China admits its Zhurong rover has not come out of hibernation mode

China has announced that its Mars rover Zhurong has been in hibernation mode for much longer than expected. The device switched to this mode almost a year ago. The cause of the incident was the excessive accumulation of sand and dust, reports Reuters, referring to the developer of the rover.

The rover, named after the Chinese god of fire, went into hibernation mode in May 2022, and when the Martian winter began, its batteries began to receive less light, as a result of which electricity production decreased. The device was supposed to "wake up" in December, but this did not happen, probably due to the accumulation of an unpredictable amount of dust.

According to NASA, the rover has not moved since at least September. The 240-kilogram rover successfully landed on Mars in May 2021. It is equipped with a collection of scientific instruments, including a high-resolution camera.

The rover's mission is to study the soil and atmosphere on Mars, searching for signs of ancient life, including ice and groundwater. According to the Zhurong constructor, the device studied the surface of Mars for 358 days and traveled a distance of 1,921 meters, although it was designed to work for only three months.

Two more rovers are currently working on Mars: the American Perseverance and Curiosity: the first has been studying the planet for two years, and the second has been performing its mission for more than ten years.