This mission will be the third in the China National Space Administration’s (CNSA) Tianwen program (Tianwen-3) and will consist of a pair of launches in 2028 that will return samples to Earth in July 2031.

China plans to send two spacecraft to Mars in 2028 to retrieve a sample: 

• One spacecraft will have a lander and ascent vehicle 
• The other will have an orbiter and re-entry capsule 

The lander will drill for and collect samples after touching down. The spacecraft is expected to depart Mars in 2030 and return to Earth in July 2031. 

The mission will be the third in the China National Space Administration’s (CNSA) Tianwen program (Tianwen-3). The Chinese mission is more of a “grab sample” mission, in which a lander takes samples from the immediate vicinity of its landing site. It is much shorter in duration than the NASA-ESA one.

Yes, China has a Mars rover named Zhurong.  Zhurong was launched in July 2020 as part of the Tianwen-1 mission.  Tianwen-1, which means “questions to heaven” or “questioning the heavens”, included an orbiter and the rover. The orbiter entered Mars’ orbit in February 2021, and Zhurong landed on May 14, 2021. 

Zhurong was China’s first rover to land on another planet. It traveled at least 1,921 meters south from its landing site and operated for just over one Earth year on the Martian surface before entering hibernation. It was supposed to wake up last December but failed. 

The mission designer said that Zhurong has likely suffered excessive accumulation of sand and dust. China has confirmed that it has lost all its contacts with Zhurong

The Zhurong rover has discovered several things on Mars, including: 

• Ancient ocean Evidence of an ancient ocean that covered hundreds of thousands of square kilometers and had a shoreline that’s 3.5 billion years old 
• Liquid water Evidence of liquid water on Mars, including on dune surfaces and in frost that may have cemented dunes together as recently as 400,000 years ago 
• Major climate change Evidence of major climate change on Mars 400,000 years ago, which coincided with the end of the last ice age on Mars 
• Cracked layers on tiny Martian dunes Evidence that the Red Planet was a salt-rich watery world as recently as 400,000 years ago 

Other discoveries on Mars include: 

• Organic compounds in Martian rocks 
• Evidence of past lake environments that could have supported microbial life 
• Goethite, a mineral that only forms in the presence of water 
• Elevated levels of sulfur, bromine, and chlorine deposited by evaporating water

The Zhurong rover also found: 

• Marine sediments: Evidence of sedimentary rocks formed in a shallow marine environment 
• Hydrated minerals: Minerals like sulfates, silica, iron oxide, and chlorides, which formed in the presence of water 
• Potentially habitable environments: Evidence of liquid water at low Martian latitudes, the warmest regions on the red planet 

The Zhurong rover’s findings suggest that water may be more widespread and recent on Mars than previously thought. The finding highlights new, potentially fertile areas in the warmer regions of Mars where conditions might be suitable for life to exist.

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