China Prepares to Head for the Far Side of the Moon

Posted on Categories Discover Magazine

Moon-bound
Tomorrow, at about 1:30 p.m. EST (2:30 a.m. on Dec. 8 local time), China’s robotic Chang’e-4 mission will launch on a Long March 3B rocket, headed for the lunar surface.

After launching, the spacecraft will spend 27 days traveling to the moon. Upon arrival at our rocky satellite, an accompanying lander, which doubles as a rover, will descend towards the surface. The craft will touch down in the Von Kármán Crater in the South Pole‐Aitken (SPA) basin on the far side of the moon.

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