While NASA has been forced to slow down the development of the international sample return mission carried out in collaboration with ESA due to budget and schedule constraints, China, which also plans to bring back samples from the planet Mars to Earth with the Tianwen-3 mission, does not seem to be facing budget issues.
Although its mission, initially scheduled for a 2028 launch, has been postponed to the next launch window in early 2030, there are no indications suggesting that China will not meet its deadlines.
The Chinese mission’s architecture takes a simpler approach than that of NASA and ESA, although it is a very complex mission. Two Long March 5 launches will see the deployment of a landing and ascent vehicle, an orbiter, and a return module. On the Red Planet, the lander will use a robotic arm to collect surface samples, as well as a drill to collect material up to two meters below the surface. A six-wheeled robot or an Ingenuity-type helicopter could also be deployed to widen the range of collected samples. The goal is to bring back around 500 grams of Martian samples to Earth.
Selection of three potential sites
Recently, in the peer-reviewed scientific journal Journal of Geophysical Research, a Chinese article identified three potential sites for sample collection. These sites, located between 17 and 30 degrees north latitude, offer optimal sunlight and are at an altitude below 3,000 meters compared to the average Martian altitude, allowing the lander to benefit from a sufficient atmosphere to safely slow its descent.
Environments conducive to life and its preservation
Within these sites, landing ellipses of 50 kilometers by 20 have been identified to ensure a safe landing of the mission, avoiding rugged terrain, obstacles such as rocks, and steep slopes. Scientifically, these sites are known to host environments conducive to the emergence and preservation of life, such as sedimentary or hydrothermal systems, traces of past water activity, and geological diversity.
The final site selection announcement will be made later.
China wants to bring back Mars rocks well before NASA!
Article by Remy Decourt, published on 28/06/2022
As NASA and ESA prepare for a mission to bring back Martian samples in 2033, it is learned that China is advancing its Martian sample return mission to bring them back to Earth as early as 2031, two years before the American-European mission! A technological feat that would be seen as a blow to NASA and ESA.
As reported by Space News, Sun Zezhou, chief designer of the Tianwen-1 orbiter and Martian rover, presented a new architecture for the Martian sample return mission that China is preparing. Compared to the previous setup, the mission appears simpler with a single landing on Mars and no rover to retrieve samples from different sites, as currently done by Perseverance.
The return of Martian samples is considered one of the main scientific goals of robotic exploration. If China were to accomplish this before NASA and ESA, it would be seen as a difficult blow for the two Western agencies that hesitated for over 30 years before giving the green light to a Martian sample return mission. And if by chance, the Chinese invite Russia to participate in this MSR mission…
The European Space Agency (ESA) has decided that sending both the Fetch Rover and the Mars Ascent Vehicle together would be too complex and risky. Therefore, they have opted for two separate launches: one to send the Fetch Rover from ESA and another to land the rocket that will take off from Mars, near the rover. The orbiter that will bring back the samples to Earth is scheduled to be launched in 2027 and is expected to return to Earth in 2033.
China’s MSR mission, named Tianwen-3, consists of two parts and only two launches. The lander and Mars ascent vehicle will be launched together aboard the Long March 5 rocket; the orbiter and return module will travel to Mars on a Long March 3B rocket.
Previous missions have paved the way for China’s return of Martian samples. Tianwen-3 will utilize proven technologies related to Entry, Descent, and Landing (EDL), successfully demonstrated during the landing of the Zhurong rover on Mars in May 2021 (Tianwen 1 mission). Other mastered technologies include sample retrieval and orbital rendezvous, showcased during the Chang’e 5 mission in November and December 2020. After retrieving lunar samples, the probe took off from the Moon and completed an orbital rendezvous before transferring the samples to a capsule that brought them back to Earth.
According to Sun Zezhou’s presentation, Tianwen-3 is expected to land on Mars in September 2029. The landing site has likely not been chosen yet and is currently being selected. The mission is anticipated to land in the northern hemisphere during the autumn equinox. The orbital rendezvous around Mars to transfer the samples to the return module is planned for October 2030, with Earth return scheduled for July 2031.
Exciting times lie ahead in space exploration!