嫦娥三號成功實施月面軟着陸
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.
【新聞快訊】
12月14日21時11分, 嫦娥三號探測器成功落月，中國探測器首次登上地外天體，這標誌着我國已成爲世界上第三個實現月球軟着陸的國家。
落月是從15公里高度開始的。大約11分鐘的落月過程中，嫦娥三號依靠自主控制，經過了主減速段、快速調整段、接近段、懸停段、避障段、緩速下降段6個階段，相對速度從每秒1.7公里逐漸減爲0。在距離月面100米高度時，探測器暫時停下腳步，利用敏感器對着陸區進行觀測，以避開障礙物、選擇着陸點。在以自由落體方式走完最後幾米之後，平穩“站”上月面的4條着陸腿觸月信號顯示，嫦娥三號完美着陸月球虹灣地區。
這是人類第130次探月活動。12月2日1時30分發射升空的嫦娥三號是我國發射的第一個地外軟着陸探測器和巡視器，也是在1976年蘇聯“月球24號”探測器登陸月球后第一個重返月球的人類探測器。
作爲中國探月工程“繞、落、回”三步走的第二步，在實現月球軟着陸的同時，嫦娥三號還肩負着突破自動巡視勘查、深空測控通信、月夜生存等關鍵技術的使命。
由着陸器和“玉兔”號月球車組成的嫦娥三號月球探測器總重近3.8噸。在接下來的幾個小時裏，“玉兔”號將駛離着陸器，開始爲期約3個月的科學探測，着陸器則在着陸地點進行原地探測。
