Bruce Murray Space Image Library

Chang'e 3 launch highlights and lander separation (video)

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Chang'e 3 launched toward the Moon on December 1, 2013. Less than an hour after launch, the Chang'e 3 lander separated from its third stage and departed for the Moon, with the crescent Earth as a backdrop. A few seconds in to the video, a sun glint off the spacecraft produces a blinding flare to the camera. Afterward, the third stage was deliberately rolled to capture Earth in its camera field of view.