China is preparing this Friday to attempt to land a small remote-controlled rover on Mars, in a particularly complex operation that reflects the space ambitions of the Asian giant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
China launched its “Tianwen-1” probe toward Mars last July; it took seven months to cover the 55 million kilometers to the red planet, equivalent to 1,400 times around the Earth. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The probe, which reached Mars orbit in February, is made up of three elements, including a lander that will touch down in the coming hours. The module will allow a remote-controlled rover, “Zhurong” (god of fire in Chinese mythology), to roll out and analyze the planet’s surface. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
No precise date or time has been officially announced, although the China National Space Administration (CNSA) initially spoke of a possible arrival between mid-May and mid-June. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
On Friday it specified that the operation was expected to take place between “the morning of May 15 and May 19.” <\/p>\n\n\n\n
But expectations ran high on Friday after a leading specialist announced that the remote-controlled rover would land on Mars on the morning of Saturday the 15th. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ye Peijian, head of the lunar exploration program, expects the module to touch down at 7:11 a.m. Saturday, Beijing time (23:11 GMT on Friday), according to Chinese media. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
If the process is carried out successfully, the rover will make it possible to study the composition of the red planet’s rocks. <\/p>\n\n\n\n