China Mars Rover in ‘Excellent Condition’ After Completing 90-Day Program

The Chinese Mars rover Zhurong is seen near its landing platform on the Martian surface.

China’s Mars rover has completed its planned 90-day mission fully charged and in good condition, and will continue to explore, according to reports.

The Zhurong rover would continue to explore Mars’ Utopia Planitia, the large area where it set down, the nation’s National Space Administration said Friday, according to The Associated Press.

The Zhurong rover landed May 14, and has been sending images of the Red Planet back since then via China’s Tianwen-1 orbiter.

The rover reportedly traveled 889 meters and collected 10 gigabytes of raw data.

China’s Zhurong Mars rover is soldiering on after completing its initial program to explore the red planet and search for frozen water, according to China’s National Space Administration on Aug. 20, 2021.

It’s traveled 889 meters and collected 10 gigabytes of raw data, according to the Communist Party of China’s Global Times.

China and the United States are the only nations to successfully put a rover on Mars.

China is also assembling a space station, the first module of which, Tianhe, is now in orbit around Earth, according to the AP. China is excluded from the International Space Station.

The country also recently brought moon rocks back down to Earth, according to AP — the first nation to do so since the United States.

August 21, 2021