Photo: CNSA

 
China’s first Mars probe Tianwen-1 successfully conducted a third mid-course correction on Wednesday, Global Times learned from the China National Space Administration.

The spacecraft’s eight 25N engines were simultaneously started and tested during the course correction.

Wednesday’s course correction made a minor adjustment to its Earth-Mars transfer orbit and followed the spacecraft’s last maneuver in early October, which is designed to ensure the probe’s accurate rendezvous with the Red Planet.

Photo: CNSA

 
It has successfully captured a photo of Earth and the moon, completed three course corrections, a major deep-space maneuver, and self-checks on multiple payloads.

As of Wednesday, the Tianwe-1 probe has been flying in orbit for 97 days, traveling around 256 million kilometers and reaching some 44 million kilometers away from Earth. It is in good working condition, and ground stations and tracking centers have good connection with the probe.