China's national space agency announced on Tuesday that Chang'e-6 probe has successfully lifted off from the far side of the Moon, kicking off its journey back towards Earth.
This means China is now a step closer to becoming the first country to return samples from the far side of the Moon, which permanently faces away from Earth, Al Jazeera reported.
The probe departed the Moon at 7:38am local time (2338 GMT) after successfully completing its sample collection from June 2-3, using a drill and robotic arm to dig up soil on and below the Moon's surface, according to China's Xinhua news agency.
The probe also displayed China's national flag for the first time on the far side of Moon after sample acquisition, according toBeijing Daily.
China's National Space Administration (CNSA) said in a statement that Chang'e-6 "withstood the test of high temperature on the far side of the Moon".
It revealed that the lunar probe faced a technical challenge of operating without direct Earth-based communication, relying on satellite Queqiao-2 for communication.
The probe is now in lunar orbit and will join up with another spacecraft in orbit, CNSA said on Tuesday morning.
The samples will then be transferred to a return module, which will fly back to Earth, with a landing in China's Inner Mongolia region expected around June 25.
Scientists around the world hope the soil collected by the Chang'e 6 can help answer questions about the origins of the solar system.