How a Chinese spacecraft will catch Mars rock samples for journey to Earth

A lightweight device on an orbiting module will capture a container about the size of a coffee can

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As China gets closer to launch date for its Tianwen-3 Mars mission, scientists have designed a device to safely capture rock samples for the all-important return back to Earth. Photo: Shutterstock

Published: 5:00pm, 18 Nov 2024

China is another step closer to bringing the first pieces of the red planet back to Earth with the development of a lightweight device to capture Martian rock samples in orbit.

Weighing just 12kg (26½lbs), the module is mounted on a spacecraft, and is designed to catch a sample container roughly the size of a large coffee can, according to researchers from the Institute of Aerospace System Engineering in Shanghai.

Rocks are first collected in the container from Mars’ surface, before being ejected into orbit by an ascent vehicle. The device traps and secures the container, then transfers it into a storage vessel.

This storage vessel later detaches from the spacecraft for the return journey back to Earth, the researchers wrote in the journal China Space Science and Technology last month.

A prototype of the device has been tested to show that it can reliably capture and align the sample container, adapting to different entry angles and positions, and transfer it seamlessly into the storage vessel, according to the researchers.

“Due to the limited power available for taking off from the Martian surface, the platform carrying the samples into orbit has a restricted mass capacity, which prevents the use of traditional docking and transfer mechanisms,” the researchers wrote.