If you think the race to the Moon ended in the 60s, well, think again.

Because although no one has yet to set foot on the surface in years, the race has been running all the same.

So, I imagine the people at NASA had something to say about the suspicion that China might be looking to deploy a secret lunar rover on the Moon.

China is expecting to become the first country to ever return samples from the far side of the Moon – and they might be looking to bring back more than rocks and dust, too.

At least, that’s what space reporter Andrew Jones though after he spotted what looks like a “mini rover” attached to the side of the Change’e-6’s lander.

Yeah, okay. That looks like a previously undisclosed mini rover on the side of the Chang'e-6 lander lol. Via CAST: https://t.co/gS0Jy5L9hw pic.twitter.com/9vvTnribpl

— Andrew Jones (@AJ_FI) May 3, 2024

Unsurprisingly, China hasn’t been all that forthcoming about their plans for the contraption or whether or not they expect it to survive a lunar night, and maybe that makes the development even more intriguing.

For everyone, honestly, because we know very little about the dark side of the Moon.

The Chang’e-6’s mission is to explore the southern edge of the Apollo Basin, a crater on the far side of the moon.

They plan to bring back around 4 pounds of samples, but a small rover could take the mission to a whole other level.

It seems as if China is laying the groundwork for future missions, so yeah.

The race is definitely still on.

If you thought that was interesting, you might like to read about a second giant hole has opened up on the sun’s surface. Here’s what it means.