Motionless for months on the surface of Mars: this is how the Chinese rover Zhurong appears in the images taken by NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (Mro) probe. The mystery about its current conditions is therefore deepening, fueled by the long silence of the Chinese authorities who have not revealed whether the rover woke up in December as expected from hibernation. Also on the occasion of the second anniversary of the mission (celebrated on 7 February) no information was provided.
The most likely hypothesis is that the rover was covered in a thick layer of dust that prevents energy generation. Some clues come from three NASA images, taken thanks to Mro’s HiRISE (High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment) instrument on March 11, 2022, September 8, 2022 and finally on February 7, 2023.
“The rover is the dark, bluish mark visible at the top of the first image and at the bottom of the other two images,” explain the University of Arizona technicians who operate the instrument. “This time series shows that the rover did not change position between September 8, 2022 and February 7, 2023.”
The rover Zhurong (‘god of fire’) arrived on Mars thanks to the first Chinese interplanetary mission, Tianwen-1. It landed in May 2021, like NASA’s Perseverance rover and the UAE’s Hope orbiter. China thus became the third nation to touch the Martian soil after the United States and the Soviet Union.
Zhurong’s primary mission was initially scheduled for three Earth months, but the rover remained active for almost a year exploring the Utopia Planitia region. It then went into hibernation in May 2021 in an attempt to survive the Martian winter. However, dust storms may have affected its ability to generate power.
Source: Ansa
I am a journalist with over 6 years of experience working in the news industry. I currently work as an author for Global Happenings, and my coverage focuses on Technology news. I have written for various publications, including Reuters, The New York Times and The Guardian.
