Tuesday, October 27, 2026

2020-07-23 · 6 years ago

Tianwen-1 — launch

Date in UTC

Tianwen-1 (also referred to as TW-1) is an interplanetary mission by the China National Space Administration (CNSA) which sent a robotic spacecraft to Mars, consisting of six spacecraft: an orbiter, two deployable cameras, lander, remote camera, and the Zhurong rover. The spacecraft, with a total mass of nearly five tons, is one of the heaviest probes launched to Mars and carries 14 scientific instruments. It is the first in a series of planned missions undertaken by CNSA as part of its Planetary Exploration of China program. The mission's scientific objectives include: investigation of Martian surface geology and internal structure, search for indications of current and past presence of water, and characterization of the space environment and the atmosphere of Mars.

Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tianwen-1. Related NASA reference: https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/planetary/chronology.html#2020. Description adapted from Wikipedia contributors (CC BY-SA 4.0; https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).

Category
Launches and Flight Tests
Type
Orbital launch
Subjects
Space transportation
Mission
Tianwen-1
Organization
Chinese Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology
Vehicle
Chang Zheng 5
Location
Wenchang Space Center, Hainan
Country
CN
Outcome
Successful

Context and qualifications

Launch code: DS. Source references: nasaspaceflight.com; xinhuanet.com.

Sources and attribution

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