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Distant and out of focus - but exciting: a previously unknown structure on the moon
Photo: Andrew Jones / CNSA
Perhaps in advance, so that there are no doubts: No, it is very likely that there will be no evidence of a distant alien civilization that the Chinese moon rover "Jadehase 2" recently tracked down - even though it was referred to as a "mysterious hut" in the first reports " referred to as.
And yet the object - which is still rather indistinct in photos - is fascinating. The channel "Our Space", which is linked to Beijing's space agency CNSA, has just reported on the social network "WeChat": In the huge Von Kármán crater of the South Pole Aitken Basin the robotic vehicle photographs what appears to be a large cube.
According to an assessment by "Space.com" it could be a boulder that was exposed when another rock fell on the moon.
Journalist Andrew Jones, who has a good knowledge of the Chinese space program, also makes it clear that the term "mysterious hut" (shenmi xiaowu) is to be understood as a placeholder - and not as an actual description of the find.
Two to three months' journey
According to the report, the scientists involved now want to take a closer look at the object, which is currently about 80 meters away from the rover's position. The journey is scheduled for two to three months, and the main thing is to avoid obstacles and craters. "Jadehase 2" has been on the moon since the beginning of January 2019. The vehicle is part of the "Chang'e 4" mission, which was the first ever to land on the far side of the moon.
The fact that only one side of the moon can be seen from the earth is not due to the fact that it is not rotating.
However, it moves in a so-called bound rotation - and this ensures that it always faces the same area on our planet.
And permanently dark, as suggested by the famous Pink Floyd album "Dark Side of the Moon", it is not there either.
However, the area was completely unknown to humans until 1959.
At that time, the back of the moon, which was strewn with countless craters, was photographed for the first time by the Soviet probe "Luna 3".
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