A ‘mystery hut’ on far side of moon? Chinese rover sends new pictures

A Chinese rover has spotted a mystery object on the far side of the Moon, according to a report published in Space.com. The Yutu 2 rover is working in the Von Kármán crater and spotted the object 80 metres away from its current location.

The cube-shaped object has been dubbed “mystery hut” by the Chinese scientists. Space.com said that the discovery was made in November, nearly two years after it reached the lunar surface.

“Suddenly, an obtrusive cube on the northern skyline caught their attention. This object pierced through the winding of the skyline, like a “mysterious hut” that appeared out of thin air. There was a large “baby” impact crater beside it. Was it a home built by aliens after the crash landing? Or is it the pioneer spacecraft of the predecessors to explore the moon?” the website quoted from Yutu 2 diary being published regularly by Our Space, a Chinese language outreach channel. It is affiliated with the China National Space Administration (CNSA). It also shared the photos of the object.

The Yutu 2 rover was carried to the far side of the moon by China’s Chang’e-4 probe. It was launched on December 8, 2018, and made the first-ever soft landing on the Von Karman Crater in the South Pole-Aitken Basin on the far side of the moon on January 3, 2019.

The rover Yutu-2 has far exceeded its three-month design lifespan, becoming the longest-working lunar rover on the moon.

The Yutu-2 rover has six wheels that all have power, so it can continue to operate even if one wheel fails. It can climb a 20-degree hill or an obstacle up to 8 inches tall. Its maximum speed is 200 metres per hour.

In Chinese folklore, Yutu is the white pet rabbit of Chang’e, the moon goddess after which the lunar mission was named.

Legend has it that Chang’e, after swallowing a magic pill, took her pet and flew toward the moon where she became a goddess and has lived with the white jade rabbit ever since.