China's first Mars probe will be transferred to the status of "to be sent" [full text]

After the manned space project and the lunar exploration project, another major space exploration project in China was Mars exploration. The reporter was informed that China’s first Mars rover “Fireflies No. 1” has passed the examination and verification of the development stage and will be transferred. It is expected to launch into the second half of this year, and it will reach Mars and carry out scientific exploration in 2010.

The Mars exploration project is the first space exploration activity for extraterrestrial planets in China. This project was carried out by China and Russia. According to reports, "Firefly One" related exploration missions, including the exploration of Mars and its space environment, to explore Mars "Why the secret of water disappeared", revealing the evolutionary characteristics of terrestrial planets and other space environment, and thus for China's next deep space Detection laid the foundation.

Small and exquisite "light cavalry"

It is understood that "Firefly One" is a small child, only 110 kilograms, compared with the 180 kilograms of its American predecessors "Glory" and "Opportunity" and the weight of 600 kilograms of the new rocket vehicle planned to be launched. "Firefly One" can be considered a "light cavalry" in the Mars probe family. Its main part is 75 centimeters long, 75 centimeters wide, and 60 centimeters high. There are 6 solar panels on both sides and 7.85 meters wide. There are three pairs of big “wings” on such a small and exquisite body. Only because of the low intensity of solar light on Mars, only about one-half of the earth, the windsurfing should be large enough to provide sufficient energy for “Firefly One”. .

Take the opportunity to fly 350 million kilometers

As China has not yet had the ability to independently detect Mars, during the launch in October this year, “Firefly One” can only take the rockets of the Russian “Zenith” carrier rocket. At the same time, it is also on Mars and Russia’s fire. The detector “Forbes” will then fly for four hours on a 200-kilometre distant orbit and then fly to a 10,000-kilometer transitional elliptical orbit for 26 hours of unpowered flight, followed by After the launch of the rocket's main engine, "Firefly One" bids farewell to the earth and enters the hyperbolic orbit from Earth to Mars, and flies with Forbes for 11 months. During the joint flight, the two satellites were connected together by cables. The power of “Firefly One” was supplied by “Forbes”.

After reaching the orbit of Mars, the Rocket will find a relatively suitable location to put Firefly One down. After August of next year, the two satellites will officially part ways, and Forbes will switch to detect “Fireguard 1” and “Firefly”. "Fire One" enters the elliptical orbit around Mars and expands its solar windsurfing platform on the Mars big elliptical orbit of 800 kilometers near the fire point, 80,000 kilometers away from the far fire point, and plus or minus 5 degrees of orbital inclination. Formally began to fulfill its Mars exploration mission.

Finding Water and Life on Mars

There are several “heavy weapons” in the baggage carried by “Firefly One”: an optical imager that will photograph Mars and Phobos; a fluxgate magnetometer measures the magnetic field strength over Mars, Solar radiation intensity and high-energy particles; ion detection package for detecting the plasma state around Mars. It is reported that the main task of the "Firefly One" is to photograph and explore the space environment near Mars, and lay the foundation for China's next Mars exploration.

There is no water on Mars. Before the United States launched the landing probes "Phoenix", "Opportunity" and "The Spirit" found traces of water, but did not directly find water, so "Firefly One" a The important task is to probe the mechanism of the disappearance of water on the surface of Mars, and then to find out if there is life on Mars.

According to reports, two-thirds of the early Mars probes ended in failure. As of December last year, a total of 38 Mars probes were launched by humans, and only 20 were successful. In the space industry, Mars has spacecraft tombs. Said.