Legends, folktales behind China's lunar exploration

BEIJING, March 21 (Xinhua) -- Queqiao-2, a relay satellite designed to provide Earth-Moon communication services, was launched Wednesday on a Long March-8 rocket from the Wenchang Space Launch Site in Hainan Province.

The Queqiao satellite series is just one facet of China's lunar exploration program that draws on the richness of the country's traditional legends and folktales. These stories have enriched the nation's culture and inspired its space exploration endeavors.

QUEQIAO

China sent the first Queqiao relay satellite to a halo orbit around the second Lagrangian (L2) point of the Earth-Moon system in 2018. The English translation of Queqiao is "Magpie Bridge," its name embodying China's hope that the relay satellite could serve as a vital communication link between Earth-based controllers and the mysterious far side of the moon.

According to a Chinese folktale, Zhi Nyu, the seventh daughter of the Goddess of Heaven, and her beloved husband, Niu Lang, a humble cowherd, found their love forbidden and were separated to opposite sides of the Milky Way.

Moved by their plight, magpies intervened, creating the bridge with their wings on the seventh night of the seventh month of the lunar calendar, allowing the couple to reunite for just one day each year.

CHANG'E

In 2004, the lunar orbiter project was formally established, and the mission was named "Project Chang'e" after the mythical Chinese goddess.

In Chinese legend, Chang'e took a longevity potion and floated into the sky, eventually landing on the moon, where she became the moon goddess.

China's lunar probes, namely Chang'e-1, Chang'e-2, Chang'e-3, Chang'e-4 and Chang'e-5, are also the namesake of the goddess, and all have been sent to the moon on exploration missions.

Chang'e-6 is scheduled for launch in the first half of 2024, while Chang'e-7 will be launched around 2026, and Chang'e-8 around 2028.

YUTU

In Chinese mythology, Chang'e's pet is Yutu, the Jade Rabbit. It often appears grinding herbal medicines with a pestle in the Lunar Palace.

The rabbit's common association with Earth's only natural satellite led China to name its first moon rover "Yutu," which was carried by the Chang'e-3 lunar probe, China's first moon lander. The combination of Yutu and Chang'e also reflects the close relation between the moon goddess and her pet.

In 2019, China sent another rabbit visitor to the moon. The Yutu-2 rover and Chang'e-4 lander, both part of the Chang'e-4 probe, soft-landed on the dark side of the moon -- a first for humanity.

Guang Han Gong

Guang Han Gong or Moon Palace, is the palace that houses Chang'e and her pet Yutu in Chinese mythology. It is a popular element in Chinese poems and paintings.

To mark the landing site of China's first moon lander Chang'e-3, the country named it "Guang Han Gong", which was approved by the International Astronomical Union in 2016.

The coordinates of "Guang Han Gong" are 44.12 degrees north latitude and 19.51 degrees west longitude on the moon, with a diameter of 154 meters.