China will attempt its Mars rover landing this week

[Mike Wehner]

NASA's Perseverance rover and its tiny Ingenuity helicopter companion have been stealing the lion's share of science headlines as of late, but they're not the only machines ready to make their mark on the Red Planet. China launched a Mars rover mission at around the same time that NASA launched Perseverance, but rather than landing immediately, China's spacecraft entered orbit around Mars while it waited for the perfect time to land. Now, Months after arriving at Mars, the Chinese National Space Administration is reportedly planning on landing its rover on Friday.

The mission, called Tianwen-1, is China's first-ever mission to Mars, and it's a big one. Rather than just sending a rover or orbiter or lander, China decided to send all three at the same time. The orbiter, already circling the planet, will remain there, while the lander and rover will travel down to the planet. After a safe landing, the rover will be deployed and the three pieces of scientific hardware will work as a team to gather information and conduct science.

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China will attempt its Mars rover landing this week originally appeared on BGR.com on Thu, 13 May 2021 at 17:16:28 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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