Overview: China's major space programs in 2020

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7. First exploration on Mars

After years of preparation and experiments, China is to start its exploration to the Mars by launching an unmanned probe to the planet next year.

The farthest distance between the Earth and Mars is about 400 million kilometers, so a probe will travel about seven months before reaching the Martian atmosphere. It is expected that the probe will land on the Martian surface in 2021.

The robotic probe will consist of three parts - the orbiter, lander and rover. The rover will have six wheels and four solar panels and will carry 13 scientific instruments. It will weigh more than 200 kilograms and operate about three months on the planet, according to Sun Zezhou, the spacecraft's chief designer at the China Academy of Space Technology.

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