Scientists operate the Chang'e-4 probe at the Beijing Aerospace Control Center on January 11.
A photo taken on January 3 shows the lunar rover Jade Rabbit-2 on the far side of the moon. Photo: EPA/China National Space Administration
Posted on 01/14/2019 12:56:57 PM PST by SeekAndFind
China has declared its latest moon mission a success, hailing it as a landmark in its quest to become a strong space power by 2030.
The country’s Chang’e-4 probe, named after a moon goddess of Chinese legend, was the world’s first spacecraft to land on the far side of the moon, which is not visible from the Earth.
The landing on January 3 was the latest leap for Beijing as it tries to catch up with the United States in space.
The Chang’e-4 mission did not stop with the historic landing. Here are five other things China’s moon probe has been doing in the past week:
1. Taking cosmic selfies
The Chang’e-4 probe is composed of a lander and a rover called Jade Rabbit-2.
After touching down on the moon, the lander and rover took snaps of each other roaming an area known as the Von Kármán Crater, near the moon’s south pole.
The lander also took the first panorama of the moon’s far side, showing the rugged lunar surface, the probe itself and the tracks left by the rover.
China has released footage of the landing, created with some 4,700 photos taken by a camera on the bottom of the lander.
Since the bulk of the moon blocks signals from the far side from reaching the Earth, these stunning photos were sent back through the relay satellite Queqiao.
2. Taking a nap
The lunar probe was put down for an “afternoon nap” on January 4 so it can survive the brutal extremes of temperature on the moon.
It takes about 27 Earth days for the moon to rotate once on its axis – one moon day. Without a significant atmosphere, surface temperatures on the moon reach more than 212 degrees Fahrenheit (100 degrees Celsius) under direct sunlight.
The probe woke up from hibernation and went back to work on January 10.
This was an achievement since China’s first Jade Rabbit rover malfunctioned in 2014 when it was trying to shut down for the bitterly cold lunar night.
3. Listening to the Big Bang
The moon’s far side is an ideal place to monitor the low-frequency radio waves generated as the first stars and galaxies were formed about 14 billion years ago.
The Chang’e 4 probe has been equipped with three 16-foot-long antennas to pick up those radio waves that cannot be detected on the Earth.
The signals will be beamed back with another set of antennas, developed by a research group in Netherlands, on the relay satellite.
The solar-powered devices were designed to operate for years, even after the Chang’e 4 mission ends. They could help scientists study the afterglow of the Big Bang.
4. Growing potatoes
The probe also took with it a mini-ecosystem composed of six species: cotton, rapeseed, potato, arabidopsis, fruit fly and yeast.
The creatures, dormant during their month-long journey to the moon, started to grow inside an airtight container after the plants were first watered on January 3.
State media said last week that more than 10 photos of the biosphere had been sent to the Earth, although they have not been made public.
5. Studying the solar wind
A device developed by Swedish scientists on the rover will detect “neutral” atoms, which have equal numbers of protons and electrons. The data will help scientists analyze how the solar wind – streams of charged particles from the sun – behaves on the moon’s surface.
Another instrument developed by researchers at Kiel University in Germany will measure the moon’s radiation levels.
State media said the Chinese team had also discussed with NASA the possibility of observing the Chang’e probe from America’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, which is currently orbiting the moon.
It was a rare exchange between the Chinese and US space programs, since NASA was banned from collaborating with China in 2011.
The left-turn signal is stuck again.
Taking the high ground. A military axiom.
Ping.
I’m glad we’ve got an orbiter to keep tabs on what’s going on there.
Talk about a surveillance free place to do your work . . .
Waiting for the flat-Earthers to crawl out from their rocks and point out how this is all faked...part of the vast NASA conspiracy...
How do they communicate with it?.. Relay satellite?...........................
It’s tilted on the driver’s side. Must be bad shocks..................
Bringing a biosphere is actually a useful experiment—something the U.S. hasn’t done too much of. It would be interesting to see how long it survives the added cosmic rays in space.
They didn't bring an umbrella?..................
Once a month for the calender new Moon, are we not seeing the dark side of the Moon?
The Moon's rotation is 27 days.
Luna is tidally locked to Earth. We always see (mostly) the same side of it. The far side of the Moon isn’t always dark, any more than the near side is.
I bet they have at least guy up there who will try to photograph an Eclipse, and try to Breathe the atmosphere without sustaining any Brain Damage. But in the end, it’s all about Money.
I am surprised they didnt land at an apollo site. Though the backside has its charm as being the side with all the real cool bases left over from ancient civilizations
Not the flat-earthers, but the denier’s claims that man has not left earth’s orbit. That we never landed on the moon etc.
6. Listening to Pink Floyd..
See post 16.
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