While NASA's Mars Sample Return initiative is in political hot water, China is moving ahead on plotting out its rendezvous with the Red Planet.
New details of China's aims are emerging. China's intent is to haul back to Earth a Mars treasure trove or rock and soil via its Tianwen-3 mission. The plan calls for launch of two boosters in 2028 in support of their Mars Sample Return (MSR), which could send at least a pound (500 grams) of the extraterrestrial goodies back to Earth around 2031. A drill mounted on China's MSR lander would penetrate to a depth of 6.5 feet (2 meters) to collect several grams of subsurface samples, while a robotic arm will gather more than 400 grams of the foreign surface material from the landing site. Apparently, also on the agenda is use of a robotic helicopter. This drone, outfitted with an arm, is to be deployed for rock sampling at locations greater than 300 feet (over 100 meters) from the lander.
