China launched its first lunar probe, the Chang'e I, on Wednesday, named after an ancient Chinese mythology figure.

The Chang'e I blasted off at about 6:05 pm on a Long March 3A carrier rocket from the No. 3 launching tower in the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in Southwest China's Sichuan Province. It marks a new milestone in the country's space exploration history.

The satellite's main objectives are to build a three-dimensional image of the lunar surfrace, analyzing the distribution characteristics of useful elements and material types on the surface, detecting the thickness of soil of moon and the space environment between Earth to the moon.

The total weight of satellites is 2,350 kg, and its life expectancy is over one year.

Sun Jiadong, the chief designer of exploring around the moon program, said that China's Satellite Launch technology is relatively mature and that the successful launch is only a beginning.

"We will be doing our utmost to ensure success, while we should also prepare to face of failure correctly," Jiadong said. "In any case, China's exploration of deep space will become faster and faster.

China Moon