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China Makes History Again: Chang'e-6 Returns with Groundbreaking Moon Samples

In a remarkable achievement, China has successfully collected samples from the far side of the moon, marking a significant milestone in space exploration. The Chang'e-6 mission, launched on May 3, touched down in the Apollo crater within the vast South Pole-Aitken basin on June 1. During its brief but productive stay, the spacecraft gathered approximately 2 kilograms of lunar material using a scoop and drill. The samples, now stored in an ascent vehicle, are expected to return to Earth on June 25, landing in Inner Mongolia. This historic achievement not only demonstrates China's space program prowess but also provides scientists with a unique opportunity to unravel the mysteries of the moon's formation and evolution.   Achievements: - *First-ever samples from the far side*: Chang'e-6 successfully collects lunar material from the moon's less-explored hemisphere. - *Second successful farside landing*: China builds on its 2019 achievement with...
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Water on mars: frosty discovery on volcanoes signals major breakthrough

Planetary researchers announced a major discovery from the solar system's Red Planet on Monday – patches of water frost equating to "60 Olympic-size swimming pools" have been detected on Mars. The thin yet widespread layers of water frost were discovered atop three of Mars' Tharsis volcanoes, located on a plateau at the planet's equator, according to a new study published in the journal Nature Geoscience.
The Tharsis volcanoes, a string of 12 large peaks, are the tallest volcanoes in our solar system, according to the study, which notes that the water frost was discovered on the volcanoes Olympus, Arsia Ascraeus Mons, and Ceraunius Tholus. The researchers calculate the frost constitutes at least 150,000 tons of water that swaps between the surface and atmosphere each day during the cold seasons," researchers from Brown University reported in a press release Monday, adding, "That's the equivalent of roughly 60 Olympic-size swimming pools."
The European Space Agency's ExoMars and Mars Express missions orbiting the planet captured over 30,000 images of the water frost, which were then analyzed by a team of international researchers, according to the study. Researchers discovered that the thin layer of frost – approximately "one-hundredth of a millimeter thick or about the width of a human hair," according to the study – forms during sunrise and then evaporates during daylight hours.
"We thought it was improbable for frost to form around Mars' equator, as the mix of sunshine and thin atmosphere keeps temperatures during the day relatively high at both the surface and mountaintop — unlike what we see on Earth, where you might expect to see frosty peaks," Adomas Valantinas, a postdoctoral fellow at Brown University who led the study, said in a press release.

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