The Chang'e 3, a probe named after a lunar goddess in traditional
Chinese mythology, is carrying the solar-powered Yutu, or Jade Rabbit
buggy, which will dig and conduct geological surveys.
China has been increasingly ambitious in developing its space programmes, for military, commercial and scientific purposes.
It has moved in lock step with its emergence as a major global economic and political power.
"The dream for lunar exploration once again lights up the China Dream," Xinhua news agency said in a commentary.
In
its most recent manned space mission in June, three astronauts spent 15
days in orbit and docked with an experimental space laboratory, part of
Beijing's quest to build a working space station by 2020.
The
official Xinhua news service reported that the spacecraft had touched
down in the Sinus Iridum, or the Bay of Rainbows, after hovering over
the surface for several minutes seeking an appropriate place to land.
A
soft landing does not damage the craft and the equipment it carries. In
2007, China put another lunar probe in orbit around the moon, which
then executed a controlled crash on to its surface.
China Central
Television (CCTV) broadcast images of the probe's location on Saturday
and a computer generated image of the probe on the surface of the moon
on its website. The probe and the rover are expected to photograph each
other tomorrow.
The Bay of Rainbows was selected because it has
yet to be studied, has ample sunlight and is convenient for remote
communications with Earth, Xinhua said.
The rover will be remotely
controlled by Chinese control centres with support from a network of
tracking and transmission stations around the world operated by the
European Space Agency (ESA).
For more than a decade, China has
been modernising its economy and developing in areas long dominated by
the West particularly the United States.
The moon landing will be
seen as a demonstration of China's ability to engage in sophisticated
space operations with dual use potential.
China is also developing its own satellite system to rival the U.S. GPS system and has sold satellites to other countries.
The landing will also be a point of national pride in the country, which is undergoing difficult economic transitions.
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