On April 12th, it was announced that the first international review meeting for the borrowing of moon samples from the Chang'e-5 mission will take place on April 26th at the South Wanshan Campus of China University of Geosciences (Wuhan).
Ten scientists from the United States, Europe, and Asia will participate in the meeting, with five of them being from the United States. Each applicant will have 15 minutes for their presentation, followed by questions from reviewing experts.
Since December 2020, China's Chang'e-5 completed its first unmanned lunar sampling and return mission, bringing back 1731 grams of lunar samples. In October 2023, Hu Hao, the chief designer of the Chang'e-5 mission, announced that lunar research samples from Chang'e-5 would be open for international applications.
Prior to this, NASA had uncommonly applied to study Chinese lunar soil samples, primarily due to their uniqueness and originating from lunar areas not yet sampled by NASA.
These Chinese lunar soil samples are expected to provide vital information on the geological history of the Moon and the Earth-Moon system, potentially aiding NASA in shaping future lunar exploration plans.
NASA stated, "Sample requests will ensure that American researchers have equal research opportunities as scientists from around the world."
