AstroPictures of the Day: Pictures from the moon, by the Chinese Rover Chang’e

Chang’e are a series of Chinese lunar-orbiting spacecrafts and rovers, part of the Chinese Lunar Exploration Program. Here are just a few of the pictures taken during the mission.

The Chang’e 1 mission had four major goals:

1. to obtain a 3D image of landforms and geological structures of the lunar surface, so as to provide a reference for planned future soft landings
2. to analyze the distribution of chemical elements on the lunar surface
3. to estimate the thickness of the lunar soil and estimate its Helium-3 content, for potential economic purposes
4. to study the impact the solar wind has on the Earth and the Moon