The Yutu or Jade Rabbit is a Chinese six wheeled rover vehicle built to travel on the Moon. It landed on the Moon in December 2013, and made its first trip on 14 December 2013.[1] It weighs 120 kg and can travel at a speed of 200 metres per hour.[1] It stopped moving after 42 days and stopped communicating after two years.
The Chinese landing on the Moon was the first soft landing since 1976.[1] It is part of China's Chang'e-3 space program which uses the Long March 3B rocket. The Jade Rabbit carries a range of scientific equipment including a radar system which will be able to examine the ground beneath the surface.[1]
The vehicle's name was picked on an online poll in China.[1] The Jade Rabbit comes from an old Chinese mythology story about the lunar goddess Chang'e, who had a pet rabbit.[1]
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