China Moves Rocket For Mars Mission

BEIJING (AP) – China has moved a rocket into position to launch a rover to Mars next week in one of three upcoming missions to the red planet. The Long March-5 carrier rocket has been launched experimentally three times, but never with a payload. China’s first mission to Mars aims to land a rover to gather scientific data. The rocket is due to blast off on or around July 23. An orbiter from the United Arab Emirates is scheduled to be launched from Japan on Monday. And the U.S. is sending a rover named Perseverance to collect rock samples in upcoming weeks.