China moon landing: Beijing puts Jade Rabbit on the moon.
China moon landing: China joined elite company today with the controlled landing of its "Jade Rabbit" rover on the moon. China follows the US and Soviet Union as the third country with a controlled - or "soft" - landing on the moon.
This is Jade Rabbit to ground control: A picture from the Chinese lander shortly before it safely touched down on the moon today.
China Stringer Network
Beijing
China became only the third nation to soft-land a spacecraft on the moon, as Chang鈥檈 3 鈥� the first visitor from earth for over 35 years 鈥� touched down safely on a flat plain facing the Earth today.
A lunar rover, nicknamed 鈥淛ade Rabbit,鈥� is due to start exploring the lunar surface by Sunday, burnishing China鈥檚 credentials as a space power and bringing it a step closer to putting a man on the moon.听
鈥淭his is a very significant step for their space program,鈥� says Gregory Kulacki, who studies China鈥檚 efforts in space for the Union of Concerned Scientists. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a prospecting mission, their first real chance to test whether there are mineral resources on the moon.鈥�
Much of the equipment on the rover, including a radar device听that can 鈥渟ee鈥� 300 feet beneath the moon鈥檚 surface, is designed to analyze rocks and identify minerals and other potentially useful elements. The prospect of mining the moon still inspires Chinese scientists as it once did American space enthusiasts, though some observers say the scientists听are simply seeking justifications for their large budgets.
The 1979 United Nations Moon Agreement bans national ownership of lunar resources, but neither China nor the United States has signed it. The US and the former Soviet Union are the only other two nations to complete successful soft - or controlled - lunar landings; the last was the Soviet Union in 1976.
鈥淛ade Rabbit鈥� is named for a pet belonging to Chang鈥檈 the goddess of the moon in Chinese legend. It is expected to transmit information back to earth for several months. If it works well, China鈥檚 next robotic mission to the moon will try to recover material and return it to earth for closer analysis, officials say.听
A space station by 2020?
Meanwhile China鈥檚 manned space exploration program, run by the military, is aiming to set up an orbiting space station by 2020, though it appears to be somewhat behind schedule. On previous missions, Chinese astronauts, known here as听鈥�听鈥渢aikonauts鈥� 鈥� have successfully tested space walk and docking technology.听
Chinese policymakers are expected to decide sometime in the next two years whether to merge the manned and lunar probe programs to try a manned moon landing in the next decade.听That would make China the second nation, after the United States, to launch such a program.听
The success of China鈥檚 space ventures have translated into 鈥済eostrategic influence and a perception of regional leadership,鈥� says Joan Johnson-Freese, an expert on China鈥檚 space program who teaches at the US Naval War College.听
Space race
That has not escaped the notice of regional rival space power India. New Delhi鈥檚 own plans for a moon rover have run into trouble and are unlikely to bear fruit for several years, according to the government.
Instead, Indian scientists have raced to put together a cut-price Mars mission in just 15 months. The Indian Mars probe, dubbed 鈥淢angalyaan,鈥� successfully left earth orbit two weeks ago, in a critical maneuver that put it on course to reach the Red Planet next September.
China鈥檚 own Mars probe burned up two years ago when the Russian rocket that was carrying it failed.听
Though political leaders in Beijing may like China鈥檚 space program because 鈥渋t is helpful in improving China鈥檚 international status and boosts Chinese peoples鈥� confidence,鈥� that is not what motivates scientists working on the lunar probes, says Jiao Weixin, professor of earth and space science at Peking University in Beijing.
Struggling to catch up with US, Russian, and European space researchers, 鈥渨e have made few contributions鈥� to space exploration, says Prof. Jiao. 鈥淎s our economy allows, we should do more to expand human knowledge of space.鈥�
Moon mining 鈥渋s a very distant prospect,鈥� he adds, and 鈥渁ny moon program requires international cooperation.鈥�
That is currently out of the question. The US Congress, through legislation funding NASA, has banned the US space agency from having anything to do with the Chinese, and even made it hard for America鈥檚 European partners to share information with their Chinese colleagues.听
鈥淭he scientists on China鈥檚 space program are well funded and have a lot of work to do,鈥� says Dr. Kulacki. 鈥淏ut they feel isolated. For them, prestige and success means their ability to contribute to the development of international space science and exploration.鈥澨�