A capsule carrying the samples collected by the Chang’e 5 lunar probe lands early Thursday in North China’s Inner Mongolia autonomous region.

The Chang’e 5 lunar probe collects rock samples on the moon’s surface on Dec. 2. Photo: China’s Lunar and Deep Space Exploration (CLEP)

A photo sent back on Dec. 4 shows a lander-ascender combination, part of the Chang’e 5 lunar probe, as it uses a drill and mechanical arm to collect samples on the moon’s surface. Photo: CLEP

The ascender of the Chang’e 5 lunar probe launches from the moon on Dec. 3. Photo: CLEP

The Long March 3B rocket, carrying the Chang’e 3 lunar probe, lifts off from its launch pad in 2013 at the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in Xichang, Southwest China’s Sichuan province.

A rocket carrying the country’s first unmanned lunar probe, the Chang’e 1, blasts off from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in 2007.