Posted on 02/26/2023 12:42:59 PM PST by MtnClimber
View larger. | A selfie of the Chinese Mars rover Zhurong (center), with its lander (right), taken by the deployable Tianwen-1 Remote Camera on August 30, 2021. Image via China News Service/ YouTube/ Wikimedia Commons. Has the rover's
From EarthSky email: "Chinese Mars rover not moving. Is it kaput?
The Chinese Mars rover Zhurong appears not to have moved for about 6 months. Has its mission ended? There's been no official word about the rover from CNSA - the Chinese space agency - since May of 2022. That's when the rover entered a dormant state in anticipation of a long, cold and dusty Martian winter. Has the mission ended?
Comment: It appears the Chinese modeled their Martian rover on a Giant Chicken. Perhap the hope was to determine if a domed poultry farm could be set up to support a future Mars colony! The Lander was built to resemble a giant waterbug, a tasty source of fast growing protein! (Yes my comment is satire!)
My bet is on tidal deformation.
Could be…. I’m no planetary geologist.
Looks like a walnut.
I know. Really strange.
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