On April 24, 2025, China's national space agency announced a groundbreaking initiative to lend moon rocks to U.S. scientists, signaling a significant step in international collaboration in lunar exploration.

The selected institutions for this collaboration include notable universities such as Brown University, Stony Brook University, and several others from France, Germany, Japan, Pakistan, and the United Kingdom.

Brown University and Stony Brook University, both NASA-funded, will gain access to the lunar samples, which Chinese researchers have been unable to obtain from NASA due to legislative restrictions.

These moon rocks are sourced from China's Chang'e-5 mission, which successfully returned 1,731 grams of lunar material to Earth in December 2020, marking the first lunar sample return in 44 years.

The Chang'e-5 samples are believed to be about a billion years younger than those collected during the Apollo missions, suggesting more recent volcanic activity on the Moon than previously understood.

The China National Space Administration (CNSA) has already distributed samples to over 100 research teams in China, leading to significant scientific breakthroughs, including the discovery of a new lunar mineral.

The CNSA began accepting international applications for the moon rock samples in November 2023, receiving a total of 71 requests by the end of that year, highlighting the global interest in lunar research.

Experts emphasize that the exchange of moon rocks is focused on scientific cooperation rather than political issues, as the examination of these samples holds no military significance.

NASA Administrator Bill Nelson has confirmed that discussions regarding the loan agreement for the Chang'e-5 samples are ongoing, with a focus on ensuring compliance with U.S. security requirements.

After reviewing 24 applications from 11 countries, the CNSA selected seven institutions to receive samples, reflecting a strong international commitment to lunar exploration.

China's Chang'e-5 mission made the country the third to collect lunar rocks, following the Soviet Union and the United States, which last retrieved samples in 1972.

The Chang'e-6 mission, completed in June 2024, further expanded China's lunar research capabilities by retrieving rocks from the far side of the moon.