Photo taken on April 27, 2024 shows the combination of the Chang'e 6 lunar probe and the Long March-5 Y8 carrier rocket being transferred vertically to the launching area at the Wenchang Space Launch Center in south China's Hainan Province.

In 2016, China chose April 24 as the Space Day of China to mark the launch of its first satellite Dongfanghong-1 into space on April 24, 1970, and has celebrated it ever since. To commemorate the upcoming 10th Space Day of China, the first episode of the six-episode documentary series Missions to the Moon will premiere exclusively on Youku, a leading streaming platform in China, at 6 p.m. on April 23, 2025, and one episode will be updated weekly later. Famous actor Wu Jing serves as the storyteller in this documentary, leading audiences through awe-inspiring journeys from the thunderstorm at the launch site to the moon expeditions across deserts and forests, and from the scientific exploration of lunar soil to the dream relay of two generations of chief designers. Spanning the cosmic odyssey of 380,000 kilometers, this documentary showcases the soaring ambition of the Chinese people who "dare to fly to the moon." This is a moonlight epic written for the future and an invitation to all dream chasers.

Documentary highlighting China's two-decade lunar exploration

In 2004, China formally launched the Project Chang'e, and it has successfully concluded its three-step lunar exploration program of orbiting, landing and bringing back samples after the Chang'e 5 mission in 2020. At 2:07 p.m. on June 25, 2024, the return capsule of the Chang'e 6 probe landed precisely in the designated area in Siziwang Banner, north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. The journey, lasting 53 days, brought back the world's first lunar samples collected from the moon's far side, marking another remarkable achievement in China's space exploration endeavors. With their great dedication, Chinese aerospace professionals have injected new vitality into global space exploration.

In September 2024, during a meeting with the representatives of space scientists and engineers who participated in the research and development of the Chang'e 6 lunar mission, Chinese President Xi Jinping urged efforts to promote the spirit of lunar exploration, characterized by "chasing dreams, daring to explore, collaborating to overcome challenges, and achieving win-win cooperation," to further enhance the national confidence and pride of all Chinese people, and build up a great force for comprehensively promoting the building of a strong country and realizing national rejuvenation through Chinese modernization.