The engineering team rejoices in Xi Jinping's congratulations on the successful landing of the rover.
The six-wheeled rover Zhurong officially docked into Utopia Plain at 07:00 on Saturday Beijing time (Friday 23:00 GMT).
China is the second country after the United States to successfully land its rover on Mars (and make it work). During the landing, a protective capsule, a parachute and a rocket platform were used. 17 minutes after landing, the rover opened the solar panels and reported back to Earth.
The "God of Fire" was delivered to Mars orbit using Tianwen-1 back in February 2021.
Engineers are watching the landing.
The landing procedure was standard:
- primary deceleration by an aero-shell in the atmosphere of Mars with a thermal shield in front
- parachute
- jet braking
Successful landing sites on Mars
The rover plans to operate for 90 Martian days. The robot looks a lot like NASA's Spirit and Opportunity rovers from the 2000s. It weighs 240 kg and is powered by expandable solar panels.
The rover is equipped with a laser to sample rocks and a radar to find ice / water below the surface.