China Succeeds in Historic Mission to Land Robotic Rover on the Moon

According to state media reports on Saturday, People’s Republic of China has successfully landed an unmanned rover on the surface of the Moon. The announcement represents a significant step forward for China’s space program.

The rover module landed on the Moon under a powered decent, using its thrusters to perform the first soft landing on the surface of Earth’s closest neighbor in 37 years. The probe Yutu, which translates in English to “Jade Rabbit,” took place on a plain on the Moon known as “the Bay of Rainbows.”

Images of the probe’s landing were broadcast live across China and showed images of the landing live at approximately 8:12 a.m. ET. The probe immediately broadcast images of the moon back to viewers on Earth:

This is China’s third robotic mission to the Moon, but this most recent vehicle is the first rover and it carries more sophisticated instruments than prior missions. The probe will spend the next several weeks gathering information and measurements about the lunar soil.

h/t BBC

[Photo via Space.com ]

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