[Reading Science] "The 'Second Earth' Is Mine"... Overwhelming the US Amid Fierce Competition

Robo Exploration Reaches 5th Mission... Leading with Manned Exploration Initiatives
China, Russia, Europe Pursue but Have a Long Way to Go

[Image source=EPA Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bong-su] Mars, where the presence of water is possible, is called the "Second Earth" and fierce development competition is underway among countries around the world.

The first country to attempt Mars exploration was the former Soviet Union in the 1960s, but currently the United States is leading the way, pushing for manned exploration. The U.S. has already accumulated information about Mars through five rover explorations, including Perseverance, which landed last February, overwhelming other countries. In November 2018, the U.S. also successfully landed the Mars probe Insight on the Martian surface to conduct research on the interior of Mars. In 2008, the Phoenix confirmed the possibility of water presence at the Martian north pole.

[Image source=EPA Yonhap News]

The Mars exploration by the rovers Perseverance and Ingenuity, which were launched last July and arrived on Mars this February, is part of the ongoing "Mars 2020" plan through 2026. Through this project, the U.S. plans to explore areas on the Martian surface where humans could potentially live and confirm the possibility of life by analyzing rocks. The U.S. plans to return Perseverance along with Martian soil samples to Earth by 2026 in cooperation with the European Space Agency (ESA).

China is also actively pursuing Mars exploration following the U.S. After announcing its Mars exploration plan in 2017, China launched Tianwen-1 last July and successfully entered orbit this February. In November 2019, China successfully conducted tests of hovering, obstacle avoidance maneuvers, and surface landing of its Mars rover. China has plans to collect and return samples from near-Earth asteroids by 2025, and by 2030, it aims to explore Jupiter’s moons and return Martian soil samples.

ESA, together with Russia, is advancing Mars exploration plans including rover development through the "ExoMars" project. ESA has actively cooperated with the U.S. on the Perseverance project, contributing significantly, and is expected to advance its own Mars exploration projects through this collaboration. The ExoMars project is scheduled for next year, with plans to land a rover named Rosalind Franklin on Mars and return it to Earth by 2026. India successfully launched its first Mars orbiter, Mangalyaan, in 2013 and plans to launch Mangalyaan 2 in 2024. Japan will also conduct its Mars exploration project (MMX) in 2024.

In addition, private space company SpaceX, led by Elon Musk, is actively involved in Mars development. SpaceX is developing a manned spacecraft capable of carrying a large number of people, with plans to send Starship Cargo to Mars by next year and Starship itself by 2024.