As China's astronauts left for the new space station last week, Wang Xiaojun, the head of China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology (CALT), revealed the country's Mars ambition at the Global Space Exploration Conference (GLEX 2021)

Wang Xiaojun in a "plan for future Mars expedition" said that in the first phase Mars sample will be collected followed by a manned mission to the Red Planet and the building of a Mars base, according to China's state-run Global Times.

Watch:

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/china-launches-three-man-crew-to-new-space-station-392059/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

In the final step, China will undertake "Earth-Mars cargo fleet and large scale development of the Red Planet", the state-run Global Times quoted the Chinese scientist as saying.

The timetable for the Mars mission stretches over a ten year period from 2033 to 2043. The country has poured billions of dollars into its space project as it tries to catch up with the United States and Russia

In 2016, China had launched its second orbital lab - the Tiangong-2 with ambitions to build a base on the Moon. China's space agency had said it plans to launch a crewed lunar mission by 2029.

The country's Chang'e-4 robot had landed on the far side of the Moon two years ago which was followed by China hosting its flag on the lunar surface.

China's Tianwen-1 had sent back the first images of Mars in February reaching another milestone. China's latest project which is underway is intended to keep its presence in space for the next ten years as the astronauts dock with the core Tianhe module.

The country is currently building its space station Tiangong which will need several missions for total assembly although it won't be on the same scale as the International Space Station(ISS) even though Beijing has said it is open to international collaboration.

As China's astronauts left for the new space station last week, Wang Xiaojun, the head of China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology (CALT), revealed the country's Mars ambition at the Global Space Exploration Conference (GLEX 2021) Wang Xiaojun in a "plan for future Mars expedition" said that in the first phase Mars sample will be collected followed by a manned mission to the Red Planet and the building of a Mars base, according to China's state-run Global Times.

As China's astronauts left for the new space station last week, Wang Xiaojun, the head of China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology (CALT), revealed the country's Mars ambition at the Global Space Exploration Conference (GLEX 2021) Wang Xiaojun in a "plan for future Mars expedition" said that in the first phase Mars sample will be collected followed by a manned mission to the Red Planet and the building of a Mars base, according to China's state-run Global Times. Watch: In the final step, China will undertake "Earth-Mars cargo fleet and large scale development of the Red Planet", the state-run Global Times quoted the Chinese scientist as saying. The timetable for the Mars mission stretches over a ten year period from 2033 to 2043. The country has poured billions of dollars into its space project as it tries to catch up with the United States and Russia In 2016, China had launched its second orbital lab - the Tiangong-2 with ambitions to build a base on the Moon. China's space agency had said it plans to launch a crewed lunar mission by 2029. The country's Chang'e-4 robot had landed on the far side of the Moon two years ago which was followed by China hosting its flag on the lunar surface. China's Tianwen-1 had sent back the first images of Mars in February reaching another milestone. China's latest project which is underway is intended to keep its presence in space for the next ten years as the astronauts dock with the core Tianhe module. The country is currently building its space station Tiangong which will need several missions for total assembly although it won't be on the same scale as the International Space Station(ISS) even though Beijing has said it is open to international collaboration.

China unveils ambitious Mars mission roadmap till 2043

China has launched a rover to Mars on a journey coinciding with a similar US mission.

The two countries are taking advantage of a period when Earth and Mars are closest to send their probes, with China's mission due to lift off by Saturday and the US spacecraft on July 30.

The Chinese mission has been named Tianwen-1 ("Questions to Heaven") in a nod to a classical poem that has verses about the cosmos. It was launched on a Long March 5 -- China's biggest space rocket -- from the southern island of Hainan on Thursday.

Tianwen-1 is expected to arrive in February 2021 after a seven-month, 55-million-kilometre (34-million-mile) voyage.

The mission includes a Mars orbiter, a lander and a rover that will study the planet's soil.

Tianwen-1 is not China's first attempt to go to Mars. A previous mission with Russia in 2011 ended prematurely as the launch failed.

Now, Beijing is trying on its own.

The United Arab Emirates launched a probe on Monday that will orbit Mars once it reaches the Red Planet.

The United States has already sent four rovers to Mars since the late 1990s.

The next one, Perseverance, is an SUV-sized vehicle that will look for signs of ancient microbial life, and gather rock and soil samples with the goal of bringing them back to Earth on another mission in 2031.

China has made huge strides in the past decade, sending a human into space in 2003. The Asian powerhouse has laid the groundwork to assemble a space station by 2022 and gain a permanent foothold in Earth orbit.

Also, China has already sent two rovers to the Moon. With the second, China became the first country to make a successful soft landing on the far side.

China has upgraded its monitoring stations in the far-western Xinjiang region and northeastern Heilongjiang province to meet the Mars mission requirements, state news agency Xinhua reported last week.

The majority of the dozens of missions sent by the US, Russia, Europe, Japan and India to Mars since 1960 ended in failure.

China has launched a rover to Mars on a journey coinciding with a similar US mission. The two countries are taking advantage of a period when Earth and Mars are closest to send their probes, with China's mission due to lift off by Saturday and the US spacecraft on July 30.

China has launched a rover to Mars on a journey coinciding with a similar US mission. The two countries are taking advantage of a period when Earth and Mars are closest to send their probes, with China's mission due to lift off by Saturday and the US spacecraft on July 30. The Chinese mission has been named Tianwen-1 ("Questions to Heaven") in a nod to a classical poem that has verses about the cosmos. It was launched on a Long March 5 -- China's biggest space rocket -- from the southern island of Hainan on Thursday. Tianwen-1 is expected to arrive in February 2021 after a seven-month, 55-million-kilometre (34-million-mile) voyage. The mission includes a Mars orbiter, a lander and a rover that will study the planet's soil. Tianwen-1 is not China's first attempt to go to Mars. A previous mission with Russia in 2011 ended prematurely as the launch failed. Now, Beijing is trying on its own. The United Arab Emirates launched a probe on Monday that will orbit Mars once it reaches the Red Planet. The United States has already sent four rovers to Mars since the late 1990s. The next one, Perseverance, is an SUV-sized vehicle that will look for signs of ancient microbial life, and gather rock and soil samples with the goal of bringing them back to Earth on another mission in 2031. China has made huge strides in the past decade, sending a human into space in 2003. The Asian powerhouse has laid the groundwork to assemble a space station by 2022 and gain a permanent foothold in Earth orbit. Also, China has already sent two rovers to the Moon. With the second, China became the first country to make a successful soft landing on the far side. China has upgraded its monitoring stations in the far-western Xinjiang region and northeastern Heilongjiang province to meet the Mars mission requirements, state news agency Xinhua reported last week. The majority of the dozens of missions sent by the US, Russia, Europe, Japan and India to Mars since 1960 ended in failure.

China launches Mars probe in space race with US

Gravitas: China's Mars Mission: Beijing Tests Mars Lander