BEIJING (AP) – China’s Mars probe Tianwen-1, which exploded in space in July, is now more than 15 million kilometers (9 million miles) on its way from Earth to the Red Planet, the National Space Administration said Saturday.
The administration said the TNV-1 is in a stable position, having completed its first mid-course orbital correction early last month. It will be about 195 million kilometers (118 million miles) from Earth when it reaches Mars around February, having traveled a total of 470 million kilometers (292 million miles) to get there.
The administration has not yet released information about a mysterious reusable experimental spacecraft that returned to Earth a week ago after a two-day flight.
The spacecraft has an orbiter, a lander and a rover and marks China’s most ambitious Mars mission as it seeks to join the United States to successfully land a spacecraft on Earth. The United Arab Emirates and the USA also took advantage of the short distance between the planets to launch a similar mission during one month on July 23rd when it was blasted into space on July 23rd during a month long.
China said the reusable spacecraft returned to its designated landing site last Sunday, hailing the flight as a success that will eventually provide convenient round-trip transport into space at a lower cost. No other details about the mission or the spacecraft’s configuration have been released.
Which is also seen as an attempt to put China on the leading edge of space flight. U.S. For years the secret X-37B has been operating a spacecraft that has been in orbit for months.
China’s military-backed space program has grown rapidly, becoming the third country after Russia and the US to launch a man into space in 2003. Last year, China’s Chang’e-4 became the first spacecraft of any country to land. Away from the moon side.
The program has also suffered occasional shocks. Jiuquan’s Northwest Satellite Launch Center reported that an optical satellite launched at midnight on Saturday failed to enter its preset orbit after an abnormality was observed during the flight of its carrier rocket.
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