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China develops new rocket for manned moon mission: media

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The American rockets are true monsters even back in the 60s. There is so much catching up to do its painful.

to be honest, its almost impossible to catch up with U.S 1960s or cold war era rockets . their payload alone is out of this world. So talk of China catching up with U.S in this field is very veryyyy unlikely to happen, not in50 years or so.
Anyway China, India, Japan etc, shouldnt be aiming to match the U.S since the U.S did those for strategic reasons with its space race with the Soviets, reason NASA hada virtual blank check to carry out its activities. Something China and the other space faring nations dont have(in fact Chinas space budget is even smaller than Indias.:cheesy:).lol

Coming back to topic, its indeed good to see China and other countries exploring space more and more, There is still sooo much we can learn from space. So any country's contribution is welcome. By the way this so called long march V rocket, i thought i heard it was suppose to have been tested few years ago initially(not sure though,m just asking.)? Now they are talking about next year or 2016, seems they are still not sure/facing difficulties/issues. Any insights on this?:cheers:
 
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Remember USA ever planned the Ares V with payload capacity 188,000 kg ( to LEO ) for Mars mission. But it cancelled.
China maybe suffer unexpected cancellation too.

and the universe "could" collapse in on it self toomorrow too

to be honest, its almost impossible to catch up with U.S 1960s or cold war era rockets . their payload alone is out of this world. So talk of China catching up with U.S in this field is very veryyyy unlikely to happen, not in50 years or so.
Anyway China, India, Japan etc, shouldnt be aiming to match the U.S since the U.S did those for strategic reasons with its space race with the Soviets, reason NASA hada virtual blank check to carry out its activities. Something China and the other space faring nations dont have(in fact Chinas space budget is even smaller than Indias.:cheesy:).lol

Coming back to topic, its indeed good to see China and other countries exploring space more and more, There is still sooo much we can learn from space. So any country's contribution is welcome. By the way this so called long march V rocket, i thought i heard it was suppose to have been tested few years ago initially(not sure though,m just asking.)? Now they are talking about next year or 2016, seems they are still not sure/facing difficulties/issues. Any insights on this?:cheers:

how is it in any way "impossible" to match US launch capabilities of the 60's? yes the US is ahead, but there is no such thing as an insurmountable lead. and 50 years is quite some time, by all credible predictions china would be a far bigger economy and fully developed for the most part. it would not fear a space race
 
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Better for China and US to explore their own land for Minerals and in sea.

We don't want to use up our own resources too soon.

For instance, China actually has a lot of oil, we are 5th largest producer of oil on Earth. But we are still one of the largest importers of oil as well. Why? Because we don't want to use up our own resources, they have strategic value. For example, during wartime we will be thankful that we did not use up our own domestic reserves.

Better to buy more from overseas, while maintaining your own reserves.

Space however, that is loaded with resources. Imagine mining uranium from the moon. (Currently Uranium supplies on Earth are estimated to last only 100 more years).
 
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The Saturn five has 5 sets of 677 ton thrust gas generator cycle of F-1 kerosene / lox rocket (total take-off thrust of 3385 tons), China's current CZ9 schemes is YF500 booster first stage + kerosene / lox rocket 8 sets of 490 ton pressure afterburning (total take-off thrust of 3920 tons). from the view of combustion cycle , high pressure of course is more advanced than the gas generator cycle

Chinese Super-Heavy Launcher Designs Exceed Saturn V - SpaceBanter.com
www.spacebanter.com/showthread.php?t=199327‎网页快照"Chinese engineers are proposing a Moon rocket more powerful than the Saturn
V of the Apollo missions and matching the payload of NASA's ...


can US built saturn 5 now? someone says they have lost its design paper, and also many moon landing recordings.
i don't think that US now has capibility as they had 50 years ago.
 
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Indian's approach is quite cheap.
The Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM), informally known as 'Mangalayaan' was launched into Earth orbit on 5 November 2013 by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and has entered Mars orbit on 24 September 2014. India is the first country to enter Mars orbit in first attempt. It was completed at a record cost of $74 million.

NASA has been cooperating well with ISRO for many mission, including in CHANDRAYAAN-1 in 2008, the Indian spacecraft brought the US - M3 equipment for mineral mapping the Moon.

It's all about the socialize the space exploration, like SpaceX ...

That make everything more effective / cost.

That's why I think most of case China should aim to compete with ISRO, or private corp like SpaceX, not NASA itself.

And about the vision, I read that China must evac hundred thousands household before some of liftoff. Is it true?
 
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Chinese Super-Heavy Launcher Designs Exceed Saturn V
China details designs for a super-heavy space launcher comparable to SLS Block 2

Sep 30, 2013 Bradley Perrett | Aviation Week & Space Technology
EMAILinShare.TweetComments 0 ..Advertisement.Chinese engineers are proposing a Moon rocket more powerful than the Saturn V of the Apollo missions and matching the payload of NASA's planned Space Launch System (SLS) Block 2, the unfunded launcher that would put the U.S. back into super-heavy space lift.

Drawing up preliminary designs for the giant Long March 9 launcher, Chinese launch vehicle builder CALT has studied configurations remarkably similar to those that NASA considered in looking for the same capability: to lift 130 metric tons (287,000 lb.) to low Earth orbit (LEO). One of the two preferred Chinese proposals has a similar configuration to the design finally adopted for SLS Block 2, though the takeoff mass for both CALT concepts, 4,100-4,150 tons, is greater. On that measure, at least, China wants to build the largest space launcher in history.

Preliminary work is underway for the intended engines. At the Xian Space Propulsion Institute, engineers are certainly planning and probably doing risk-reduction work for a kerosene-fueled engine, apparently called YF-660, that would be comparable to the 690 tons thrust of the Saturn V's F-1. The Beijing Aerospace Propulsion Institute, meanwhile, is working on critical technologies for a 200-ton-thrust liquid-hydrogen engine that would be used for the first stage of one launcher design and for the second stage of both. That engine is apparently called the YF-220.


The Long March 5 will have two YF-77 liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen engines mounted together. For Long March 9, four larger engines using the same propellants are considered. (Credit: Beijing Aerospace Propulsion Institute)Comparison with current launchers and engines highlights the scale of China's ambitions: Whereas U.S. SLS engineers are aiming at a 10% increase on the throw weight of the Saturn V and would use mainly familiar propulsion technology, CALT's super-heavy launcher would have 10 times the throw weight of anything that China now has in service, and would be four times bigger than even the largest rocket it is developing—the Long March 5. The YF-660 engine would be five times as powerful as the biggest engine China has so far built, one that has not yet flown.

The Chinese industry is seeking permission to begin developing a Moon rocket. Studies encompass payloads as low as 70 tons to LEO, says an industry official, suggesting that China may follow the SLS concept by first building a smaller launcher adaptable to enlargement.

Possible Long March 9 configurations were shown two years ago. At the International Astronautical Congress held here Sept. 23-27, CALT published main specifications (see table). One of the two concepts, Scheme A, would have four YF-660s mounted in the core first stage and one in each of four side-mounted boosters. In Scheme B, most of the takeoff thrust would come from four solid-propellant boosters, each generating 1,000 tons of thrust, while four YF-220s would be mounted in the first stage. That adds up to 4,800 tons, but the specified total is 5,000 tons, suggesting that the solid-propellant booster engine, the YF-220 or both will generate a little more than the thrust attributed to each individually. The designation of the YF-220 may hint at its real thrust target.

“I don't find much to criticize in their approach, and a lot to like,” says an experienced U.S. space engineer.

The YF-220 exists as a concept or preliminary design, says Zhang Nan, president of the Beijing Aerospace Propulsion Institute, without using the name of the engine. His institute is channeling its experience in developing the YF-77 for the Long March 5 as it works on the new engine. So far, developers are tackling critical technologies and have not built parts for a flyable engine. A technology they will not attempt is staged combustion, a means of driving the pumps that, while maximizing engine efficiency, is hard to develop, especially for engines running on liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen. In fact, it is too hard, says Zhang. The corresponding engine of the SLS, the Rocketdyne RS-25 from the Space Shuttle, does combine staged combustion with hydrogen fuel. The future Chinese engine's specific impulse (ISP)—thrust divided by fuel flow—may be as high as 430 sec., compared with 428 sec. for the YF-77, notes Zhang.

China's biggest kerosene-fuel engine, the YF-100, uses staged combustion, but applying the technology will be one of the many challenges that engineers will face in building bigger powerplants. Project managers at Xian appear to have minimized problems by adopting a plan they set out in 2011 and 2012 to first build an engine of more moderate size—300-400 tons thrust, presumably—and then doubling it for Long March 9 by feeding two of its combustion chambers with a single, more powerful propellant pump. A drawing of Long March 9 Scheme A has subtly changed since 2012 to show the extra nozzles of two-chamber engines.

Given the stated fuel loads and likely characteristics of the engines, the boosters of Scheme A are likely to burn for 160 sec. and the core for 220 sec., calculates a foreign rocket engineer. The second stage would run for 500 sec., presumably in several burns. If the Xian Institute can reproduce the efficiency of the YF-100 in the YF-660, then ISP at takeoff will be 305 sec. For Scheme B, the solid-propellant boosters may run for about 120 sec., the core first stage for 500 sec. and the second stage for 400 sec.

At 3.2%, the payload fractions of Schemes A and B are much lower than those of the Saturn V (3.9%) and SLS Block 2 (4.4%). This does not necessarily mean the Chinese design is inefficient, say engineers experienced in comparing launcher configurations; it may just reflect design choices that drive up takeoff weight but are nonetheless cost-effective. Solid-propellant boosters and their mounting structure probably account for much of Scheme B's excess of weight over Scheme A's.


CALT has two conceptual or preliminary designs for a Moon rocket, Scheme A (left) and Scheme B (right). (Credit: Calt)The payload to LEO of the two designs suggests industry leaders here are eyeing lunar expeditions perhaps not much more ambitious than Apollo, although the mass they can deliver to the Moon's surface will also depend on how the mission is executed. Sending a crew aloft on a separate launch to join the rest of their spacecraft, carried by a Long March 9, could greatly expand the mission. The Saturn V, which lofted all Apollo modules in a single shot, had a payload to LEO of 118 tons.

At the International Astronautics Congress, the Chinese industry showed a concept for sending people to the Moon with three launches via smaller rockets. A cargo launcher, perhaps a little sibling of Long March 9, would fire a lunar-landing craft into orbit around the Moon. Then a crewed capsule would follow on an even smaller launcher, presumably a Long March 2F or Long March 7, China's current and future human-rated rockets, respectively. A propulsion unit sent on a second cargo launcher would join the capsule and propel it to lunar orbit, where it would meet the lander.

Smaller launchers are cheaper to develop, but bigger ones offer lower operating costs for their payload sizes. The economics of China's choice, then, must depend on whether it wants to sponsor heavy space missions for the long run, sending a super-heavy launcher up perhaps once a year, and not only to the Moon. If the aim is to perform a few manned lunar missions and then stop, it would surely be cheaper to execute each with multiple launches of moderately sized rockets. If more heavy-load tasks beckon, then a huge rocket is the answer, say Western engineers.

The Chinese space managers are on that wavelength. In the paper presented to the congress that detailed the Long March 9, CALT authors mentioned Moon shots, with a trans-lunar injection load of 50 tons, as only one purpose of the proposed launcher. Deep-space exploration (20 tons escaping Earth gravity), large-scale Earth-orbit missions (50 tons to geostationary transfer orbit) and new concept missions (50 tons escaping Earth gravity) were also touched upon, although the latter would require another rocket design.

Long March 9 Design Alternatives
Scheme A Scheme B
Boosters
Engines 4 x YF-660 4 x unknown name
Thrust 4 x 650 metric tons 4 x 1,000 metric tons
Propellant Liquid oxygen, kerosene Solid
Tankage 4 x 320 metric tons 4 x 575 metric tons
Core Stage One
Engines 4 x YF-660 4 x YF-220
Thrust 4 x 650 metric tons 4 x 200 metric tons
Propellant Liquid oxygen, kerosene Liquid oxygen, liquid hydrogen
Tankage 1,756 metric tons 1,000 metric tons
Core Stage Two
Engines 2 x YF-220 1 x YF-220
Thrust 2 x 200 metric tons 1 x 200 metric tons
Propellant Liquid oxygen, liquid hydrogen Liquid oxygen, liquid hydrogen
Tankage 500 metric tons 200 metric tons
Takeoff thrust 5,200 metric tons 5,000 metric tons
Takeoff weight 4,100 metric tons 4,150 metric tons
Dry weight* 434 metric tons 517 metric tons
10.6% of takeoff weight 12.5% of takeoff weight
Total propellant* 3,666 metric tons 3,633 metric tons
86.2% of takeoff weight 84.3% of takeoff weight
Payload, LEO 130 metric tons 133 metric tons
3.2% of takeoff weight 3.2% of takeoff weight
Payload, LTO 50 metric tons 50 metric tons
Length 98 meters (322 ft.) 101 meters (331 ft.)


Source: CALT, except *Aviation Week calculations.


Chinese Super-Heavy Launcher Designs Exceed Saturn V | AWIN content from Aviation Week

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And about the vision, I read that China must evac hundred thousands household before some of liftoff. Is it true?

yes, some kind of ,but not so much , generally several hundred, and in a very narrow field and time window with accurate calculation. most of the debris will land on wild field. even if debris made damage to private assets , there will be enough compensation.

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Is it beautiful scene ? ( United Launch Alliance Moves Delta IV Heavy Rocket to Launch Pad for Orion’s Exploration Flight Test )
ULA is joint-venture 50-50 between Lockheed Martin and Boeing


When China could give the people closer access for photograph?

nasa-orion-012-jpg.161242
 
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Well if you want we can always make an exception and put you right under the engine exhaust so you can shoot some of the closest photos while the engines are ignited :lol:
 
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Well if you want we can always make an exception and put you right under the engine exhaust so you can shoot some of the closest photos while the engines are ignited :lol:

That will do both BoQ77 and PDF a great service, LOL. BoQ77 will be immortalized as having taken the closest pictures ever while the PDF will have one less troll. A win-win.

China readies 'high capability' rocket for manned mission to Moon — RT News

Published time: December 08, 2014 17:03

china-new-rocket-moon.si.jpg

China's Long March-2F/H rocket carrying the unmanned spacecraft Shenzhou-VIII blasts off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in the northwestern province of Gansu at 5:58 am (2158 GMT) on November 1, 2011 (AFP Photo)

China, SciTech, Science, Space
China is working on its Long March-9 rocket which has "unprecedented lift capability" and will be the country’s first manned lunar mission.

The experts say its payload will be 130 tons, which coincides with the lift capability of the Space Launch System being developed by NASA, the China Daily reports.

READ MORE: There & back: China moon orbiter returns home safely, a first in 40 years

The first launch of the rocket, dubbed Long March-9, is planned for 2028. The vehicle will be based on the previous Long March-5 model, but its dimensions will be bigger and equipped with a new, more powerful engine. The researchers say the diameter of the rocket will be eight to 10 meters and 3,000 tons in weight.

"Our current launch vehicles, including the Long March-5, which is set to conduct its first launch soon, will be able to undertake the country's space activities planned for the coming 10 years,” Li Tongyu, head of aerospace products at the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology, said. "But for the nation's long-term space programs, their capabilities will not be enough."

According to Li Tongyu, researchers are working on solving all the technical problems involved.

"We need to develop a brand new engine for it to make sure the rocket has sufficient thrust," he said.

The researchers say the rocket can be used not only for Moon missions, but also for space exploration in general.

China has a very ambitious space program. Apart from launching satellites, the Chinese government is planning to launch a permanent orbiting station by 2020 and to send men to the Moon. In 2013, China sent the first rover, the Jade Rabbit, to operate on the Moon after the Soviet Lunokhod 2 in 1973. Then in November, China presented a prototype of its Mars rover.
 
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That will do both BoQ77 and PDF a great service, LOL. BoQ77 will be immortalized as having taken the closest pictures ever while the PDF will have one less troll. A win-win.
He did say he was a space fan so if he insist of taking close pictures that's the way to do it. That way he has his wish fulfilled and we gain something too :lol:
 
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I just want to have a chance to take a photo by my phone. LOL

Could they be fake ? if so, China could fake anything they want

It is interesting that a space lover is asking me a basic question. I am sure you have more resources to find out yourself.

Like checking out @Anders pictures above. Those are exclusively for space lovers like yourself.
 
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