Launch of Chang'e 1

Chang'e 1 was China's first lunar probe and the first step in the country's program of robotic lunar exploration. It was named after Chang'e, the Moon goddess of Chinese mythology, and launched on a Long March 3A rocket from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center. After entering orbit around the Moon, it used a stereo camera and other instruments to produce a three-dimensional map of the lunar surface and to study its composition. The mission lasted well beyond its planned one year, and in 2009 the controllers deliberately crashed the spacecraft onto the Moon's surface. Its success made China the fifth entity to orbit the Moon, and was followed by Chang'e 2 and later landers.

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