China’s Sample Return Mission will use a quadcopter drone to gather geological samples during an upcoming lunar mission. This will further extraterrestrial research capabilities. 

China also wants to complete a Mars sample return mission before NASA. The mission would bring back Martian soil and rocks about two years before NASA can.

A paper recently published by the Harbin Institute of Technology and the China Academy of Space Technology proposed a quadcopter for use on Mars that would, unlike Ingenuity, be capable of collecting a sample weighing up to 100g and return it to the lander.

China’s Tianwen-3 mission will launch in 2028 and return samples to Earth in 2030 or 2031. The mission will use two spacecraft: 

• Lander and ascent vehicle: The lander will collect samples and an ascent vehicle will send them back into space. 
• Orbiter and return module: The orbiter will orbit Mars and return the samples. 

Tianwen-3 will collect samples of Martian soil and rocks. China plans to return 500 grams of Martian soil in 2030. 

The mission’s name was announced in June 2022. China may also include a helicopter in the mission

China has launched five robotic probes to the moon since 2007. Their most recent mission, Chang’e-5, landed on the moon in December 2020 and returned with samples of lunar rocks and soil. 

China’s next lunar mission, Chang’e-6, is scheduled for 2024. The uncrewed probe will retrieve soil samples from the far side of the moon. It will also carry a payload from Pakistan. 

China’s goals for the moon include: 

• Landing astronauts on the moon by 2030 
• Building an outpost on the south pole 

China’s timeline to land astronauts on the moon coincides with NASA’s Artemis program, which aims to put U.S. astronauts back on the lunar surface in December 2025

China is using a quadcopter drone to collect geological samples for its Sample Return Mission. This mission will further extraterrestrial research capabilities. 

China has also developed other drones, including: 

• Twin-tailed Scorpion This armed reconnaissance vehicle can carry eight 100-pound anti-tank missiles. 
• Wing Loong 3 This drone has intercontinental range and can be armed with bombs, missiles, and pods. 
• CH-6 This drone was on display at the 13th China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition in Zhuhai. 

China has also become the world’s leading exporter of combat drones. Drones, or Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), are used for many defense-related functions, including: Intelligence, Surveillance, Reconnaissance, Ground attack, Countering electromagnetic interference

Space exploration is always changing. Before February 2021 there had never been a human made craft flying around in the atmosphere of another world (other than rocket propelled landers arriving or departing). The Mars Perseverance rover changed that, carrying with it what can only be described as a drone named Ingenuity. It revolutionised planetary exploration and now, China are getting in on the act with a proposed quadcopter for a Mars sample return mission.

China’s first Mars mission, Tianwen-1, launched in July 2020.  The mission’s orbiter entered Mars’ orbit on February 10, 2021.  On May 14, 2021, the lander and rover portion of the mission touched down on Mars.  This made China the third country to successfully soft-land a spacecraft on Mars. The rover, named Zhurong, was deployed on May 22, 2021. 

Zhurong landed in Utopia Planitia in Mars’s northern hemisphere.  It traveled almost 2 kilometers from its landing site over the course of a year.  The rover entered hibernation mode in May 2022 due to a dust storm. It was expected to wake up in late December, but has not shown any signs of activity.  The mission designer said that the rover has likely suffered from a buildup of sand and dust. 

The mission already exceeded its planned lifetime of three Earth months.

A quadcopter, also called quadrocopter, or quadrotor is a type of helicopter that has four rotors.

Although quadrotor helicopters and convertiplanes have long been flown experimentally, the configuration remained a curiosity until the arrival of the modern UAV or drone. The small size and low inertia of drones allows use of a particularly simple flight control system, which has greatly increased the practicality of the small quadrotor in this application.(full article source google)

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