While the United States was spying on China, which was spying on the United States, a watchful eye didn’t stop at the Earth, or even the space around it.
More than 100 million miles from Earth, NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter has seen more than just a bird’s eye view of China’s Mars rover Zhurong. A camera aboard a US robotic spacecraft that flies up to 250 miles above the red planet will take pictures of vast terrain.This device can display features as small as a kitchen table(opens in new tab)according to the US Space Agency.
On Tuesday, the Twitter account for the Orbiter High-Resolution Imaging Experiment(opens in new tab), or Hirise camera, posted three side-by-side images of a Chinese rover seen from above. They show that the land vehicle has not moved in the last 5 months. The team managing the camera, based at the University of Arizona, said it would take pictures of the Chinese rover to “track its progress and monitor changes to its surface.”
In images taken between September 8 and February 7, 2022, the rover (shown as a dark bluish dot) has not changed position.
NASA rover finds clear evidence of ancient waves, yes, waves on Mars
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China’s seemingly stagnant Mars mission cosmology came at a time when Americans became keenly aware of Chinese surveillance from above their country. About two weeks ago, when a giant Chinese balloon floated overhead, the country became concerned that it was being monitored. The military eventually shot it down, and a few days later he also shot down three small balloons.
The Pentagon then released the photo.(opens in new tab) A US spy plane pilot Wednesday overlooking a large balloon from the cockpit. The Pentagon said the image was taken the day before the balloon crashed.
The Pentagon released the image two weeks after a Chinese balloon was shot down over the United States.
Credit: US Department of Defense / Handout / Anadolu Agency via Getty Images
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NASA is a civilian agency, not an extension of the military. A high-resolution Orbiter camera will be used for science to observe changes in dust-covered areas near Martian land explorers.Blast zones around landing sites and vehicle trajectories could help scientists(opens in new tab) Know what the surface material is like.
But the Orbiter imagery is a reminder that anyone, anywhere, could be watching. Yes, in other worlds too.
The status of China’s Mars rover Zhurong is unknown.
Credit: China National Space Administration
Zhurong was scheduled to continue Mars exploration in December after a planned hiatus.(opens in new tab) During the Martian winter, Space News reported on Feb. 21.
China sent a rover to Mars as part of the Tianwen-1 mission. Since landing in May 2021, Zhurong has studied a plain in the northern hemisphere of the red planet called the Utopian Plains. Chinese scientists chose the area because of its proximity to what is believed to be an ancient coastline. There, the rover can look for evidence of water or ice.
Using ground-penetrating radar, the rover discovered shallow craters and other geological features.Images released by mission scientists(opens in new tab) Journal of Mars Subterranean geology Early this month. The paper does not indicate exactly when the rover instrument captured the images. The team found no evidence of water or ice in the top 16 feet of soil.
