China has released footage of the movement of its rover to Mars. The images were taken by a wireless camera left by the robot on the surface of the planet in the Utopia Planitia region, BNT reported. The new footage also contains moments from the landing on May 14. They were sent to Earth via a Chinese satellite orbiting the Red Planet.
The Chinese rover “Zhuzhun” has traveled 236 meters in 42 Martian days to date. The Martian day is 24 hours and 39 minutes – a little more than Earth. Static images from the landing itself were released last week, and a video version is now available.
“According to telemetry, the landing point is only three kilometers from the planned one. Overall, the position is very accurate and the control system works very well,” said Rao Wei of the China Space Agency.
There are three clips from the surface of Mars. The first was taken shortly after landing and shows the robot moving away from the wireless camera.
Following are shots of the wheels turning to the landing platform and finally – moments from the descent down the ramp from the platform.
The latter material contains sound from the rover’s drive system. In the Martian atmosphere, sounds are heard more deafly than on Earth.
“The material allows us to make an in-depth analysis of the environment and conditions of Mars, such as the density of the atmosphere,” said Liu Jizong of China’s Martian Program.
Chinese scientists expect the rover to remain in operation for at least 90 Martian days. It resembles the American “Spirit” and “Opportunity” and weighs about 240 kilograms. It has a mast with mounted cameras, as well as five tools for studying the composition of the rocks and weather conditions. Like the American Perseverance, the Chinese device has a groundwater search radar.
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