China’s Mars mission has left the US struggling to catch up. NASA’s Perseverance rover is still collecting samples, but they won’t be available for scientists until at least 2035 – four years behind China’s planned delivery date of 2031. The discrepancy highlights a significant gap between the two space agencies’ timelines.
China’s Tianwen-3 mission, on the other hand, appears to be moving ahead with its “grab-and-go” plan to deliver Martian soil by 2031. NASA Administrator Bill Nelson acknowledged that his agency is behind schedule, citing ballooning budgets and the need for a cheaper, faster solution. Astrophysicist Quentin Parker likened China’s progress to the Soviet Union’s surprise launch of Sputnik in 1957, suggesting that China is taking a “long march” ahead of the US.
Source: https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3294056/chinas-mars-mission-leaves-us-space-dust-nasa-least-4-years-behind