Lunar rover of Chang'e-4 probe given the name 'Yutu-2'

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The lunar rover of China's Chang'e-4 probe has been named "Yutu-2" (Jade Rabbit-2), China's National Space Administration (CNSA) announced on Thursday.

Earlier, the probe made a historic touch down on the far side of the Moon, becoming the first-ever spacecraft to make a soft-landing on the Moon's uncharted side.

Yutu-2 walks on the Moon's surface. /CNSA Photo

Starting from 3 p.m. on Thursday, space engineers and scientists took seven hours to finish the whole controlling process.

Over the next few months, the Yutu-2 rover is expected to survey the terrain and various studies and experiments on the lander and rover are expected to be conducted.

It will be a key step in revealing the mysterious side of the Moon, which never faces the Earth.

Wheel of Yutu-2 /CNSA Photo

Yutu was a legendary companion of the goddess Chang'e. Yutu-2 was selected from a list of 10 names, receiving 42,945 votes out of nearly millions of global votes cast.

China's space exploration will expand from the Moon to the deeper universe, and four major tasks can be expected according to CNSA, including launching a probe to the Mars, sampling and taking back Martian surface materials, conducting an asteroid exploration, and planning a probe to Jupiter.

(CGTN's Wu Lei also contributed to this article.)