The CBC reports that China lands rover on the moon

China on Saturday successfully carried out the world’s first soft landing of a space probe on the moon in nearly four decades, state media said, the next stage in an ambitious space program that aims to eventually put a Chinese astronaut on the moon.

The unmanned Chang’e 3 lander, named after a mythical Chinese goddess of the moon, touched down on Earth’s nearest neighbor following a 12-minute landing process.

The probe carried a six-wheeled moon rover called “Yutu,” or “Jade Rabbit,” the goddess’ pet. After landing Saturday evening on a fairly flat, Earth-facing part of the moon, the rover was slated to separate from the Chang’e eight hours later and embark on a three-month scientific exploration.

I wish them luck and hope they discover a lot of new things about our nearest neighbor. It’s comforting that at least some people think discovery is important.

Update from the BBC – Jade Rabbit has ‘hopped’ out of Chang’e’s ‘lap’ and is playing on the lunar surface. The Chinese have estimated a three month mission for Jade Rabbit and a year for Chang’e, but US experience on Mars shows that a much longer life is very possible.

Atrios forgets in his mini-rant about social welfare and the GDP, that more than two-thirds of the US GDP is based on consumption. Any money that the poor get is spent to survive, not stuffed into mattresses.

Food stamps and unemployment checks help the economy by providing demand in the absence of people with jobs. The 1% don’t actually generate much demand when compared to the 99% buying groceries.