China's Chang'e-4 lunar rover lands on moon's far side

The picture, published by the CNSA, shows the place where Chang'e 4's rover will be heading to roam and survey the moon surface

China's Chang'e-4 lunar rover scripted history on Thursday when it made the first-ever soft landing on the far side of the moon and sent back close-up images of the previously unexplored region, a giant leap for cosmic exploration and a major boost to the Communist nation's quest to become a space superpower.

Chang'e-4, named after a Chinese moon goddess and comprising a lander and a rover, touched down at the preselected landing area at 177.6 degrees east longitude and 45.5 degrees south latitude on the far side of the moon, China National Space Administration (CNSA) said.

The lunar explorer landed on the far side of the moon and has already sent back its first pictures from the surface. The pioneering achievement is another demonstration of China's ambitions to be a space power. The country aims to land a crewed flight on the moon in the coming decade.

The US space agency NASA congratulated Chinese scientists on their success. "This is a first for humanity and an impressive accomplishment!" NASA administrator Jim Brindestine tweeted on Thursday.

Catch up on all the latest Crime, National, International and Hatke news here. Also download the new mid-day Android and iOS apps to get latest updates

This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever