Chinese Lunar Rover On Moon's Far Side To Switch To Sleep Mode Until January 10 - CNSA

The Chinese lunar rover Yutu 2 (Jade Rabbit 2), which is now on the far side of the Moon, will switch to a sleep mode until January 10, the China National Space Administration (CNSA) said on Friday in a statement.

BEIJING (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 04th January, 2019) The Chinese lunar rover Yutu 2 (Jade Rabbit 2), which is now on the far side of the Moon, will switch to a sleep mode until January 10, the China National Space Administration (CNSA) said on Friday in a statement.

On Thursday, the Chinese lunar mission Chang'e-4 successfully ended on the far side of the Moon for the first time in history.

According to CNSA, the rover established a digital communication channel with a satellite and continues to send images from the far side of the Moon.

"After that the Chang'e-4 landing vehicle will pass high-temperature tests and the Yutu 2 lunar rover will switch to a sleep mode.

It is expected to 'wake up' on January 10," the statement said.

The Chang'e-4 landed in Von Karman crater, which is located in the north-western part of the largest known impact lunar crater, the South Pole-Aitken basin.It is set to enable studies of the lunar surface's mineral structure and of the lunar mantle.

The Chang'e-4 was launched from the Xichang space center, located in the southwestern Chinese province of Sichuan, on December 7, 2018.