China’s ambitious Tianwen-1 Mars mission – involving an orbiter, lander, and rover – just reached the red planet

China’s ambitious Tianwen-1 Mars mission – involving an orbiter, lander, and rover – just reached the red planet

China's first interplanetary spacecraft has entered orbit around Mars, a major milestone for the country's space program. That sets the mission up for its next step: landing a rover on the red planet in May.

Tianwen-1, as the mission is called, means "questions to heaven." It aims to be the first Mars mission to send a spacecraft into orbit, drop a landing platform onto the Martian surface, and deploy a rover all in one expedition. On Wednesday, the five-ton probe carrying all the components fired its thrusters for about 15 minutes, slowing its approach as it sped toward Mars and allowing the planet's gravity to pull it into orbit, according to Chinese state media.

The entire operation was autonomous “” the communications delay at such a distance is too long for mission controllers to give the spacecraft instructions in real time. Had this crucial step failed, the spacecraft could have crashed into Mars or careened past the planet into deep space.

If Tianwen-1 successfully sets its lander down on Martian terrain, that will mark the first non-NASA Mars landing since the Soviet Union's rover touched down in 1971. The mission is also intended to help China prepare for a future attempt to return