China’s Zhu Rong rover has traveled more than 1.9 kilometers on the surface of Mars

INA-  sources 

The Zhu Rong rover on Mars has traveled more than 1.9 km since it first set its wheels on the planet’s surface in May last year, according to the latest data from the Lunar Exploration Center and Space Program of the China National Space Authority. 

As of last Sunday, the Chu Rong rover had operated on the surface of Mars for 342 Martian days at a distance of 240 million km from Earth, and a day on Mars is about 40 minutes longer than a day on Earth. 

Chu Rong landed in the southern part of Utopia Planetia, a vast plain in the northern hemisphere of Mars, on May 15, 2021. Since then, Chu Rong has collected surface rock samples and taken pictures while exploring the planet, according to Xinhua. 

Mars is about to enter winter, when temperatures at night drop to minus 100 degrees Celsius, with a high probability of sandstorms. Winters on Mars last for the equivalent of six months on Earth. 

Scientists have provided special designs for the Chu Rong rover, including low temperature resistance, sand resistance, energy saving and other features, to ensure the safe conduct of Mars patrol and exploration. 
The Chinese National Space Administration also revealed that the lunar rover Yutu-2, or Jade Rabbit-2, has been operating for 42 lunar days and has moved 1181 meters on the surface of the moon. 

China’s Chang’e-4 probe, along with the Yutu-2 lunar rover, made the first-ever soft landing on the Von Kerman Crater in the South Pole-Aitken Basin on the far side of the moon on January 3, 2019.