday said the Chang'e-5 had completed the sampling and successfully packed the collected materials in a special container by Wednesday night.</p>.<p>"Scientific detection was carried out as planned," the space agency said, without providing details.</p>.<p>The samples will be returned to Earth in a capsule programmed to land in northern China's Inner Mongolia region in early December, according to US space agency NASA.</p>
<p>A Chinese space probe sent to gather material from a previously unexplored part of the moon has completed its mission and is preparing to send back the world's first lunar samples in four decades, Beijing said Thursday.</p>.<p>China has poured billions into its military-run space programme, with hopes of having a crewed space station by 2022 and eventually sending humans to the Moon.</p>.<p>The Chang'e-5 spacecraft, named after the mythical Chinese moon goddess, landed on the moon Tuesday and has now completed its gathering of lunar rocks and soil, the China National Space Administration said.</p>.<p>The spacecraft had been due to collect two kilograms (4.5 pounds) of material from an area known as Oceanus Procellarum -- or "Ocean of Storms" -- a vast lava plain, according to the science journal Nature.</p>.<p>Scientists hope the samples will help them learn about the Moon's origins, formation and volcanic activity on its surface.</p>.<p>State media said this week that the craft was preparing for "around 48 hours" of tasks on the lunar surface.</p>.<p>If successful, China will be only the third country to have retrieved samples from the Moon, following the United States and the Soviet Union in the 1960s and 1970s.</p>.<p>This is the first such attempt since the Soviet Union's Luna 24 mission in 1976.</p>.<p>The CNSA on Thursday said the Chang'e-5 had completed the sampling and successfully packed the collected materials in a special container by Wednesday night.</p>.<p>"Scientific detection was carried out as planned," the space agency said, without providing details.</p>.<p>The samples will be returned to Earth in a capsule programmed to land in northern China's Inner Mongolia region in early December, according to US space agency NASA.</p>