An unmanned Chinese spacecraft called the Chang'e 3 successfully landed on the moon Saturday in the first such probe landing since 1976, Reuters reported. The spacecraft was launched into space by the Long March 3B rocket from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center on Dec. 2.
Chang'e 3 is named after a lunar goddess in traditional Chinese mythology and carries a solar-powered Yutu, or Jade Rabbit buggy, to send back information, Reuters reported.
The China Central Television released images of the probe's location on the moon on Saturday as well as generated images of what the probe should look like on the moon surface, according to Reuters. The NASA Rover and Chang'e 3 will photograph each other tomorrow.
The country has now joined United States and former Soviet Union in successfully "soft landing" the probe on the moon, which will dig and produce geological surveys, according to Reuters.
The soft landing of the craft allows for a safer landing that will not damage the equipment being carried, or the craft itself, opposed to a controlled crash which China executed in 2007 when then placed another lunar probe in orbit around the moon, Reuters reported.
Chang'e 3 landed at the Bay of Rainbows, which was chosen because of the lack of information on the location, around 9 p.m. after hovering on the surface looking for the safest location to dock, according to Reuters.
The Bay of Rainbows was also chosen because it has a good amount of sunlight and provides good remote communications with Earth, according to Reuters. Chang'e 3 will be controlled by Chinese control centers with help from a network which tracks transmissions station operated by the European Space Agency.
Earlier this week, an unsuccessful satellite sent into orbit by China and Brazil came crashing down hours after it was sent out into space, but a fifth satellite while be sent out shortly as China continues to develop space programs for military, commercial and scientific uses.
In June, three astronauts were sent into orbit for 15 days in an experimental space laboratory, part of Beijing's plan to have a space station by 2020, Reuters reported.
