The Chinese lunar probe Chang’e-3 has successfully touched down on the Moon in the Sinus Iridum crater (also known as the Bay of Rainbows) and its rover Yutu (Jade Rabbit) has sent back its first pictures of the surface of the Moon.
The lunar probe began its soft-landing maneuvers at 9pm Saturday (Beijing time) and touched down 11 minutes later, according to Beijing Aerospace Control Center. The probe began decelerating 11 miles above the moon, stayed hovering at 300 feet from the lunar surface while its sensors assessed the landing area to avoid obstacles, and then descended slowly to the surface. China is only the third country, after the United States and the Soviet Union, to soft-land on the moon.
The Yutu rover is equipped with a solar panel to power it during the lunar day on its three month mission. During this time, it will explore a two square mile area. It carries four instruments: a video/still camera; ground penetrating radar, visual/infrared spectrometer, and alpha particle/X-Ray spectrometer.
Discuss this article in our forum
Boffins ponder moon-water formation
Solar flares “sandblasting” the Moon
Europa report: moon’s ocean currents make life possible
Human sleep influenced by Moon
Source: Xinhua
Related posts:
NASA discover Earth’s twin 1,400 light-years away
Stunning photos of comet 67P at the end of Rosetta’s decade-long journey
Newly discovered neighboring star as cold as the North Pole
Work by celestial archaeologists hints at Earth’s ultimate fate
Water vapor seen gushing from Europa
Curiosity rover finally demystifies radiation hazards on Mars
Comments are closed.