China to send space probe to Mars
By Zhang Xuanchen |
March 3, 2011, Thursday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
China is expected to launch its first Mars probe in 2013, a chief scientist said yesterday.
The probe is likely to launch in November 2013, when Mars and the Earth are closest to each other, Xinhua news agency quoted Ye Peijian, the China Academy of Space Technology's chief scientist involved in deep space exploration, as saying.
The mission will focus on investigating the structure of the surface of Mars and the existence of water, said Ye, who is a CPPCC member.
"Mars is the closest neighbor of Earth with the highest possibility to have life and to be made habitable," Ye said. "That makes it top of the list of mankind's next interplanetary explorations."
Once approved by government, the Mars mission will be carried out based on updated technology of the country's lunar satellites Chang'e-1 and Chang'e-2.
It will take at least 10 months for the probe to reach Mars, and it will be exposed to high-energy cosmic rays and other ionizing radiation on the way, Ye said.
Before the mission, China is due to join with Russia in launching the Yinghuo-1 probe to explore the space environment and magnetic fields of Mars. The probe is expected to operate in conjunction with Russia's Phobos Explorer launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
The Mars mission is the latest major space exploration for China after the success of the Chang'e program. Chang'e-2 is currently orbiting the moon on a six-month mission to carry out various tests in preparation for the 2013 launch of Chang'e-3, which will be China's first unmanned lunar landing.
Ye said there were plans to bring back a moon rock sample in 2017.
Ye was chief designer of the Chang'e-1, the country's first lunar probe, and chief commander of the Chang'e-2 and Chang'e-3 missions.
The moon has long been the objective for many countries' space projects. But now, more are looking to Mars, a planet that shares many similarities with the Earth.
The United States plans to send a manned spacecraft to orbit Mars. The European Space Agency and Japan also have plans for Mars in their space programs.
Meanwhile, a Chinese global satellite navigation system composed of more than 30 satellites is likely to be in place by 2020, Qi Faren, former chief designer for Shenzhou spaceships, told Xinhua yesterday.
China will launch 12 to 14 satellites during the early part of the 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-2015). China set up a regional satellite navigation system after launching three Beidou satellites between October 2000 and May 2003.
The Beidou-1 system played a significant role in rescue efforts following the Sichuan earthquake in 2008, Qi said.
As of December last year, China had launched seven satellites for the Beidou positioning network.
The probe is likely to launch in November 2013, when Mars and the Earth are closest to each other, Xinhua news agency quoted Ye Peijian, the China Academy of Space Technology's chief scientist involved in deep space exploration, as saying.
The mission will focus on investigating the structure of the surface of Mars and the existence of water, said Ye, who is a CPPCC member.
"Mars is the closest neighbor of Earth with the highest possibility to have life and to be made habitable," Ye said. "That makes it top of the list of mankind's next interplanetary explorations."
Once approved by government, the Mars mission will be carried out based on updated technology of the country's lunar satellites Chang'e-1 and Chang'e-2.
It will take at least 10 months for the probe to reach Mars, and it will be exposed to high-energy cosmic rays and other ionizing radiation on the way, Ye said.
Before the mission, China is due to join with Russia in launching the Yinghuo-1 probe to explore the space environment and magnetic fields of Mars. The probe is expected to operate in conjunction with Russia's Phobos Explorer launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
The Mars mission is the latest major space exploration for China after the success of the Chang'e program. Chang'e-2 is currently orbiting the moon on a six-month mission to carry out various tests in preparation for the 2013 launch of Chang'e-3, which will be China's first unmanned lunar landing.
Ye said there were plans to bring back a moon rock sample in 2017.
Ye was chief designer of the Chang'e-1, the country's first lunar probe, and chief commander of the Chang'e-2 and Chang'e-3 missions.
The moon has long been the objective for many countries' space projects. But now, more are looking to Mars, a planet that shares many similarities with the Earth.
The United States plans to send a manned spacecraft to orbit Mars. The European Space Agency and Japan also have plans for Mars in their space programs.
Meanwhile, a Chinese global satellite navigation system composed of more than 30 satellites is likely to be in place by 2020, Qi Faren, former chief designer for Shenzhou spaceships, told Xinhua yesterday.
China will launch 12 to 14 satellites during the early part of the 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-2015). China set up a regional satellite navigation system after launching three Beidou satellites between October 2000 and May 2003.
The Beidou-1 system played a significant role in rescue efforts following the Sichuan earthquake in 2008, Qi said.
As of December last year, China had launched seven satellites for the Beidou positioning network.
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