What has happened to Zhurong rover on Mars? China remains silent

China has continued its silence over the fate of its Zhurong rover which is currently on Mars. The rover, part of China's Tianwen 1 mission, has fallen silent but there hasn't been any official confirmation of the exact state. Tianwen 1 is China's first interplanetary mission completed two years on February 10.

Even at this occasion, China did not choose to release a substantial update with state media just sticking to short write-ups that had only brief mention of Zhurong. The silence from the rover continues, so does from the Chinese state.

Zhurong went in hibernation in May 2022 during winter in Mars' northern hemisphere. The available solar energy was less. The rover was expected to 'wake up' in December 2022. However, there has hardly been any news on the rover from the Chinese authorities and the status of the rover remains unknown. No new images from the rover have been released.

Unlike other Mars rovers, Zhurong does not have a heating unit. It has two windows to allow a chemical to store heat energy obtained on Mars. The chemical, by the name n-undecane, absorbs heat during the martian day and melts. It releases heat during the night and solidifies.

Mars has atmosphere and dust storms are a normal occurrence on the Martian surface. Though these storms are of much lesser intensity than those on Earth, it is being reported that martian storms may have been the reason why the rover may not have been able to generate enough heat. However, there has been no official confirmation on this from China.

WATCH WION LIVE HERE