Space Engineers Address Mars Challenges

Chinese space engineers are addressing technical challenges in Mars sample retrieval, as China prepares for the Tianwen-3 mission, which involves two launches to return samples from Mars by around 2028. The mission is expected to become the world’s first such attempt on the Red Planet, and will involve international payload cooperation, as well as global collaboration in sample and data sharing.

The plan is structured into 13 stages, employing both in-situ and remote sensing techniques to conduct comprehensive research on Mars samples to ensure that they can be successfully returned and yield meaningful scientific discoveries. The Chief designer said that the mission’s top priority is to search for traces of life on Mars, and will involve critical engineering technologies.