Chang'e 3 Photos: China's 1st Moon Lander & Rover Mission

China Chang'e 3 Moon Rover Yutu Deployed

China made history on Dec. 14, 2013 with the successful landing of its Chang'e 3 lander carrying the Yutu rover. The mission is the first soft-landing on the moon since 1976 and made China only the third country ever perform the lunar feat.

Above: China's lunar rover Yutu ("Jade Rabbit") is seen by a camera on the country's Chang'e 3 lander after both successfully landed on the moon together on Dec. 14, 2013.[China's 1st Lunar Rover Drives On the Moon: Read the Full Story Here]

Chang'e-3, Yutu Rover Landing Site 5-Position Panorama

This image is a five-position 360-degree panorama of the Chang'e-3, Yutu Rover landing site created by Ken Kremer and Marco Di Lorenzo. It was stitched from individual pictures released to a state-run China news outlet. The initial panoramic was then enhanced to improve contrast, lighting and uniformity, which revealed more detail.

5-Position Panorama Shows Yutu Rover Movements

This is a cropped version of a five-position 360-degree panorama of the Chang'e-3, Yutu Rover landing site created by Ken Kremer and Marco Di Lorenzo. It was stitched from individual pictures released to a state-run China news outlet. The initial panoramic was then enhanced to improve contrast, lighting and uniformity, which revealed more detail.

Chang'e-3, Yutu from Above and Below Composite

This composite image shows Chang'e-3, Yutu Rover landing site created by Ken Kremer and Marco Di Lorenzo as well as an LRO orbital image taken by the LROC NAC camera showing correlating positions from orbit and the surface. The red bars show the approximate field of view of the Chang'e-3 lander panorama.

Yutu Rover Departs Landing Site in Time-Lapse Panoramic

This time-lapse, cropped panorama of the Chang'e-3, Yutu Rover landing site shows the last position of the Yutu rover as it heads off to the south, departing the landing site. The image was created by Ken Kremer and Marco Di Lorenzo using Chang'e 3 mission images released via China's state-run news outlets. [Read the Full Story behind the Image Here]

Chang'e-3, Yutu Rover Landing Site Panorama

This image is a 360-degree panorama of the Chang'e-3, Yutu Rover landing site created by Ken Kremer and Marco Di Lorenzo. It was stitched from six individual pictures released to a state-run China news outlet. The initial panoramic was then enhanced to improve contrast, lighting and uniformity, which revealed more detail. [Read the Full Story behind the Image Here]

Chang'e-3, Yutu Rover Time-Lapse Panoramic

This time-lapse 360-degree panorama of the Chang'e-3, Yutu Rover landing site shows how the Yutu rover moves by adding the rover at additional positions onto an existing panoramic image of the landing site. The imaging team matched Yutu positions to precisely match with the terrain at each exact location. The image was created by Ken Kremer and Marco Di Lorenzo using Chang'e 3 mission images released via China's state-run news outlets. [Read the Full Story behind the Image Here]

Chang'e 3 Moon Lander

Chang'e 3 Moon Lander is seen on Dec. 22, 2013. On January 10, 2014, the Chinese Academy of Sciences published photographs of the moon and Earth taken by the Chang'e 3 lander and Yutu rover during the period of Dec. 14-26, 2013. The Chinese spacecraft landed on the moon on Dec. 14, 2013.

Yutu Rover on the Moon

Yutu moon rover was photographed by the Chang'e 3 lander on Dec. 16, 2013. On January 10, 2014, the Chinese Academy of Sciences published photographs of the moon and Earth taken by the Chang'e 3 lander and Yutu rover during the period of Dec. 14-26, 2013. The Chinese spacecraft landed on the moon on Dec. 14, 2013.

Earth Seen From the Moon

The Earth is seen by Chang'e 3 spacecraft on the moon, Dec. 25, 2013. On January 10, 2014, the Chinese Academy of Sciences published photographs of the moon and Earth taken by the Chang'e 3 lander and Yutu rover during the period of Dec. 14-26, 2013. The Chinese spacecraft landed on the moon on Dec. 14, 2013.

China's Chang'e 3 Sees Stars from the Moon

This image shows stars in the night sky as seen from the moon by China's Chang'e 3 lunar lander, which is equipped with a lunar-based optical telescope.