BEIJING (AFP) – A Chinese space probe left the surface of the Moon late on Thursday (Dec 3) to return to Earth, according to images carried by state broadcaster CCTV.

The Chang’e-5 spacecraft’s mission is an ambitious attempt to bring back the first lunar samples in four decades.

It left the moon at 11.10pm (11.10pm Singapore time), the TV channel said.

A module carrying the samples was in orbit after activating a powerful thrust engine, the China National Space Administration said.

Scientists hope the samples will help them learn about the Moon’s origins, formation and volcanic activity on its surface.

If the return journey is successful, China will be only the third country to have retrieved samples from the Moon, following the United States and the Soviet Union in the 1960s and 1970s.

This is the first such attempt since the Soviet Union’s Luna 24 mission in 1976.

The spacecraft was launched from China’s southern Hainan province last week.