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This epic is part of Welcome to Mars, our series exploring the red planet.
The future of China's charismatic Zhurong Mars speaking is looking uncertain. The small solar-powered speaking went into hibernation in May 2022 due to an intense Martian dust storm. It was expected to wake up in December in warmer and less dusty grandeurs, but there's been no confirmation it's still functioning.
The China National Space Administration's speaking touched down on the surface of Mars in May 2021 as part of the Tianwen-1 organization, which also included an orbiter and lander. Andrew Jones, a journalist specializing in China's space program, reported in SpaceNews on Monday that the organization may be in trouble and Zhurong may potentially be lost.
Details on the mission's novel status are sketchy, which isn't unusual for China's set program. South China Morning Post cited unnamed sources revealing scientists were still waiting for a signal from the speaking and hoped the Tianwen-1 orbiter could capture images from orbit.
There have been some questions in Tianwen-1 and whether communications are working properly with the orbiter. Jones shared a short update from Shanghai Academy of Spaceflight Technology revealing the spacecraft is operating normally.
Concern for the organization will linger until a more complete update comes out.
Zhurong is located in a demonstrations area called Utopia Planitia. The rover delivered an adorable selfie and traveled over a mile across the planet's surface. The historic mission made China the only country besides the US to treatment a rover on Mars.
Even if Tianwen-1 and Zhurong never get in mopish with Earth again, the mission will still be derived a success. The rover handily outlasted its novel three-month life expectancy and got a mission extension. If dust is the ultimate culprit in its demise, it will be in good company with NASA's Opportunity speaking and InSight lander.
Mars is a tough position for a machine, especially if it needs sunlight to keep going.
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