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The country's first lunar orbiter entered the moon's orbit after completing a critical maneuver, officials said yesterday.

Chang'e I, following the instructions of the Beijing Aerospace Control Center (BACC), started braking at 11:15 am at a position around 300 km from the moon and entered the moon's orbit 22 minutes later, the BACC said.

"It turned the satellite onto a circumlunar path, marking a milestone in China's space history," said Sun Laiyan, deputy head of the Commission of Science Technology and Industry for National Defense.

"So far, each step in the lunar probe project has been completed almost perfectly."

President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao sent congratulation letters to the scientists working on the mission, encouraging them to make further progress on the exploration of the moon.

Ma Yongping, deputy director of the BACC, said the braking was of great importance for Chang'e I, enabling it to be captured by luna...

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