Chinese Mars missions may be in trouble
Posted: Sun, Jan 15, 2023, 11:05 AM ET (1605 GMT)
China's first Mars orbiter and rover appear to be in trouble. The Zhurong rover, which went into hibernation last year during the winter season at its Utopia Planitia landing site, was expected to resume operations in December. However, according to Chinese sources, the rover has not yet made contact with controllers. While there has so far been no official comment, the rover may have been impacted by dust storms in the area that reduce the ability of the rover to generate power from its solar panels. Controllers have also experienced problems trying to contact the Tianwen-1 spacecraft orbiting Mars, which they hoped to use to communicate with Zhurong.
China's first Mars orbiter and rover appear to be in trouble. The Zhurong rover, which went into hibernation last year during the winter season at its Utopia Planitia landing site, was expected to resume operations in December. However, according to Chinese sources, the rover has not yet made contact with controllers. While there has so far been no official comment, the rover may have been impacted by dust storms in the area that reduce the ability of the rover to generate power from its solar panels. Controllers have also experienced problems trying to contact the Tianwen-1 spacecraft orbiting Mars, which they hoped to use to communicate with Zhurong.
Related Links:
| <<previous article | next article>> |
|
news in brief
|
|
|
|
news links
|
|
Saturday, October 18
NASA’s Harmonized Landsat and Sentinel-2 (HLS) Data Now Available on Microsoft’s Planetary Computer
Microsoft — 8:02 pm ET (0002 GMT) China Seeks to Dominate Space in Era of ‘Unmanaged Competition’
National Defense Magazine — 9:52 am ET (1352 GMT) SpaceX to launch nearly 30 Starlink satellites
Spectrum News — 9:44 am ET (1344 GMT) Can India Become a Self-Reliant Space Power?
The Diplomat — 9:44 am ET (1344 GMT) Oman Set for Launch as Regulator Announces Spaceflight Framework
openPR — 9:41 am ET (1341 GMT) |
