China lands spacecraft on Mars for the first time

Visitors pass by an exhibition depicting rovers on Mars in Beijing (AP)

China has landed a spacecraft on Mars for the first time on Saturday, a technically challenging feat more difficult than a moon landing, in the latest step forward for its ambitious goals in space.

A rover vehicle will stay in the lander for a few days of diagnostic tests before rolling down a ramp to explore an area of Mars known as Utopia Planitia.