Photo taken by the lander of the Chang'e-4 probe on Jan. 11, 2019 shows the rover Yutu-2 (Jade Rabbit-2). [Photo: Xinhua/China National Space Administration]

China plans to launch the Chang'e-5 lunar probe by the end of this year, which is expected to bring lunar samples back to Earth, according to Sun Zezhou, the chief designer of the Chang'e-4 probe and Mars probe.

The country will explore the polar regions of the moon to prepare for the building of a scientific moon-based research center in the future, Sun said, adding that the Long March-5 rocket will be tasked with sending the Chang'e-5 probe.

China will also launch its first Mars probe in 2020. Sun revealed that the country’s Mars exploration project is well underway, and the probe will be launched as scheduled.

He also said that the Mars probe would be equipped with a rover, two times heavier than the Yutu-2 rover used in the Chang'e-4 probe mission.

The performance of the Mars exploration rover will be better than that of the rover Yutu-2, Sun said, adding that he hopes the probe will successfully land on Mars, allowing us to learn more about the Red Planet.