Focus on Arts and Ecology

October 22, 2021 

The orbiter and the rover Zhurong of China's Tianwen-1 Mars mission have restored communication with Earth and resumed scientific exploration, according to the Lunar Exploration and Space Engineering Center at the China National Space Administration.

Since September 13, operations on the two had been suspended due to the impact of an astronomical phenomenon known as solar conjunction. This happens about every two years, when Mars is on the opposite side of the sun from the Earth, temporarily hiding the two planets from each other.

Here is a closer look at how Earth-Mars communication works.

(Sources: China Report)