A panoramic photograph taken by the Yutu rover. Photo: Chinese Academy of Sciences/China National Space Administration/The Science and Application Centre for Moon and Deepspace Exploration/Emily Lakdawalla
The mission was launched on December 1, 2013, but the images were only just made available to the general public, in a rare display of transparency by the China National Space Administration (CNSA).
They show the moon’s grey, dusty surface, peppered with boulders and craters.
Tyre marks from China’s lunar rover on the surface of the moon. Photo: Chinese Academy of Sciences/China National Space Administration/The Science and Application Centre for Moon and Deepspace Exploration/Emily Lakdawalla
Chang’e 3, which landed on December 14, 2013, was the first spacecraft to soft-land on the moon – meaning the landing does not damage the vehicle – for almost 40 years.
