The Chinese rover Yutu, which means jade rabbit, was just launched on a Long March 3B carrier rocket from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center starting the Chang’e 3 mission, which in addition to the rover includes a lander. After about half an hour, lander and rover, after successfully separating from the rocket’s third stage, took the path to the Moon.

ISRO, the Indian space agency, confirmed that the Indian spacecraft Mangalyaan, officially called the Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM), has left Earth orbit and is now on a trajectory that will take it to Mars, where it’s expected to arrive in September 2014.