The China National Space Administration (CNSA) on June 27 released new videos and photos captured by the country's first Mars probe Tianwen-1 during its landing and roving exploration on the red planet.

The Tianwen-1 mission was launched on July 23, 2020.

On May 15, 2021, the lander finally touched down in the southern part of Utopia Planitia, a vast plain in the northern hemisphere of Mars. A week later, Zhurong the rover started its exploration of the red planet, making China the second country after the United States to land and operate a rover on Mars.

On June 27, four video clips were released for the first time. The first, captured on May 15, recorded the descent and landing process of the lander and rover. A second one showed the rover driving down from its landing platform to the Martian surface on May 22. Two more videos, shot on June 1, recorded the rover driving around and having photos taken alongside the lander.

This is the first time that videos of the rover's movements on Mars have been seen.

On June 16, the rover conducted an overall assessment of its surrounding environment to plan its paths for subsequent scientific exploration.

An image released by the CNSA which was taken by Zhurong's rear-view camera captured its tracks on the Martian surface.

So far, the Tianwen-1 mission has been in space for 338 days. The Zhurong rover has been working for 42 Martian days – one Martian day equals one day and 37 minutes on Earth – and has traveled a total of 236 meters on the red planet.

Both the orbiter and the rover are in good working conditions, the CNSA said.

Zhurong will continue its movement, detection and scientific exploration missions as planned. Meanwhile, the orbiter will continue to operate in a relay orbit, providing relay communication for the rover's scientific exploration while conducting its own scientific detection operations.