The European Space Agencys Mars Express collected data from Chinas Zhurong Mars rover and successfully sent it to Earth following a series of speculative interactions tests.The Zhurong rover was created only to interact with its buddy orbiter, Tianwen 1; nevertheless, the rover has actually long outlasted its organized objective and the orbiter is no longer able to do as much information passing on. China and Europe decided to attempt an experiment: Send data from Zhurong to Mars Express to Earth. Thats tough, since the robots interactions devices doesnt match. Zhurong can transmit at a frequency Mars Express can discover, however not vice versa, so Zhurong sends data without hearing back from the orbiter.On Nov. 20, Mars Express passed 2,500 miles (4,000 kilometers) above Zhurongs location in Utopia Planitia, received a batch of data, then transferred the information across 230 million miles (370 million km) of space to European Space Operations Center ground stations, which then forwarded the data to the Beijing Aerospace Flight Control Center.Related: Chinas Mars rover Zhurong simply snapped an epic self-portrait on the Red Planet (photos)”Mars Express effectively got the signals sent out by the rover, and our colleagues in the Zhurong team verified that all the data arrived in the world in excellent quality,” Gerhard Billig, a systems engineer at the European Space Agency (ESA), said in a statement.Mars rovers collect a wealth of science information down on the surface however dont carry large interactions arrays. Insead, they depend on orbiters to relay their high volumes of data throughout the inner planetary system to Earth.Normally a rover and orbiter will exchange brief messages to establish two-communications and transmit data. According to ESA, Mars Express sends its “hi” signal using communication frequencies that are different from those the Chinese Zhurong Mars rover receives, making two-way interaction impossible. Zhurong can send signals utilizing a frequency that Mars Express can get, so ESA carried out a first test of a one-way communication method: interaction “in the blind,” where the sender cant be sure if their signal is being received.Zhurong, Chinas first Mars rover, landed on the Red Planet in May this year and has been checking out Utopia Planitia. With only a small antenna on the rover, its buddy Tianwen 1 orbiter has actually been passing on Zhurongs science data to Earth. With the start of Tianwen 1s own science objective in November, the chances for communicating the important details from Zhurong have been decreased. Instead, the orbiter is focused on mapping Mars.A “selfie” of Zhurong and its lander captured by a deployed remote video camera. (Image credit: CNSA/PEC)Existing cooperation in between ESA and the China National Space Administration (CNSA) broke the ice for a series of five interactions tests in between Mars Express and Zhurong, all brought out in November. (ESA also supplied ground station support for numerous moments throughout Tianwen 1 and Zhurongs journey to Mars.)Mars Express received a signal during each of the 5 tests, however throughout four of these, the gotten information was damaged, an ESA spokesperson informed Space.com by means of email. During an investigation into the glitches, interference from another system on Mars Express was considered accountable. The fourth test, on Nov. 20, yielded outcomes, however, as the orbiter successfully collected 233 kilobytes of data and sent it on to Earth. The mission teams are now setting up additional tests. “Were eagerly anticipating carrying out more tests in the future to continue to experiment and further enhance this approach of interacting in between space objectives,” Billig stated. Groups will examine when Mars Express will have visibility of the Zhurong rover and that the tests will be compatible with the orbiters science strategy. The next test would analyze different bit rates and overflight periods, ESA said. “In principle, it would be possible for Mars Express to play a formal relay function for Zhurong in the future, however this would need to be concurred between the two space companies,” the ESA representative noted to Space.com.Mars Express has remained in orbit around the Red Planet given that December 2003. Its activities include finding methane in the Martian environment, mapping the composition of polar ice and tentatively detecting subsurface water beneath the south pole.A China Lunar Exploration Project report on the interactions test likewise revealed that Zhurong has actually covered a total of 4,255 feet (1,297 meters) in 196 Martian days, or sols, considering that landing on May 14. Zhurong had actually currently covered 4,111 feet (1,253 meters) by early November, recommending that the rover has been spending time analyzing a sediment-filled trough with its science payloads rather than pushing south. Follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom and on Facebook.
The European Space Agencys Mars Express collected information from Chinas Zhurong Mars rover and effectively sent it to Earth following a series of speculative communications tests.The Zhurong rover was designed just to interact with its companion orbiter, Tianwen 1; however, the rover has actually long outlived its scheduled objective and the orbiter is no longer able to do as much data communicating. Zhurong can send at a frequency Mars Express can spot, however not vice versa, so Zhurong sends information without hearing back from the orbiter.On Nov. 20, Mars Express passed 2,500 miles (4,000 kilometers) above Zhurongs area in Utopia Planitia, received a batch of data, then transferred the data across 230 million miles (370 million km) of area to European Space Operations Center ground stations, which then forwarded the data to the Beijing Aerospace Flight Control Center.Related: Chinas Mars rover Zhurong just snapped an epic self-portrait on the Red Planet (pictures)”Mars Express successfully got the signals sent out by the rover, and our colleagues in the Zhurong team verified that all the data showed up on Earth in extremely good quality,” Gerhard Billig, a systems engineer at the European Space Agency (ESA), said in a statement.Mars rovers collect a wealth of science information down on the surface area however do not bring big communications varieties. According to ESA, Mars Express transfers its “hey there” signal utilizing communication frequencies that are various from those the Chinese Zhurong Mars rover receives, making two-way interaction difficult. Zhurong can transfer signals utilizing a frequency that Mars Express can receive, so ESA brought out a very first test of a one-way communication strategy: interaction “in the blind,” where the sender cant be sure if their signal is being received.Zhurong, Chinas very first Mars rover, landed on the Red Planet in May this year and has actually been checking out Utopia Planitia.