China's first moon rover, Yutu, or Jade Rabbit, separated from the lander early on Sunday, several hours after the Chang'e -3 probe soft-landed on the lunar surface.
The 140 kg six-wheeled rover touched the lunar surface at 4:35 a. m., leaving deep trace on the loose lunar soil. The process was recorded by the camera on the lander and the images were sent to the earth, according to the Beijing Aerospace Control Center.
After the separation, the rover and lander will take photos of each other and start their own scientific explorations. Engineers made final checks of the environment of the landing site, the situation of the probe and the solar incidence angle late night on Saturday and sent signals of separation to Chang'e -3.
Yutu, atop the probe, extended its solar panel and started to drive slowly to the transfer mechanism at 3:10.
The transfer mechanism unlocked at 4:06 with one side reaching the moon's surface, allowing the rover to descend to the surface following a ladder mechanism.
Chang'e -3 landed on the moon's Sinus Iridum, or the Bay of Rainbows, at 9:11 p. m. Saturday, making China the third country in the world to carry out such a rover mission after the United States and former Soviet Union.
In ancient Chinese mythology, Yutu was the white pet rabbit of the lunar goddess Chang'e. The name for the rover was selected following an online poll that collected several million votes from people around the world.
The rover, 1.5 meters long with its two wings folded, 1 m in width and 1.1 m in height, is a highly efficient robot controlled by the command center from the earth. It will face challenges including temperature differences of more than 300 degrees Celsius on the moon.
Yutu will survey the moon's geological structure and surface substances and look for natural resources for three months, while the lander will conduct in-situ exploration at the landing site for one year.
【新闻快讯】
12月 14日 21时 11分,嫦娥三号探测器成功落月，中国探测器首次登上地外天体，这标志着我国已成为世界上第三个实现月球软着陆的国家。
落月是从 15公里高度开始的。大约 11分钟的落月过程中，嫦娥三号依靠自主控制，经过了主减速段、快速调整段、接近段、悬停段、避障段、缓速下降段 6个阶段，相对速度从每秒 1.7公里逐渐减为 0。在距离月面 100米高度时，探测器暂时停下脚步，利用敏感器对着陆区进行观测，以避开障碍物、选择着陆点。在以自由落体方式走完最后几米之后，平稳“站”上月面的 4条着陆腿触月信号显示，嫦娥三号完美着陆月球虹湾地区。
这是人类第 130次探月活动。 12月 2日 1时 30分发射升空的嫦娥三号是我国发射的第一个地外软着陆探测器和巡视器，也是在 1976年苏联“月球 24号”探测器登陆月球后第一个重返月球的人类探测器。
作为中国探月工程“绕、落、回”三步走的第二步，在实现月球软着陆的同时，嫦娥三号还肩负着突破自动巡视勘查、深空测控通信、月夜生存等关键技术的使命。
由着陆器和“玉兔”号月球车组成的嫦娥三号月球探测器总重近 3.8吨。在接下来的几个小时里，“玉兔”号将驶离着陆器，开始为期约 3个月的科学探测，着陆器则在着陆地点进行原地探测。
