posted 04-24-2020 01:18 PM               

China reveals name, logo for its 'Tianwen' first Mars landing mission

China revealed the name and logo for its first mission aimed at landing on the planet Mars to mark the 50th anniversary of its first satellite launch.

Celebrating the country's Space Day on Friday (April 24), the China National Space Administration (CNSA) announced that its upcoming robotic mission to the Red Planet will be named "Tianwen-1." The name, borrowed from an ancient Chinese verse by poet Qu Yuan, translates to "questions about the heavens."

posted 07-17-2020 11:00 AM               

China prepares to launch Long March-5 rocket for Mars mission

The fourth Long March-5 rocket, to be used to launch China's first Mars exploration mission, was vertically transported to the launching area at the Wenchang Space Launch Center in south China's Hainan Province on Friday (July 17).

The carrier rocket, coded as Long March-5 Y4, is planned to be launched in late July or early August, according to the China National Space Administration.

Space engineers have conducted a general assembly and tests on the rocket, after it was transported to Wenchang at the end of May.

It took about two hours to vertically transport the large rocket to the launching area of the center Friday morning. Final examinations and tests will be conducted on the rocket before the launch.

This is the first time the Long March-5 carrier rocket, currently China's largest launch vehicle, to be put into practical use after three experimental launches. The rocket is expected to send the Mars probe into the Earth-Mars transfer orbit, which is also the first such mission to be carried out by China's carrier rocket.

China's first Mars exploration mission Tianwen-1 aims to complete orbiting, landing and roving in one mission, and to obtain scientific exploration data on Mars.

posted 07-22-2020 11:48 PM               

China launches Tianwen-1 mission to orbit and land rover on Mars

China's first try at landing on Mars is on its way to the red planet.

The China National Space Administration's (CNSA) Tianwen-1 mission, which includes an orbiter, a lander and a rover, launched on Thursday (July 23) from the Wenchang Satellite Launch Center on Hainan Island, located in the South China Sea. The spacecraft lifted off at 12:41 a.m. EDT (0441 GMT; 12:41 p.m. local) atop China's largest launch vehicle, a Long March-5 rocket, on its first operational flight.

posted 10-28-2020 10:42 AM               

Tianwen-1 completes third orbital correction

China's Mars probe Tianwen-1 conducted its third orbital correction Wednesday night [Oct. 28], according to the China National Space Administration (CNSA).

Above: The China National Space Administration (CNSA) releases mid-flight images of Mars probe Tianwen-1 as the country's National Day coincides with the Mid-Autumn Festival on Oct. 1, 2020. (CNSA via Xinhua)

The probe carried out the orbital correction at around 10 p.m. (Beijing time) with its eight 25N engines working simultaneously. The performance of the 25N engines was also tested during the operation.

The orbital correction aims to fine-tune the transfer orbit after the deep-space maneuver, ensuring that the probe achieves a sound planned rendezvous with Mars.

Launched on July 23, the probe carried out its first orbital correction on Aug. 2 and the second one on Sept. 20.

The probe has traveled about 97 days in orbit, flown about 256 million km [159 million miles] and is currently 44 million km [27 million miles] from the Earth. All probe systems are in good condition, CNSA said.

Tianwen-1 is designed to complete orbiting, landing and roving in one mission, taking the first step in its planetary exploration of the solar system.

It is expected to reach the red planet around February 2021. After entering orbit, it will spend another two to three months surveying the candidate landing sites before it touches down.

posted 02-05-2021 02:29 PM               

Tianwen-1 captures first image of Mars

The China National Space Administration (CNSA) on Friday released the first image of Mars captured by the country's Mars probe Tianwen-1.

The image was captured from a distance of 2.2 million km from Mars, said the CNSA.

The probe conducted its fourth orbital correction on Friday at 8 p.m. (Beijing time), aiming to ensure that the probe achieves a sound planned rendezvous with Mars.

The probe has traveled about 197 days in orbit, flying about 465 million km. It is currently 184 million km from Earth and 1.1 million km from Mars. All probe systems are in good working condition, the CNSA said.

China launched the Mars probe on July 23, 2020. It was designed to complete orbiting, landing and roving in one mission.

The probe completed its first orbital correction on Aug. 2, its second on Sept. 20 and its third on Oct. 28.

posted 02-10-2021 10:45 AM               

China's Tianwen-1 spacecraft enters Mars orbit ahead of landing rover

China has placed its first spacecraft into orbit around Mars on a mission that will also attempt to land a rover on the planet's surface.

The country's Tianwen-1 spacecraft, which includes an orbiter, lander and rover, ignited its main engine for about 15 minutes on Wednesday (Feb. 10), slowing its approach so it could be captured by Mars' gravity, the China National Space Administration (CNSA) said.

posted 02-24-2021 10:45 AM               

Tianwen-1 enters Mars parking orbit

China's Tianwen-1 probe on Wednesday [Feb. 24] entered the parking orbit of Mars after performing an orbital maneuver, according to the China National Space Administration (CNSA).

At 6:29 a.m. (Beijing Time), Tianwen-1 entered the parking orbit, with its closest point to the planet at 280 km and the farthest point at 59,000 km. It will take Tianwen-1 about two Martian days to complete a circle (a Martian day is approximately 40 minutes longer than a day on Earth), the CNSA said.

Tianwen-1, including an orbiter, a lander and a rover, will run in the orbit for about three months.

The CNSA added that payloads on the orbiter will all be switched on for scientific exploration. The medium-resolution camera, high-resolution camera and spectrometer will carry out a detailed investigation on the topography and dusty weather of the pre-selected landing area in preparation for a landing.

On July 23, 2020, Tianwen-1 was launched from the Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Site in southern China's island province of Hainan.

The probe has been traveling in space for 215 days and is currently about 212 million km from Earth. It entered the orbit around Mars on Feb. 10 and performed two orbital adjustments on Feb. 15 and Feb. 20.

posted 05-14-2021 08:14 PM               

China lands rover on Mars, making history on Tianwen-1 mission

China has made history landing a spacecraft and rover on Mars.

The Tianwen-1 lander and Zhurong rover touched down on Friday (May 14), ten months after launching from Earth and three months after arriving at Mars with the Tianwen-1 orbiter. They robotic probes landed at 7:18 p.m. EDT (2318 GMT) in Utopia Planitia, a large impact basin on Mars.

posted 05-19-2021 08:36 AM               

China's Tianwen-1 probe sends back Mars landing visuals

Two photos and two videos captured by China's Mars probe Tianwen-1 during and after the country's first landing on the red planet were released by the China National Space Administration (CNSA) on Wednesday.

The lander carrying a rover of the Tianwen-1 mission touched down in the southern part of Utopia Planitia, a vast plain on the northern hemisphere of Mars, on May 15, becoming the country's first probe to land on a planet other than Earth.

The first photograph, a black and white image, was taken by an obstacle avoidance camera installed in front of the Mars rover. The image shows that a ramp on the lander has been extended to the surface of Mars. The terrain of the rover's forward direction is clearly visible in the image, and the horizon of Mars appears curved due to the wide-angle lens.

The second image, a color photo, was taken by the navigation camera fitted to the rear of the rover. The rover's solar panels and antenna are seen unfolded, and the red soil and rocks on the Martian surface are clearly visible in the image.

The probe also sent back a video taken by a camera on the orbiter, showing how the lander and the rover separated from the orbiter during landing.

posted 05-22-2021 08:47 AM               

China's first Mars rover starts exploring red planet

China's first Mars rover, Zhurong, drove down from its landing platform to the Martian surface Saturday (May 22), leaving the country's first "footprints" on the red planet.

Zhurong's first successful drive made China the second country after the United States to land and operate a rover on Mars.

The six-wheeled solar-powered rover, resembling a blue butterfly and with a mass of 240 kg, slowly trundled off a ramp on the lander to hit the red, sandy soil of Mars, starting its journey to explore the fourth planet from the sun.

According to the telemetry data, Zhurong set its wheels on Martian soil at 10:40 a.m. (Beijing Time) on Saturday, the China National Space Administration (CNSA) said.

China's Tianwen-1 mission, consisting of an orbiter, a lander, and a rover, was launched on July 23, 2020. The lander carrying the rover touched down in the southern part of Utopia Planitia, a vast plain on the northern hemisphere of Mars, on May 15.

The rover Zhurong is named after the god of fire in ancient Chinese mythology. The name echoes with the Chinese name for the red planet, Huoxing (the planet of fire), while the name of the mission, Tianwen, means Questions to Heaven, the title of a poem by the ancient Chinese poet Qu Yuan (circa 340-278 BC).

With an expected lifespan of at least 90 Martian days (about three months on Earth), Zhurong will record the Martian landscape with high-resolution three-dimensional images, analyze the material composition of the planet's surface, detect its sub-surface structure and magnetic field, search for traces of water ice and observe the surrounding meteorological environment.

Above: A computer graphic shows Zhurong's various scientific instruments. (Xinhua)

It carries various scientific instruments, including terrain camera, multi-spectral camera, sub-surface exploration radar, surface-composition detector, magnetic-field detector, and meteorology monitor.

The orbiter, with a design life of one Martian year (about 687 days on Earth), will relay communications for the rover while conducting its own scientific detection operations.

Compared with China's lunar rover Yutu (Jade Rabbit), Zhurong has a similar speed of about 200 meters per hour, but the height of the obstacles it can surmount increased from 20 cm to 30 cm. It can climb slopes up to 20 degrees. Zhurong's six wheels are independently driven, according to its designers.

The United States has deployed five rovers on Mars. As a latecomer, Zhurong has unique characteristics.

It is the first Mars rover with an active suspension system. It could help the rover get out of trouble by moving like an inchworm on the complicated Martian surface with both loose sandy soil and densely distributed rocks, said Jia Yang, deputy chief designer of the Tianwen-1 probe, from the China Academy of Space Technology.

Zhurong can also walk sideways like a crab. Each of its six wheels can turn in any direction, which could be used for avoiding obstacles and climbing slopes.

Mars is farther away from the sun than Earth and the moon, and the Martian atmosphere also reduces sunlight, so the solar panels of the Mars rover are about twice that of the lunar rover. They need to be rotatable to follow the sun, said Geng Yan, an official at the Lunar Exploration and Space Program Center of the CNSA.

Zhurong's solar panels were specially designed to adapt to the sunlight on Mars, which has a spectrum different from that on the Earth's orbit, Geng said.

Mars is notorious for its sand storms, and the dust could reduce the efficiency of power generation. The specially processed solar panels make it difficult for dust to accumulate, just like the water drops on the lotus leaf, which can be blown away by the wind, Geng said.

Part of the power generated by the solar panels during the daytime will be used for work, and the rest will be stored in batteries for night use.

In addition, the designers creatively installed heat collection windows on the rover, which could absorb solar energy in the daytime and release heat at night to help the rover survive the freezing temperatures which could plunge to over 100 degrees Celsius below zero before dawn.

The robotic Zhurong will operate with a cycle in the order of environmental perception, scientific exploration, and movement, according to Geng.

The one-way communication time delay of about 20 minutes between Earth and Mars due to the long distance between the two planets requires the Mars rover to operate and deal with complex problems autonomously since ground control may not be timely.

For instance, it can independently plan the route from one position to another, judge whether it can pass an obstacle, and choose the best way to avoid it, said Jia.

In the case of a sandstorm, Zhurong can decide when to cancel its work and "go to sleep" autonomously and wake up when sunlight is sufficient again.

The Mars rover is a new platform for the mobile exploration of an extraterrestrial object, with many novel technologies applied in spacecraft for the first time, said the designers.

"When designing the Mars rover, we had many rounds of brainstorms to create a powerful and pretty rover that could represent the best level of Chinese space engineers," said Jia.

The artist Su Dabao created a pattern featuring the Chinese character "fire" by combining Chinese calligraphy and seal cutting. The decorative pattern was installed on the "head" of the "god of fire" before it was launched.

posted 07-15-2021 06:00 PM               

China's Mars rover travels 450 meters on red planet

China's Mars rover Zhurong has traveled 450 meters on the surface of the red planet, according to the Lunar Exploration and Space Program Center of the China National Space Administration on Thursday (July 15).

Since the rover landed on the surface of Mars, it has been traveling southward to conduct exploration and inspection activities.

The navigation terrain camera on the rover has been taking pictures of the Martian landscape every day. Most recently, it took images showing the back cover and parachute of the lander at a distance of 30 meters.

As of Thursday, Zhurong has been operating on the surface of Mars for 60 Martian days. A Martian day is approximately 40 minutes longer than a day on Earth.

China's Tianwen-1 spacecraft, consisting of an orbiter, a lander and a rover, was launched on July 23, 2020. The lander carrying the rover touched down in the southern part of Utopia Planitia, a vast plain in the northern hemisphere of Mars, on May 15.

The orbiter of Tianwen-1 has operated in orbit for 357 days as of Thursday.