China Launches First Lunar Orbiter

Beijing (dbTechno) – It has been a monumental day for China as they have launched their first lunar orbiter, placing China right in the middle of a new space race.

The Chang’e One satellite was named after a mythical figure who flew to the moon. It lifted off in western China’s SIchuan province aboard a Long March A3 rocket.

The satellite is going to spend a year going around and studying the lunar surface. This is the foundation for what will eventually lead to China being the first Asian nation to put an astronaut on the moon.

The monumental launch was broadcast live on state television as 2,000 space fans paid $100 a piece to see it in person.

“These things serve as a cohesive force for the whole nation. Even if you don’t believe in communism, at least you will try to accept that it is the leadership of the Communist Party that has made China strong and able to compete with the other superpowers,” said Ivan Choy, a political scientist at the City University of Hong Kong.

This is the first of a three-stage quest to land a moon rover which is expected to be in 2012, and then five years later bring back soil samples.

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