Lunar rover Jade Rabbit bids farewell to fans
Print Edition
CHINA’S lunar rover Yutu, or Jade Rabbit, launched as part of the Chang’e-3 lunar mission in 2013, bid humanity farewell on social media yesterday.
The State Administration for Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense yesterday said that Chang’e-3, China’s first lunar lander, has operated on the moon for 31 months, exceeding its design life by 19 months.
Chang’e-3 entered its 33th lunar night on July 28. A lunar night lasts approximately 14 Earth days.
Chang’e-3 has collected a large amount of scientific data, and the Jade Rabbit, far exceeding its design life of three months, completed many challenging missions for Chang’e-3, such as obtaining images of the moon’s geological layers for the first time.
A Sina Weibo farewell message posted four days ago by the user “Jade Rabbit Lunar Rover,” which posts first-person accounts of Yutu, caused a stir on social media. It read: “Hi! This could be the last greeting from me!”
Yutu and his antics have continued to prove hugely popular across China.
“The moon says it has prepared a long, long dream for me, and I’m wondering what the dream would be like — would I be a Mars explorer, or be sent back to Earth?” the lunar rover continued.
The post received nearly 100,000 shares, likes and comments.
“Good night, bunny. Chinese astronauts will bring you home and you will never be alone,” said netizen “running snail.”
It’s not the first time that the rover has sent a farewell message, but this time the message appears to really be the last. Yutu ceased operation after 972 days of service on the moon, according to the State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense.
But many netizens were not willing to accept that Yutu is really gone.
“Please, never say farewell, just say ‘see you later’.” said netizen “Luojiahuanghou.”
Named after the pet rabbit of the moon goddess Chang’e, the health status of the lunar rover has rarely left the public imagination. The greeting, “Hi, anybody there?” posted on February 13, 2014, just two hours after the rover “woke” again and narrowly survived after experiencing mechanical difficulties, prompted over 60,000 reposts and 40,000 comments.
Designed to survive just three months, Yutu has been operating on the moon for over two years, lasting longer than the Soviet Union’s 1970 moon rover Lunokhod 1, which spent 11 months on the moon.
Reflecting on his own life, Yutu seemed satisfied. “I’m a rabbit that has seen the most stars!”
Yutu also said there were many questions left unanswered and was looking forward to future exploration missions.
“If you are going to explore the deep universe, remember to take pictures and share them with me,” Yutu said.
Along with sending their best wishes to the lunar probe, netizens created an imaginative ending for Yutu’s life.
“Years later, an astronaut, one of the many young fans of Yutu as a child, finds a chip among a pile of metal objects on the moon. Seconds after he inserts the chip into his computer, to his great surprise, a message pops up: ‘Hi, my dear, I’ve been waiting for you. From Yutu.’” wrote netizen “Sunxiaoshe NZ Lengbaike.”
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
