The Chinese Space Program has taken another step forward as its lunar rover named Jade Rabbit was launched 9.30 PM GMT Sunday from south of Xichang.
As BBC News reports, the space launch was covered by the Chinese State TV which broadcasted the historic event in live images.
The Long March rocket that carries the lander and robotic rover is expected to reach its destination located in the northern part of the moon by mid-December. It will land on Sinus Iridum, Latin phrase for “Bay of Rainbows”, a volcanic plain that has less rock concentration which makes it a perfect landing area.
Jade Rabbit is not the first Chinese lunar rover to land the moon but it is very historic because of the sophisticated equipment on-board the space craft. One particularly advanced space apparatus is a ground-penetrating radar that can collect quantitative data from the moon’s soil and crust.
The Yutu rover or Jade Rabbit is a six-wheel automaton rover that got its name from a mythical Chinese character that was a pet rabbit of the moon goddess, Chang'e.
Jade Rabbit was designed by Shanghai Aerospace Systems Engineering Research Institute. It weighs 260 pounds and is capable of travelling 200 meters per hour and trek slopes as steep as 30 degrees.
It will be powered by solar panels during the day and maybe by plutonium238-content RHUs or radioisotope heating units during the cold evenings.
A previous report has revealed the main objectives of the Chinese lunar mission. According to Prof. Ouyang Ziyuan of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, China aims to reach the moon for prestige and power, technological expertise and extraction of valuable natural resources. The mentioned valuable resources that are limited to Earth but unlimited to the moon are titanium and uranium.
