XICHANG, Sichuan, Dec. 2 (Xinhua) -- The Chang'e-3 lunar probe is ready for launch in four minutes as the final stage of propellant injecting for the Long March-3B carrier rocket has completed, SW China's Xichang Satellite Launch Center announced early Monday.

It will be the first time for China to send a spacecraft to soft land on the surface of an extraterrestrial body, where it will conduct surveys on the moon.

If the mission is successful, China will become the third country in the world after the United States and the former Soviet Union to soft-land on the moon.

Chang'e-3 comprises a lander and a moon rover called "Yutu" (Jade Rabbit). The lunar probe will land on the moon in mid-December if everything goes according to plan.

Yutu, a six-wheeled driving rover weighing about 140 kg, will operate in Sinus Iridum, or the Bay of Rainbows, for three months. It can travel at a speed of 200 meters per hour.

Tasks for Yutu include surveying the moon's geological structure and surface substances and looking for natural resources, according to Ouyang Ziyuan, senior advisor to the leading group of China's lunar probe program.

The Chang'e-3 mission is the second phase of China's lunar program, which includes orbiting, landing and returning to Earth. It follows the success of the Chang'e-1 and Chang'e-2 missions in 2007 and 2010.

"In the past we observed the moon 100 km or 200 km away, but now we can see it face to face," said Wu Weiren, chief designer of China's lunar probe program.

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