China has successfully landed a robotic spacecraft on the Moon, state media say, the first ever landing on the Moon’s unexplored far side.
An unmanned spacecraft, the Chang’e-4, deployed the static lander and rover touching down in the South Pole-Aitken basin, according to Global Times.
The vehicles are carrying instruments to characterise the region’s geology, as well as a biological experiment.
State media called the landing “a major milestone in space exploration”.
While past missions have been to the Earth-facing side, this is the first time a craft has landed on the unexplored far side.
In recent days, the Chang’e-4 spacecraft had lowered its orbit in preparation for landing.
At the weekend, Chinese state media said the probe had entered an elliptical path around the Moon, bringing the vehicles to within 15km (9 miles) of the lunar surface at its closest point. -BBC
