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China launches ambitious mission on journey to Mars

23 July 2020
 Dan Ackermann

China's latest mission to Mars, which includes a lander, rover and orbiter, launched to the Red Planet Thursday.

Why it matters: If the mission is successful, China will become only the second nation after the U.S. to operate a rover on the surface of Mars.

  • The mission is the second of three bound for Mars expected to launch this month.
  • The United Arab Emirates already launched its Hope orbiter and NASA is planning to launch its Perseverance rover on July 30.

Details: China's mission, called Tianwen-1, is designed to conduct extensive geological research and mapping of the Red Planet, according to an article written by people involved in the mission published in Nature Astronomy last week.

  • "Scientifically, Tianwen-1 is the most comprehensive mission to investigate the Martian morphology, geology, mineralogy, space environment, and soil and water-ice distribution," the article says.
  • The mission is carrying 13 scientific instruments in total, with seven on the orbiter and another six aboard the rover — all aimed at getting a complete picture of what's happening on the Red Planet today.

The big picture: For China, this mission is a point of national pride and a show of strength that wouldprove the country's significant investment in space has paid off in a major way.

  • The country's 2011 Mars mission launched with Russia didn't make it out of low-Earth orbit.

What's next: Tianwen-1 is expected to reach its orbit around Mars in February 2021, with science operations expected to start in April.

Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times

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Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.

Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.

The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.

  • The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.

What the transcripts say:

  • Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
  • The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
  • Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."

Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.