Chinese rover sets off after historic Chang'e 4 Moon landing

According to Chinese state media, Chang’e 4 landed in the Aitken basin at the Moon’s southern pole at around 02.30 GMT on Thursday morning, making it the first spacecraft to land on the body's far side. Due to tidal locking, the same side of the Moon is always facing Earth, with the far side – sometimes referred to as the dark side – permanently out of view. Consequently, much less is known about the far side, with the first photographs only taken in 1959 by the Russian space probe Luna 3.

Landing a craft on the far side has been hailed as a significant technical achievement for China’s space agency. To facilitate the touchdown and provide communications for the ensuing mission, a relay satellite called Queqiao was launched in May 2018 to the L2 Lagrange point beyond the Moon. This orbit allows Queqiao to communicate with both the lander and Earth. Despite this communication channel, the final moments of Chang’e 4’s descent could not be controlled remotely, with the spacecraft employing laser measurements and an onboard camera to land autonomously using its rocket booster.