(CNSA)
The first Chinese rover Zhurong has sent pictures from the Mars’ surface.
The photographs confirmed that the solar panels and rover antenna deployed successfully and will help specialists build the rover's movement plan.
Zhurong landed in the south of the Utopia Plain in the northern hemisphere of Mars on May 15, 2021 as part of the first Chinese Mars mission, Tianwen 1.
The mass of the six-wheeled rover is 240 kilograms, the payload includes cameras, a ground penetrating radar, a magnetometer, a weather station and a soil analyzer.
It is expected that the rover will not only demonstrate its viability for 90 Martian days, but also conduct surface and subsurface studies of the soil.
(CNSA)
On Monday, the orbital probe entered a new near-Martian eight-hour orbit, in which it will operate as a relay, maintaining communication between the rover and Earth.
After that, Zhurong began transmitting telemetry, and on May 19, the first images taken by the rover came to Earth.
They show the elements of the rover, standing on the landing platform, as well as the immediate vicinity, covered with sand and small stones.
The images confirmed that the solar panels and rover antenna deployed successfully.
In addition, the Chinese experts showed an animation from images taken by the orbiting probe, showing the detachment of the capsule with the rover.
The date of the rover's departure from the landing platform has not yet been determined; at present, specialists are studying the images.
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