China's lunar rover Jade Rabbit, launched as part of an unmanned lunar exploration mission in 2013, has stopped operations, according to an official announcement.
The State Administration for Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense (SASTIND) said that Chang'e-3, China's first lunar lander, has operated on the moon for 31 months, exceeding its design life by 19 months.
Chang'e-3 entered its 33th lunar night on July 28. A lunar night lasts approximately 14 earth days, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.
According to SASTIND, the Chang'e-3 has collected a large amount of scientific data, and the Jade Rabbit, far exceeding its design life of three months, completed many challenging missions for Chang'e-3, such as obtaining images of the moon's geological layers for the first time.
