In a clever move aimed at boosting moral and stimulating the economy, government scientists have purposefully crashed a stupendously expensive lunar probe into the moon's surface. Saying goodbye to the Chang'e 1 lunar probe must have been bittersweet, but not all was lost. The 16-month mission yielded 1400Gb of data that will send scientists into convulsions of ecstasy in the months to come; plus the Chinese can be proud that they continue to adapt to international standards of acceptable behavior by dumping junk in space.
 
This is yet another sign of an economic slump with Chinese characteristics. Chinese exports are crap, imports are bleak, protests all over the nation due to increasing unemployment, but technology marches on. Government ministries are probably already drafting a plan for a new probe -- after all, taking pot shots at the moon is a great way to spend some of China's US$586 billion of stimulus money. As the world falls apart, it's good to see that some countries are still willing to spend money on checking out the moon. We need more pictures for PC screen savers.

Here's a look at an artist's rendition of Chang'e 1 being turned into moon rocks. More pix and news here and here (in Chinese).