--- title: "China Releases Stunning Images From Mars Orbiter" description: "The China National Space Administration released several new high-definition images captured by its Tianwen-1 Mars probe currently in the planet's orbit." date: "2021-03-05" modified: "2021-03-05" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/china-releases-stunning-images-from-mars-orbiter" categories: - "Astronomy" - "Mars" - "Space" tags: - "china" - "mars" - "the digest" - "tianwen-1" --- # China Releases Stunning Images From Mars Orbiter ![The China National Space Administration released several new high-definition images captured by its Tianwen-1 Mars probe currently in the planet's orbit.]() *\Image: CASC\* ## Mars Up Close The China National Space Administration (CNSA) released several new high-definition images this week captured by its Tianwen-1 Mars probe, currently in the Red Planet's orbit, the [*South China Morning Post* reports](). The agency released two panchromatic (meaning sensitive to all wavelengths of visible light), high resolution images showing the planet's surface, dotted with tiny dunes, craters, and ridges. The images were taken from a distance of about 330 to 350 kilometers above the surface of Mars, with a resolution of just over two feet — revealing extraordinary details of the planet's surface. ![]() ![]() ## Swirling North Pole A third, full-color image shows the Red Planet's swirling north pole, taken from a distance of 5,000 kilometers. The image will help scientists observe and study how sandstorms form on the planet's surface. ![]() Tianwen-1 entered its Martian orbit on February 24 and since then has aimed its cameras and spectrometer at the surface below. The mission's lander and rover will attempt to make their descent as soon as May, according to *SCMP*. Once it lands, the rover will be joining NASA's Perseverance rover on the Martian surface. It won't be anywhere near the six-wheeled rover, however. According to [CNSA coordinates released last year](), Tianwen-1 will land in the southern portion of Utopia Planitia, a large plain where scientists suspect large amounts of underground ice to be. Perseverance, in contrast, landed in the Jezero Crater, found in an entirely different region of Mars called the Isidis Basin. **READ MORE:** [China’s Tianwen-1 zooms in on Mars surface on cusp of new tech era]() \[*South China Morning Post*\] **More on Mars:** *[NASA’s Mars Rover “Percy” Stretches Its Arm for the First Time]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()