Chang'e-5
Chinese lunar sample-return mission launched on 24 November 2020 (Beijing time) that landed near Mons Ruemker in Oceanus Procellarum on 1 December 2020 and returned about 1,731 grams of surface and drilled samples on 17 December 2020. Lander reflectance spectra yielded an estimate of up to 120 ppm combined OH and H₂O in the regolith (Lin et al. 2022). A 2024 Earth-laboratory study of returned samples estimated a potential water yield of 51–76 mg per gram of regolith after melting above 1,200 K, from solar-wind hydrogen reacting with iron oxides (Chen et al. 2024). The numerical yield is an estimate from reaction stoichiometry, not a directly collected water yield or extraction on the Moon.
Objective. Return lunar surface and drilled regolith samples; volatile evidence combines on-site spectral estimates with later Earth-laboratory analysis of returned material. Laboratory water-production estimates are not a lunar processing demonstration.
Listed for scientific context. This mission published a resource finding but is not counted as a resource mission.
Facts
- Kind
- Spacecraft
- Mission type
- Sample return
- Target
- MoonNorthern Oceanus Procellarum, near Mons RuemkerOn the Moon map: Mons Rümker
- Launch
- 2020-11-24
- Launch vehicle
- Long March 5
- Phase
- EndedCNSA (2020-12-17 and 2020-12-19) report capsule landing and sample handover; launch date is Beijing time (23 Nov 2020 UTC).
- Outcome
- SuccessBasis: agency statement
- Why it is included
- Published resource finding (science context)
Outcome statement (agency statement)
China's Chang'e-5 probe retrieved about 1,731 grams of samples from the moon, according to the China National Space Administration (CNSA).
What comes next
This mission has ended.
Participants
Operators, payload owners, carriers and customers are recorded separately.
| Organization | Role |
|---|---|
| China National Space Administration | Operator |
Resources and evidence
| Resource | Evidence |
|---|---|
| Regolith | Sampled |
| Volatiles | Sampled |
Open evidence gaps
No evidence gap is recorded on this record. An empty list is not a finding that research is complete.
Sources
6 excerpts from 4 publicationsOne web address counts as one publication.
China's Chang'e-5 probe retrieved about 1,731 grams of samples from the moon, according to the China National Space Administration (CNSA).
The spacecraft was launched by a Long March 5 heavy-lift carrier rocket early on Nov 24 at the Wenchang Space Launch Center
Late on Dec 1, the lander-ascender combination landed on the moon
- [4]In situ detection of water on the Moon by the Chang'E-5 lander (Lin et al., Science Advances 2022)
We estimate up to 120 parts per million (ppm) of water (OH + H 2 O) in the lunar regolith, which is mostly attributed to solar wind implantation.
Our estimates indicate that 1 g of LR could yield ∼51–76 mg of H 2 O, along with 157 mg of Fe (0) .
The results of this study reveal that 51–76 mg of H 2 O can be generated from 1 g of LR after melting at temperatures above 1,200 K.
Cite this record
SpaceMiningData, “Chang'e-5”, dataset version a00fa2c68a45, built 2026-11-11, https://spaceminingdata.com/missions/cnsa-change-5.html. Record checked 2026-09-25.