Why China plans to drill an almost 7-foot-deep hole on the moon

Chinese technicians were making final preparations Monday for a mission to bring back material from the moon's surface for the first time in more than four decades – an undertaking that could boost human understanding of the moon and of the solar system more generally. Chang'e 5 – named for the Chinese moon goddess – is the country's most ambitious lunar mission yet. If successful, it would be a major advance for China's space program, and some experts say it could pave the way for bringing samples back from Mars or even a crewed lunar mission. The China National Space Administration said in a statement that the Long March-5Y rocket began fueling up on Monday, ahead of a launch scheduled for between 3 p.m. and 4 p.m. EST Monday at the Wenchang launch center on the southern island province of Hainan. The typically secretive administration had previously only confirmed the launch would be in late November.