China successfully soft-lands probe on the moon

The next thing you know China will be landing a man on Mars while the United States needs to hitch a ride with the Russians to get to the International Space Station.

AP reports China on Saturday successfully carried out the world's first soft landing of a space probe on the moon in nearly four decades, the next stage in an ambitious space program that aims to eventually have a Chinese astronaut set foot on the moon.

The unmanned Chang'e 3 lander, named after a mythical Chinese goddess of the moon, touched down on Earth's nearest neighbor following a 12-minute landing process.

The lander carried a six-wheeled moon rover called "Yutu," or "Jade Rabbit," the goddess' pet. After touching down Saturday evening on a fairly flat, Earth-facing part of the moon, the rover was slated to separate from the Chang'e eight hours after landing and embark on a three-month scientific exploration.

China's space program is an enormous source of pride for the country, the third to carry out a lunar soft landing after the United States and the former Soviet Union. The last one was by the Soviet Union in 1976.

More here