In a week filled with exciting space exploration, it seems China just became the first country to land on the far side of the moon, at 2:30 AM Universal Time yesterday.
#BREAKING China's Chang'e-4 probe lands successfully on far side of the moon at 10:26 a.m. BJT Thursday, marking the first ever soft-landing in this uncharted area pic.twitter.com/rTlJ4EzOw2
— CGTN (@CGTNOfficial) January 3, 2019
The Chinese state television, CGTN, tweeted the news, alongside the world's first close up photograph from the uncharted area.
#China's Chang'e-4 probe sends back world's first close shot of moon's far side after historic soft landing on uncharted area https://t.co/OckokVjnh8 pic.twitter.com/ReORkkPcq3
— CGTN (@CGTNOfficial) January 3, 2019
While the Chang'e-4 probe is the first mission to take a photo on the surface of the dark side of the moon, it is not the first photo of the dark side of the moon.
The Luna 3 mission took that photographic first in 1959, shown above.
The Chang'e-4 probe will now explore the Von Karman crater, a 112-mile crater that has been previously unexplored.
Learn More:
- These Photos of Earth From Space Have to Be Seen to Be Believed
- These Hubble Space Telescope Photos Will Absolutely Boggle Your Mind
Via PetaPixel
Via NASA