China lends moon rocks to France, Germany, Japan, Pakistan, UK & U.S.

China's national space agency will let scientists from six countries around the world analyze rocks it retrieved from the moon, in a move to further increase international collaboration with its lunar exploration program.

On April 24 – China's annual Space Day – the China National Space Administration (CNSA) announced that seven institutions from France, Germany, Japan, Pakistan, the United Kingdom and the United States have been authorized to borrow the lunar samples collected by China's Chang'e-5 mission for scientific research.

The announcement highlights how U.S.-China cooperation in some areas like space has not completely ended, despite tensions between the two countries over geopolitics and tariffs.

CNSA head Shan Zhongde said China's lunar exploration program has always adhered to the principles of equality, mutual benefits, peaceful utilization and win-win cooperation, sharing achievements with the international community.

He added that CNSA will continue to accept international applications for lunar sample research, expressing hope that global scientists will make new discoveries that expand human knowledge and benefit humanity.

Furthering international collaboration

In 2020, the Chang'e-5 mission retrieved samples from the moon weighing about 1,731 grams – the first lunar samples in over 40 years, with China becoming only the third country after the U.S. and Soviet Union to bring back samples.

China's subsequent uncrewed Chang'e-6 mission, completed in June last year, made it the first country to bring back rocks from the side of the moon facing away from Earth.

The CNSA announced that the Chang'e-8 mission, which is scheduled for launch around 2029, will carry payloads from 11 countries and regions and one international organization.

Developers of the instruments to be aboard the Chang'e-8 are from Asia, Europe, Africa and South America.

The Chang'e-8 mission will target the Leibnitz-Beta Plateau near the lunar south pole region, working with the earlier Chang'e-7 mission to conduct scientific exploration and in-situ resource utilization experiments. These efforts will lay the groundwork for the future International Lunar Research Station (ILRS).

The ILRS, initiated by China, is a scientific experimental facility consisting of sections on the lunar surface and in lunar orbit, and is projected to be built in two phases: a basic model to be built by 2035 in the lunar south pole region, and an extended model to be built in the 2040s.

A total of 17 countries and international organizations, and more than 50 international research institutions, have joined the ILRS, according to Bian Zhigang, deputy director of the CNSA.