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China’s Mars mission on track to lead the world in retrieving Martian rocks by 2031, says programme veteran

  • China’s timeline is two years ahead of a US-European planned Mars mission to return samples to Earth for laboratory testing, according to Sun Zezhou
  • The 2028 launch window to send two spacecraft up is still being debated, with experts assessing travel time to the red planet and dust storm season

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China’s Mars rover Zhu Rong is pictured next to the landing platform with a Chinese national flag on it, taken by a remote camera on Mars in June 2021. Photo: EPA-EFE/China National Space Administration
Ling Xin

A senior space official has confirmed China plans to bring rocks home from the surface of Mars by 2031, which could make it the first nation to deliver Martian samples to Earth.

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The timeline is two years ahead of a US-European planned Mars mission to return samples to Earth, according to Sun Zezhou, chief designer of China’s first Mars mission Tianwen 1 as well as the Chang’e 3 and Chang’e 4 lunar missions.
Sun Zezhou is chief designer of China’s first Mars mission Tianwen 1 and the Chang’e 3 and Chang’e 4 lunar missions. Photo: China State Council Information Office
Sun Zezhou is chief designer of China’s first Mars mission Tianwen 1 and the Chang’e 3 and Chang’e 4 lunar missions. Photo: China State Council Information Office

China aimed to send two spacecraft – one comprising a lander and ascent vehicle, and the other an orbiter and re-entry capsule – to the red planet in 2028, Sun said on Monday during a talk to celebrate the 120th anniversary of Nanjing University.

After the lander touches down, it will drill for samples and scoop them up. The rocks will be delivered into Mars’ orbit and the mission will head home around October 2030, arriving on Earth in July 2031.

Retrieving samples from Mars to study in a laboratory had long been the dream of planetary scientists around the world, Sun said.

02:14

New images of Mars sent back by China’s Tianwen-1 orbiter

New images of Mars sent back by China’s Tianwen-1 orbiter
Now, his team is developing the key technologies needed to carry out the complex task. For instance, compared with Tianwen 1, atmospheric entry will be more challenging because the mass and velocity of the spacecraft will increase significantly. It could easily burn if not well shielded, or crash if the parachute does not work properly.
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