Chinese first spacecraft landing on Mars
An uncrewed Chinese spacecraft successfully landed on the surface of Mars on Saturday; state news agency Xinhua reported. As a result China became the second space-faring nation after the United States to land on the Red Planet.
Xinhua said that it has left Chinese footprint on mars for the first time
As the module decelerates and then slowly descends the landing process termed as nine minutes of horror. A solar-powered rover named Zhurong; will now survey the landing site before departing from its platform to conduct inspections. This rover was named after Chinese God of Fire. Furthermore, has six scientific instruments including a high-resolution topography camera.
The lander carrying China’s first Mars rover has touched down on the red planet, the China National Space Administration (CNSA) confirmed on Saturday morning. #GLOBALink pic.twitter.com/V1f6l6kxpG
— China Xinhua News (@XHNews) May 15, 2021
The planet’s surface soil & atmosphere will be studied by the rover. Moreover, using ground penetrating radar it will look for ancient signs of water and ice on red planet.
If Zhurong successfully deploys China will be the first country to orbit; land and release a rover (Chinese spacecraft) in its maiden mission to Mars. The first being Tianwen-1; probe co-launched with Russia failed to leave the earth’s orbit; back in 2011.
Xinhua said China is not looking to compete for leadership in space but is committed to unveil the secrets of the universe and contribute to humanity’s peaceful use of space.
