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China to launch Mars space probe

Posted on: Friday, 29 May 2009, 13:14 CDT

China's first Mars probe has completed testing and is on target for launch, the Shanghai Academy of Space Flight Technology said Friday.

The Yinghuo-1 is to be launched later this year by a Russian carrier rocket and will go into orbit around Mars in 2010 after a 10-month, 236-million mile journey, Xinhua, China's state-run news agency, reported Friday.

Yinghuo -- Chinese for light from firefly -- is to study environmental changes in Mar's climate, including the disappearance of water from the planet, said Zhang Weiqiang, a spokesman for the academy. The probe is to conduct its research from orbit and is not designed to land.

The Yinghuo-1 project is to be China's first exploration of another planet.

Source: United Press International

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