Scheduled to arrive between May and June on March, the Chinese Tianwen-1 probe took high resolution photos while it was about 350 kilometers above the red planet.The images, two in black and white and a third in color, show craters, mountain peaks and sand dunes at the North Martian pole and were published by the National Space Administration of China (CNSA).
Tianwen-1 is the first probe sent by China to Mars and was launched on July 23, 2020 by a rocket from the Wenchang satellite launch center, located in the Chinese province of Hainan.
This is the 46th mission launched to explore the red planet since October 1960, when the Soviet Union sent the first spaceship on Mars, 480 million kilometers from Earth.
Only 19 of these missions have succeeded, including the Rover Perseverance of NASA, which landed on February 18 of this year.See how it was in the video below:
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Tianwen-1 adjusted her orbit around Mars
The Chinese probe Tianwen-1 launched its propellers on February 15 in a maneuver to place itself on a polar orbit around Mars.
"The main objective of the mission is to seek and map the distribution of frozen water on the surface and in the subsoil", said Long Xiao, specialist in planets at the Chinese University of Geoscience,In a press release on the Space News site.Studies on the planet's ionosphere and magnetosphere will also be carried out.
The two possible landing sites for Rover are a region known as Chrysus Planitia, north of Ecuadorian March and east of the region of Tharsis, and Utopia Planitia, the landing site of the American missionViking 2 in 1976.The contact details The exact details are kept secret.
Tianwen-1: landing sequence on Mars
"When the landing enters the Martian atmosphere, it will undergo high temperatures and its trajectory will be deflected due to aerodynamic effects, which will have a negative impact on deceleration," explains Tan Zhiyun, deputy chief designer of the'Spatial machine in China.Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation, in a declaration to the national television channel China Central Television (CCTV)."Given the unpredictability of the Martian atmosphere, there will be a lot of uncertainty and risks," he said.
Then, the landing will activate its parachute, reducing its speed within 100 meters per second (about 360 km / h)."The process will take between 80 and 100 seconds.When he reaches 100 meters on the surface of March, he hovers, "said Tan.
At this stage, a microwave sensor capable of measuring the distance and speed will map the surface, and a three-dimensional laser camera will photograph the landing site.If necessary, the landing will be able to perform translation maneuvers (lateral movements) to make sure it will land in a safe place.
The entire process, from the start of the descent until the landing touches the ground, will take about nine minutes, during which it will decelerate 17,600 km / h zero.Miao Yuaming, deputy chief designer of Martian probes at China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation, reminded CCTV journalists that on the 44 missions launched on March since 1960, 25 had resulted in chess.
However, he also recalled that out of the last ten missions launched since 2006, only one failed, which shows the progress we have made in recent years.