Copy to Clipboard An illustration depicts the Perseverance rover operating on Mars (NASA/JPL-Caltech) Space exploration is expected to ramp up further in 2021, and Mars promises to be a hot destination. Spacecrafts from three programs â Mars 2020 (US), Tianwen-1 (China), and Hope Probe (the United Arab Emirates or UAE) â are expected to enter the planetâs orbit in February, hoping to start new chapters of exploration there. Hereâs what is known so far about each mission. Mars 2020 Seven minutes of harrowing descent to the Red Planet is in the not-so-distant future for NASAâs Mars 2020 mission. Launched on July 30, 2020, the missionâs Perseverance rover is scheduled to land on the surface of Mars on February 18, 2021.