China launched its first Tianwen-1 rover mission to Mars

3 years ago

China launched its first Tianwen-1 rover mission to Mars

China has launched an independent Mars mission Tianwen-1, which means “Quest for Heavenly Truth”, from Hainan Island with probe from Wenchang Space Launch Centre in the country south around midday Thursday.

China’s probe will track the planet before landing a rover on the surface, will carry several scientific instruments with the hope that it can observe the planet and collect some important information about the Martian soil, geological structure, environment, atmosphere and search for signs of water and ice.

Tianwen-1 is one of three missions setting off to Mars in the space of 11 days. The mission is likely to arrive Red planet in February 2021.

The United Arab Emirates launched its own mission to Mars on Monday. The US space agency (NASA) aims to dispatch its next generation rover, Perseverance in a week from now.