Yutu (rover)
The Yutu or Jade Rabbit is a Chinese six wheeled rover vehicle built to travel on the Moon. It landed on the Moon in December 2013, and made its first trip on 14 December 2013.[1] It weighs 120 kg and can travel at a speed of 200 metres per hour.[1] It stopped moving after 42 days and stopped communicating after two years.
The Chinese landing on the Moon was the first soft landing since 1976.[1] It is part of China's Chang'e-3 space program which uses the Long March 3B rocket. The Jade Rabbit carries a range of scientific equipment including a radar system which will be able to examine the ground beneath the surface.[1]
The vehicle's name was picked on an online poll in China.[1] The Jade Rabbit comes from an old Chinese mythology story about the lunar goddess Chang'e, who had a pet rabbit.[1]
Yutu (rover) Media
Full scale mock-up of Yutu rover
The planned landing site was Sinus Iridum, a lava-filled crater 249 km (155 mi) in diameter. The actual landing took place on Mare Imbrium.
LRO image of the landing site, which is close to the transition between light and dark maria
LRO close-up image taken on 25 December 2013. The lander (large arrow) and rover (small arrow) can be seen.
Boulders near Ziwei crater photographed by the Yutu rover
