China's first moon rover lands

[jimmy olsen]

And we're just sitting on our ass. 

http://www.nbcnews.com/science/hopes-are-high-chinas-first-moon-rover-set-make-lunar-2D11741738

China's first moon rover lands — and starts rolling over the lunar surface
Louise Watt The Associated Press
16 hours ago

BEIJING — China on Saturday successfully carried out the world's first soft landing of a space probe on the moon in nearly four decades, state media said. Hours later, video footage showed the probe's rover rolling onto the lunar surface.

The achievement marked the next stage in an ambitious space program that aims to eventually put a Chinese astronaut on the moon.

The unmanned Chang'e 3 lander, named after a mythical Chinese goddess of the moon, touched down on Earth's nearest neighbor following a 12-minute landing process.

The probe carried a six-wheeled moon rover called Yutu, or "Jade Rabbit," the goddess' pet in the myth. Within hours of its landing on a fairly flat, Earth-facing part of the moon, the rover separated from the Chang'e lander to embark on a three-month scientific exploration.

Source of pride
China's space program is an enormous source of pride for the country, the third to carry out a lunar soft landing — which does not damage the craft and the equipment it carries — after the United States and the former Soviet Union. The last one was by the Soviet Union in 1976.

"It's still a significant technological challenge to land on another world," said Peter Bond, consultant editor for Jane's Space Systems and Industry. "Especially somewhere like the moon, which doesn't have an atmosphere so you can't use parachutes or anything like that. You have to use rocket motors for the descent, and you have to make sure you go down at the right angle and the right rate of descent and you don't end up in a crater on top of a large rock."

State-run China Central Television showed a computer-generated image of the Chang'e 3 lander's path as it approached the surface of the moon, saying that during the 12-minute landing period it needed to have no contact with Earth. When it was just hundreds of meters (yards) away, the lander's camera broadcast images of the moon's surface.

Chang'e 3's solar panels, which are used to absorb sunlight to generate power, opened soon after the landing. Chang'e 3 will set up antennas that will transmit pictures back to Earth.

The Chang'e mission blasted off from southwest China on Dec. 2 on a Long March-3B carrier rocket.

Methodical progress
China's military-backed space program has made methodical progress in a relatively short time, although it lags far behind the United States and Russia in technology and experience.

China sent its first astronaut into space in 2003, becoming the third nation after Russia and the United States to achieve manned space travel independently. In 2007, it sent its first probe to the moon, named Chang'e 1. A follow-up mission, called Chang'e 2, was launched to study the moon in 2010, and then left lunar orbit to make a close flyby of the asteroid Toutatis in 2012.

China plans to open a space station around 2020 and send an astronaut to the moon after that.

"They are taking their time with getting to know about how to fly humans into space, how to build space stations ... how to explore the solar system, especially the moon and Mars," Bond said. "They are making good strides, and I think over the next 10, 20 years they'll certainly be rivaling Russia and America in this area and maybe overtaking them in some areas."

[Monoriu]

You guys did that, what, 40 years ago? 

[Eddie Teach]

Well, Obama did promise chang'e.

[CountDeMoney]

Probably hit every corner pulling into the parking garage up there, too.

[CountDeMoney]

Meanwhile, back on Erf.

The 6-Year-Old Who Donated His Piggy Bank to NASA Just Got a Call From an Astronaut

"This is Gene Cernan calling. I'm the last person to have walked on the moon."

[Neil]

It'll be sad when the last man to walk on the moon dies.

[CountDeMoney]

Meh, their kids will still have USAA.

Try and match that one, China.

[KRonn]

I want to see the US doing more, get back more heavily into space related work. US needs a new shuttle, which I think is in development. Anyone have any idea of the time frame on that being built? I hope that project hasn't been ended also.

[Eddie Teach]

US needs a new shuttle, which I think is in development. Anyone have any idea of the time frame on that being built?

It'll happen when we elect a Puerto Rican President.

[Siege]

You guys did that, what, 40 years ago? 

Doesn't matter. China will mining the moon for resources before NASA is done with its Mars life-finding missions.\
China will soon claim the whole Moon, after the land over there and built their first "moon base".

Then we'll have to file flight plans to flight anywhere near the Moon.

[Admiral Yi]

Probably hit every corner pulling into the parking garage up there, too.

When I went to buy auto insurance there was a Chinese student before me.  He ended up paying $240/month because he had smacked so much shit in the time he was here.

[Razgovory]

You guys did that, what, 40 years ago? 

Doesn't matter. China will mining the moon for resources before NASA is done with its Mars life-finding missions.\
China will soon claim the whole Moon, after the land over there and built their first "moon base".

Then we'll have to file flight plans to flight anywhere near the Moon.

China is a party of he Outer Space treaty, so no matter how much treason you commit against our country the Chinese won't own the moon.

[Siege]

You guys did that, what, 40 years ago? 

Doesn't matter. China will mining the moon for resources before NASA is done with its Mars life-finding missions.\
China will soon claim the whole Moon, after the land over there and built their first "moon base".

Then we'll have to file flight plans to flight anywhere near the Moon.

China is a party of he Outer Space treaty, so no matter how much treason you commit against our country the Chinese won't own the moon.

Stop being CdM's puppet.
At least be original in your bait.

[Razgovory]

Well you shouldn't have defended Pollard.

[Siege]

Good grief.