Yinghuo-1
| Mission type | Mars orbiter |
|---|---|
| Operator | CNSA |
| Mission duration |
1 year in Mars orbit (planned) Never departed Earth orbit |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Launch mass | 115 kilograms (254 lb) |
| Dimensions | 750mm x 750mm x 650mm (stowed) |
| Power | Solar array |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | 8 November 2011, 20:16:03 UTC |
| Rocket | Zenit-2M |
| Launch site | Baikonur 45/1 |
| Deployed from | Fobos-Grunt (planned) |
| End of mission | |
| Decay date | 15 January 2012 |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system |
Areocentric (planned) Geocentric (achieved) |
| Regime | Low Earth (achieved) |
| Perigee | 800 kilometres (500 mi) (planned) |
| Apogee | 80,000 kilometres (50,000 mi) (planned) |
| Inclination | 5 degrees (planned) |
| Period | 3 days (planned) |
Yinghuo-1 was a Chinese Mars-exploration space probe, intended to be the first Chinese spacecraft to explore Mars. It was launched from Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan, on 8 November 2011, along with the Russian Fobos-Grunt sample return spacecraft, which was intended to visit Mars' moon Phobos. The 115-kg (250-lb) Yinghuo-1 probe was intended by the CNSA to orbit Mars for about two years, studying the planet's surface, atmosphere, ionosphere and magnetic field. Shortly after launch, Fobos-Grunt was expected to perform two burns to depart Earth orbit bound for Mars. However, these burns did not take place, leaving both probes stranded in orbit. On 17 November 2011, Chinese state media reported that Yinghuo-1 had been declared lost by the CNSA. After a period of orbital decay, Yinghuo-1 and Fobos-Grunt underwent destructive re-entry on 15 January 2012, finally disintegrating over the Pacific Ocean.
Yinghuo-1's name (simplified Chinese: 萤火; traditional Chinese: 螢火; pinyin: yínghuǒ – firefly, literally "luminous fire") was a tribute to the near-homophone yinghuo (simplified Chinese: 荧惑; traditional Chinese: 熒惑; pinyin: yínghuò). This word, a short form of "shimmering planet" (熒惑星), is an ancient Chinese name for Mars.
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