China’s lunar rover Yutu explores the moon’s surface. Photo: Chinese Academy of Sciences/China National Space Administration/The Science and Application Centre for Moon and Deepspace Exploration/Emily Lakdawalla
A panoramic photograph taken by the Yutu rover. Photo: Chinese Academy of Sciences/China National Space Administration/The Science and Application Centre for Moon and Deepspace Exploration/Emily Lakdawalla
The mission was launched on December 1, 2013, but the images were only just made available to the general public, in a rare display of transparency by the China National Space Administration (CNSA).
They show the moon’s grey, dusty surface, peppered with boulders and craters.
Tyre marks from China’s lunar rover on the surface of the moon. Photo: Chinese Academy of Sciences/China National Space Administration/The Science and Application Centre for Moon and Deepspace Exploration/Emily Lakdawalla
Chang’e 3, which landed on December 14, 2013, was the first spacecraft to soft-land on the moon – meaning the landing does not damage the vehicle – for almost 40 years.
The static lander, which was fitted with a telescope, instruments and cameras, then sent back photographs from the moon’s surface.
The rover first broke down on January 26, 2014, six weeks into its three-month mission, after suffering a “mechanical abnormality”.
It remained motionless on the moon’s surface after travelling only 20 metres, but scientific equipment on the rover, such as 3-D cameras, ground-penetrating radar and cameras, had continued to function properly and transmit data to mission controllers.
The agency later said it had probably become crippled after striking a rock while navigating the difficult terrain.
Both the lander and rover had stopped working completely by March 2015, reports said.
The Pyramid rock. Photo: Chinese Academy of Sciences/China National Space Administration/The Science and Application Centre for Moon and Deepspace Exploration/Emily Lakdawalla
The Yutu rover as seen from the Chang’e 3 lander. Photo: Chinese Academy of Sciences
The moon’s surface pictured during the landing. Photo: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Plans for a follow-up mission, Chang’e 4, are currently being discussed.
CNSA hopes to put a radio telescope on the dark side of the moon so that astronomers can explore it in even greater depth.
The agency’s Chang’e mission is named after Chang’e, the goddess of the moon in Chinese mythology. The rover’s name, Yutu, which comes from a Chinese myth about a white rabbit that lives on the moon as a pet of the goddess, was chosen following an online poll.
