China's Mars probe Tianwen-1 and the European Space Agency's (ESA) Mars Express spacecraft have successfully performed an in-orbit relay communication test, the China National Space Administration (CNSA) said on Wednesday.

China's Mars rover Zhurong sent test data to Mars Express over a distance of approximately 4,000 kilometers. The communication lasted 10 minutes.

Mars Express received the data and forwarded it to the ESA's deep space tracking station, which in turn sent it to the European Space Operations Center, and the ESOC then forwarded the data to the Beijing Aerospace Control Center.

Data analysis results showed that the relay communication equipment interfaces of Zhurong and Mars Express matched and conformed to international standards, and the contents of the transmitted data were complete and correct, the CNSA said. 

The Tianwen-1 team and the Mars Express team plan to undertake further cooperation in scientific data relay communication, according to the CNSA.