Europe has been trying to land on the red planet for more than twenty years

by time news

2024-04-09 06:30:00

DECRYPTION – Before NASA’s return, the most ambitious European program experienced many hazards. Until the end of collaboration with the Russians because of the invasion of Ukraine.

Sending probes into orbit around Mars is already a feat that few nations are capable of achieving today. But exploring the surface is even more difficult. Not only do you have to arrive safely at the end of a journey lasting several months, but then you have to brake, enter the atmosphere at several thousand kilometers per hour, resist very strong heating, descend by parachute in very thin air and At the last moment, slow down the fall with retrorockets to avoid crashing. Despite significant resources and several attempts, Russia has never achieved this feat. In 1972, the Soviet Mars 3 lander arrived safely on the surface, but it failed after just twenty seconds! With four rovers sent to Mars over the past two decades and several successful landings, NASA has established itself as the undisputed champion of the exercise. And in 2021, the small Chinese rover Zhurong is…

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