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DRAGON SPACE
China To Launch First Mars Probe In Second Half Of 2009
by Staff Writers
Shanghai, China (XNA) Jun 01, 2009


Yinghuo-1 would go into Mars orbit in 2010 after a 10-month, 380-million-kilometer journey.

China's first Mars probe, Yinghuo-1, is expected to be launched in the second half of this year, an official of the Shanghai Academy of Space flight Technology (SAST) has said.

The probe had passed test of the research phase, Zhang Weiqiang, deputy secretary of SAST Committee of the Communist Party of China, told the third Shanghai International Aerospace Technology and Equipment Exhibition.

The event runs from Thursday to Saturday and includes a full-scale model of Yinghuo-1.

Yinghuo-1 will be launched by a Russian carrier rocket, accompanied by the Russian aerocraft Phobos-Grunt. The Russian aerocraft is making a sample return mission to Phobos, one of the moons of Mars, Zhang said.

Yinghuo-1 would go into Mars orbit in 2010 after a 10-month, 380-million-kilometer journey, Zhang said. But unlike the Russian craft, Yinghuo-1 won't land but would only orbit and observe, Zhang said.

The Chinese probe is 75 centimeters long, 75 cm wide and 60 cm high. It weighs 115 kilograms and was designed for a two-year life, according to Zhang. "Yinghuo" means light from firefly in Chinese.

Yinghuo-1 is expected to discover why water disappeared from Mars and explain other environmental changes of the planet, Zhang said.

The project is China's third major space exploration plan after the manned space project and the moon exploration program. It was also the first time that China would explore another planet, Zhang said.

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Related Links
Shanghai Academy of Space flight Technology (SAST)
The Chinese Space Program - News, Policy and Technology
China News from SinoDaily.com






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DRAGON SPACE
China to launch Mars space probe
Shanghai, China (UPI) May 29, 2009
China's first Mars probe has completed testing and is on target for launch, the Shanghai Academy of Space Flight Technology said Friday. The Yinghuo-1 is to be launched later this year by a Russian carrier rocket and will go into orbit around Mars in 2010 after a 10-month, 236-million mile journey, Xinhua, China's state-run news agency, reported Friday. Yinghuo -- Chinese for ... read more


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