Chinese spacecraft enters Mars' orbit, joining Arab ship
China's space agency said the five-ton combination orbiter and rover fired its engine to reduce its speed, allowing it to be captured by Mars' gravity. โEntering orbit has been successful ... making it our countryโs first artificial Mars satellite,โ the agency announced. Tianwen, the title of an ancient poem, means โQuest for Heavenly Truth.โLanding a spacecraft on Mars is notoriously difficult. In 2011, a Mars-bound Chinese orbiter that was part of a Russian mission didnโt make it out of Earth orbit. AdBefore the arrival this week of the Chinese spacecraft and the UAEโs orbiter, six other spacecraft were already operating around Mars: three U.S., two European and one Indian.