Which spacecraft became the first to land on the Moon’s far side?

The Chang’e 4 lander became the first spacecraft to land on the Moon’s far side.

China’s Chang’e 4 mission landed in Von Kármán crater inside the Moon’s South Pole–Aitken basin on January 3, 2019. Because the far side cannot communicate directly with Earth, China first placed the Queqiao relay satellite near the Earth–Moon L2 point.

The lander carried the Yutu-2 rover, which drove across the surface and examined lunar rocks and soil. The mission studied geology, the local environment, and low-frequency radio signals protected from much of Earth’s radio interference.

The Moon’s far side is often incorrectly called the dark side. It receives sunlight just as the near side does; “far side” describes its position relative to Earth. Chang’e 4 was different from the 2019 mission that made the first soft landing near the lunar south polar region.