The nation's space agency will take a significant step towards its goal on Wednesday as Tianwen-1, the spacecraft launched in July, will attempt to enter orbit around Mars. If successful, China plans to send a lander and robotic rover to the planet later this year, potentially joining NASA's trio of spacecraft studying the Martian surface. China has announced that Tianwen-1 is expected to arrive at Mars on Wednesday. The China National Space Administration and state media have not given detailed information about the spacecraft's mission. The space agency is known for being secretive about its missions, but has become more open in recent times, such as by broadcasting the Chang'e-4 mission's launch live. Tianwen-1 was launched from China in July, making use of the optimal alignment between Mars and Earth in their orbits. This enables a relatively brief journey between the two planets. The spacecraft has used its engines multiple times to adjust its trajectory and align itself correctly with Mars. The latest engine firing happened on Feb 5, capturing images of Mars from a distance of around 1.3 million miles. The next engine firing is scheduled for Wednesday to use up most of the remaining fuel for a braking maneuver, slowing the spacecraft down to be captured by Martian gravity. There, the spacecraft will orbit Mars at a safe distance along with other robotic explorers before attempting a surface landing. Past missions to Mars have faced challenges, such as a Chinese mission in 2011 that never left Earth's orbit due to a failed Russian rocket, and NASA's Mars Climate Orbiter in 1999 which burned in the Martian atmosphere due to a navigation error involving English units not being converted to metric. In 1992, NASA's Mars Observer spacecraft lost communication just before reaching Mars, possibly due to a fuel line issue. A similar incident occurred in 1974 with the Soviet mission Mars 4, when the spacecraft failed to fire its retro rockets and drifted away from Mars. Despite these challenges, landing on Mars is even more difficult than orbiting the planet. The question remains: when will China successfully land on Mars? Their orbiter is equipped with a lander and rover that will attempt the challenging descent to the Martian surface. China has announced that it plans to land on Mars in May, with its target being Utopia Planitia, a basin in the northern hemisphere that may have been hit by a meteor in the past. This area was previously visited by NASA's Viking 2 lander in 1976. The Tianwen-1 mission aims to study the distribution of ice in this region, which could be crucial for potential human colonies on Mars. Landing on Mars is a risky endeavor due to the high speed of descent and the thin atmosphere providing little assistance in slowing down the spacecraft. Air resistance continues to produce high temperatures that need to be managed. Several Soviet, NASA, and European missions have failed upon landing, with only NASA achieving successful landings more than once. The Chinese spacecraft will spend several months orbiting Mars to assess systems and choose a safe landing location. If the rover successfully lands, it will require a name. A group of experts chose 10 semi-finalists from nominations in China, including names like Hongyi, which means ambition and persistence in Chinese, Qilin, a mythical creature, and Nezha, a deity associated with rebellious youth. China's recent achievements in space include launching a mission to Mars in July, visiting the moon with the Chang'e-5 mission in November to collect samples and bring them back to Earth for study. This marks the first new collection of moon rocks since the Soviet Union's final lunar mission in 1976. China's Chang'e-4 mission, which was the first to successfully land on the far side of the moon, is still active with its Yutu-2 rover exploring the lunar surface more than two years after its launch. Another significant arrival in 2021 is the Hope orbiter from the United Arab Emirates, which recently reached Mars and will focus on studying the planet's atmosphere to enhance scientists' understanding of Mars' weather patterns. The third recent arrival on Mars will be Perseverance, NASA's latest rover. It was launched in July after the other two spacecraft and will not orbit Mars but instead go directly to the planet's surface on Feb. 18. This robotic explorer is NASA's fifth rover on Mars and is similar to Curiosity, currently in the Gale crater. Perseverance has different scientific instruments and will explore the Jezero crater, a dried-out lake where scientists hope to find evidence of extinct Martian microbial life. The mission will also attempt to fly a helicopter in the thin Martian atmosphere, a first for the red planet. After landing, NASA's Ingenuity helicopter will be deployed by the rover to conduct several test flights in the thin Martian atmosphere, proving that exploration of Mars can be done from both the ground and the air. In addition to Ingenuity, there are currently six orbiters studying Mars from space, making for a busy environment around the red planet. Three spacecraft were sent to Mars by NASA: Mars Odyssey in 2001, Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter in 2005, and MAVEN in 2013. Europe has two spacecraft in orbit, Mars Express launched in 2003, and ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter in 2016, which is a joint mission with Russia. India's Mars Orbiter Mission, also known as Mangalyaan, was launched in 2013. Additionally, two American missions are currently operating on the surface of Mars. Since 2012, Curiosity has been exploring, accompanied by InSight, which has been researching marsquakes and other internal characteristics of Mars since 2018. Another American mission, the Opportunity rover, ceased functioning in 2019 due to a dust storm that drained its power.