CHANG'E-3 LUNAR PROBE -- name for China's first moon rover

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INTRO

China's first moon rover is named "Yutu", or "Jade Rabbit".

Let's take a look at how the name is finally chosen.

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From September, Chinese at home and abroad were invited to propose names for China's first moon rover.

After several rounds of voting, ten names have been shortlisted from an initial 190,000 proposals in October.

"Yutu," or "jade rabbit" in Chinese, tops the list.

Other names like "Tansuo," which means "explore", and "Lanyue" Chinese for "catch the moon" have also won a lot of support.

The final result came in November after an online poll of the ten names.

SOUNDBITE (CHINESE) LI BENZHENG, Deputy commander-in-chief of China's lunar program:

"During the ten-day poll, we got more than 3.4 million votes in total. "Yutu" tops the list with about 650 thousand votes."

Li said the name has vividly depicted the rover's outlook, and shared its connotation as well.

TO BE CONTINUED ...

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

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

Li said Yutu is a symbol of kindness, purity and agility. Naming the moon rover after such a tender creature also reflects China's peaceful use of space.