China's Mars probe Tianwen-1 has traveled more than 8 million km away from Earth and is functioning normally, according to the Lunar Exploration and Space Program Center of the China National Space Administration Thursday.

As of 11:20 pm Wednesday, the Mars probe has traveled 8.23 million km away from Earth. Starting from 10:20 pm Wednesday, multiple payloads on the Mars probe, including Mars Magnetometer, Mars Mineralogy Spectrometer and High-resolution Camera, have completed self-check to confirm that they are in normal condition.

Medium and high-resolution cameras will be used for imaging the Mars surface and conducting research on the topography and geological structure of the planet's surface. The Magnetometer will detect the magnetic environment on Mars, and the Mineralogy Spectrometer will be used to analyze the composition and distribution of minerals on Mars.

China launched the Mars probe on July 23, designed to complete orbiting, landing and roving in a single mission, thus taking the first step in its planetary exploration of the solar system.

The Mars probe is expected to reach the red planet around February 2021. After entering the orbit, it will spend another two to three months surveying the candidate landing sites before landing.

Source: Xinhua News Agency

Related Links
Chinese Lunar Exploration Program
The Chinese Space Program - News, Policy and Technology
China News from SinoDaily.com

Tweet

Thanks for being here; We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain. With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords. Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year. If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor $5 Billed Once credit card or paypal		SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter $5 Billed Monthly paypal only

China seeks payload ideas for mission to moon, asteroid
Beijing (XNA) Aug 07, 2020
China is soliciting ideas for payloads aboard its proposed missions to the moon, an asteroid and a comet, according to the China National Space Administration. It is asking for primary, middle school and university students across the country to provide ideas for payloads that would fly aboard the Chang'e 7 probe to the moon, and on another spacecraft to the asteroid 2016HO3 and the comet 133P. The solicitation aims to arouse students' interest in science and inspire them to explore the univ ... read more