--- title: "Chinese Rover Sends Back First Photos From Surface of Mars" description: "China has shared the first pictures taken by its Zhurong Mars rover after touching down on the Red Planet's surface over the weekend." date: "2021-05-19" modified: "2021-05-19" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/chinese-rover-first-pictures-mars" categories: - "Astronomy" - "Mars" - "Space" tags: - "china" - "CNSA" - "mars" - "the digest" - "tianwen-1" - "zhurong" --- # Chinese Rover Sends Back First Photos From Surface of Mars ![China has shared the first pictures taken by its Zhurong Mars rover after touching down on the Red Planet's surface over the weekend.]() *\Image: CNSA\* ## Snapshots China has shared the first pictures taken by its Zhurong Mars rover after touching down on the Red Planet's surface over the weekend. It's a momentous occasion. Early Saturday morning Beijing time, China made history by becoming only the third country after the US and the USSR to [successfully land]() a remotely operated probe on the surface of Mars. ## Nothing But Plain China says Zhurong will spend about 90 Martian days to explore the surrounding Utopia Planitia, a huge plain in the Martian northern hemisphere. Scientists believe there are massive deposits of water ice lurking beneath the area — about [as much water as Lake Superior](), according to NASA. China's National Space Administration (CNSA) [shared several images]() on its website, including some short videos recording the moment the descent module departed the country's Tianwen-1 orbiter. ![]() ![]() One black and white image shows the ramp the rover will use to exit the landing module and reach the surface below. ![]() A color image also shows the rover's navigation camera as well as its solar wings and antennas. ![]() ## Long Road Ahead For now Zhurong will check its instruments and perform several checkouts of its systems and instruments over the next seven days. "The Mars exploration mission has been a total success," Zhang Kejian, head of the China National Space Administration (CNSA) said in [a statement]() following the landing. "It's another important milestone for China's space exploration." **READ MORE:** [China on Mars: Zhurong rover returns first pictures]() \[*BBC*\] **More on Zhurong:** *[Chinese Mars Rover Reportedly Touches Down on Surface of Mars]()* ## 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]()