China has officially announced its plans to push the envelope on lunar exploration: landing a probe on the dark side of the moon.

The Chang’e-4 probe will be sent to explore , the official Xinhua news agency reported.

Chang'e 3, China's first Moon lander, imaged by the Yutu rover.

(China National Space Administration)

“The Chang’e-4’s lander and rover , and will carry out in-place and patrolling surveys,” Liu Jizhong, the country’s lunar exploration chief told the Guardian.

Originally, the Chang’e-4 was , which landed on the near side of the moon in December 2013 and is still sending back images. However, the Chang’e-4 has been determined to be able to carry a larger payload and will be given its own mission, ARS Technica reports.

Chinese scientists are already developing their Chang’e-5 lunar probe to complete the final chapter in their three-step moon exploration program -- orbiting, landing and returning.

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China’s Chang’e probes get their names from the goddess of the moon in Chinese mythology.

Mankind has studied , when the Soviet Union snapped a grainy image of it with its Luna 3 spacecraft. However, no humans or spacecraft have attempted to land there yet, according to Phys.org.

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