First independent Mars mission launched

Up and away: People watching as the Long March 5 rocket, carrying the Tianwen-1 Mars probe, takes off from the Space Launch Center in Wenchang, Hainan province. — Reuters

Beijing: China launched its first independent Mars mission from the Wenchang Space Launch Center in Hainan province, marking the start of the nation’s planetary exploration programme.

As the launch sequence started at 12.41pm yesterday, 10 engines at the bottom of the Long March 5 carrier rocket’s first core stage and four boosters roared to life, generating a combined thrust of more than 1,000 metric tonnes to lift the gigantic vehicle and its payload, the Tianwen 1 robotic probe, into a bright blue sky from the coastal launch complex in Wenchang.