China shares video and audio from its Mars rover

The United States is not the only country that sends video from Mars. SpaceNews report that China has released both video and audio from the Zhurong rover’s first incursions on the Red Planet. The clips cover the landing and the deployment and the initial movement. There is also a panorama that reveals how far Zhurong traveled (about 774 feet in total) from his landing platform.

As with sounds like NASA’s Perseverance, you don’t have to wait for an extraterrestrial symphony. You’re mostly listening to the mechanisms and sound of the wheels on the exit ramp, with the lean atmosphere of Mars disturbing the results as well. Mars audio remains extremely rare, however, so mission equipment may not be exactly demanding.

There is little doubt that the movie is as much about bragging rights as anything. Zhurong is part of China’s first truly independent mission to another planet, and the country certainly wants to highlight its successes in as much detail as possible. Between this and Perseverance, however, it is also clear that the exploration of Mars has changed in recent years. It’s not enough to provide a handful of photos – an audiovisual experience becomes more and more relevant for the course.