The Chinese space agency, CNSA, has released new videos of Mars taken by the Zhurong robot that landed on the Red Planet in May this year.
One of the videos shows, for the first time, how the equipment was lowered. The camera was filmed as the parachutes used to slow the entry of the planet were launched.
Another camera recorded images from the underside of the robot until the landing was completed in Utopia Planetada, the area the scientists selected for the Chinese mission.
The rover also filmed landing from its platform after months of space travel. The robot’s microphones are still capable of recording ambient sound.
In the sequence, the robot turned its cameras and displayed a wider picture of its whereabouts and confirmed it had arrived safely.
The launch of the Tianwen-1 mission to Mars in July 2020 was a milestone in China’s space program. The remote-controlled equipment by scientists aims to look for signs of ancient life, including any signs of groundwater or ice.
“Web geek. Wannabe thinker. Reader. Freelance travel evangelist. Pop culture aficionado. Certified music scholar.”