Why Does China Keep Mars Exploration Information Strictly Hidden? [Reading Science]

Photo by Chinese Academy of Sciences

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bong-su] China is raising curiosity by withholding most of the information collected through its Mars exploration. Although it is known to have achieved considerable exploration results through the rover 'Zhurong,' which successfully landed on the Martian surface last May, only small amounts of data have been sporadically released twice so far. The international scientific community is urging a faster disclosure, ranging from the assessment that China is being 'cautious' as it is the first time in history to explore the surface of an extraterrestrial planet, to criticisms pointing to "internal communication issues." Experienced scientists need to collaborate to produce faster results.

According to the international academic journal Nature on the 1st, the National Astronomical Observatories under the Chinese Academy of Sciences has been studying about 200 gigabytes of information collected by Zhurong and the Mars orbiter Tianwen-1 since last September. Tianwen-1 arrived in Mars orbit last February and landed Zhurong in a wide basin named 'Utopia Planitia' in May.

Zhurong was initially expected to operate for about three months but has been active for over four months, traveling more than 1000 meters and actively exploring interesting terrain features. Notably, some surface photos sent by Zhurong reportedly include sediment or mud volcanoes (hills formed by gas erupting from underground and accumulating mud), which can be seen as traces of past flowing water. Although activities were temporarily suspended when Mars was behind the sun in September, making communication impossible, the rover was powered on again in October and moved an additional 200 meters toward an area presumed to be the shore of an ancient sea.

After landing, Zhurong has been photographing the Martian surface with cameras attached to its navigation system. It has also been collecting climate data such as temperature, atmospheric pressure, and wind speed. Using a laser analyzer, it analyzed the chemical composition of rocks, soil, and sand dunes, and investigated beneath the surface with a ground-penetrating radar (GPR) capable of detecting up to 100 meters underground.

The Mars landing scene of the exploration rover 'Zhurong' captured by China's Mars orbiter 'Tianwen-1'. Photo by Chinese Academy of Sciences

However, the China National Space Administration (CNSA) has been very reluctant to disclose exploration results. It released a small amount of photos and analyzed information twice, in August and late September. In August, CNSA released high-resolution photos taken by Tianwen-1 of the area where Zhurong landed. At the end of September, it disclosed photos and friction-related data collected by equipment attached to Zhurong’s wheels. This information confirmed that the surface at the landing site is composed of fine sand, similar to Earth's deserts. However, Chinese authorities have only provided data to a small number of directly involved scientists and have not released it to the international scientific community or the general public.

Some explain that the delay in disclosure is due to China’s inexperience as this is their 'first time' and the need to remove mechanically generated noise and improve data reliability. Professor Lu Fan of the University of Copenhagen told Nature, "Since this is China’s first time exploring the surface of another planet, it may be slower compared to NASA’s recent explorations."

There are also claims of other reasons. It is said to be due to structural problems in internal communication within China. In the case of NASA’s Mars rover Perseverance, teams responsible for major exploration equipment each have access rights to the respective data, enabling rapid collection, analysis, and disclosure. In contrast, all data collected by various instruments on Zhurong and Tianwen-1 must pass through CNSA before scientists related to the mission can access it. Professor David Flannery of Queensland University of Technology in Brisbane, Australia, pointed out, "The approach to data management in China itself may cause delays in distributing new research results."

CNSA is reportedly planning to disclose more data collected from Mars exploration results to the international scientific community and the general public soon. Professor Flannery said, "Mars is a unique place, and scientists can only perform their roles as much as they have seen many rocks in the past."

CNSA is also preparing the next chapter of the exploration. Based on the cases of other Mars rovers launched by NASA, Zhurong is expected to operate for several more years. Tianwen-1 also adjusted its orbit last November to enable not only communication relay between Zhurong and Earth but also its own Mars observation. Additionally, CNSA recently tested, together with the European Space Agency (ESA), whether ESA’s satellites operating in Mars orbit can be used for communication between Zhurong and Earth.