The Jade Rabbit

Sound Beat

There’s a Little Baby Up In the Moon

You’re listening to There’s a Little Baby Up in the Moon by Irving Kaufman, an Edison Blue Amberol cylinder released in 1916 and

You’re on the Sound Beat.

Paredoilia is the tendency to reconcile vague shapes as something you’re familiar with, like seeing shapes in clouds and the craters of the moon: a little baby, a man…or a rabbit.

Shortly before Apollo 11’s historic landing, mission control in Houston had a little folkloric fun.

Houston: Among the large headlines concerning Apollo this morning, is one asking that you watch for a lovely girl with a big rabbit. An ancient legend says a beautiful Chinese girl called Chang-O has been living there for 4,000 years. It seems she was banished to the Moon because she stole the pill of immortality from her husband. You might also look for her companion, a large Chinese rabbit, who is easy to spot since he is always standing on his hind feet in the shade of a cinnamon tree. The name of the rabbit is not reported.

Michael Collins: Okay. We’ll keep a close eye out for the bunny girl

‘Chang’eNo. 3’) is an unmanned lunar exploration mission operated by the China National Space Administration. The spacecraft was named after Chang’e, the goddess of the Moon in Chinese mythology, and is a follow-up to the Chang’e 1 and Chang’e 2 lunar orbiters. The rover was named Yutu ( literally: ‘Jade Rabbit’) following an online poll, after the mythological rabbit that lives on the Moon as a pet of the Moon goddess.

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