China - NON-MILITARY space activities & Space Industry

[LKJ86]

China launches Zhongxing-6D satellite

China launches Zhongxing-6D satellite-

english.news.cn

China launches Zhongxing-6D satellite​

Source: Xinhua Editor: huaxia 2022-04-15 20:55:30

XICHANG, April 15 (Xinhua) -- China successfully sent a new satellite into space from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in southwest China's Sichuan Province Friday.

The satellite, Zhongxing-6D, was launched at 8 p.m. (Beijing Time) by a Long March-3B carrier rocket and entered the planned orbit successfully. It will provide reliable, stable and safe radio and television transmission and communication services.

This launch marked the 415th mission for the Long March series carrier rockets.

 

[LKJ86]

China launches atmospheric environment monitoring satellite

China launches atmospheric environment monitoring satellite-

english.news.cn

China launches atmospheric environment monitoring satellite​

Source: Xinhua Editor: huaxia 2022-04-16 03:02:15

TAIYUAN, April 16 (Xinhua) -- An atmospheric environment monitoring satellite was sent into space from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in Shanxi Province, north China, early Saturday.

A Long March-4C rocket, carrying the satellite, lifted off at 2:16 a.m. (Beijing Time).

The satellite has entered orbit. It will carry out regional air quality and environment monitoring, and provide data support for China's atmospheric environment monitoring, global climate change research, crop yield estimation, and agricultural disaster monitoring.

Saturday's launch was the 416th mission by the Long March rocket series.

 

[LKJ86]

LIVE: Shenzhou-13 Astronauts Return to Earth after Six-month Space Mission​

China's Shenzhou-13 crew, Zhai Zhigang, Wang Yaping and Ye Guangfu, are on their way back to Earth after a national record six-month-long mission in orbit aboard the Chinese space station.

 

[CAPRICORN-88]

China's Longest Crewed Space Mission Ends As Astronauts Return To Earth​

The Shenzhou-13 spacecraft is the latest mission in China's drive to become a major space power rivalling the US, after landing a rover on Mars and sending probes to the Moon.​

Beijing:
Three Chinese astronauts landed in northern China on Saturday after 183 days in space, state broadcaster CCTV said, ending the country's longest crewed space mission to date.

The Shenzhou-13 spacecraft is the latest mission in Beijing's drive to become a major space power rivalling the United States, after landing a rover on Mars and sending probes to the Moon.

The two men and one woman -- Zhai Zhigang, Ye Guangfu and Wang Yaping -- landed safely in a small capsule shortly before 10 am Beijing time, after six months aboard the Tianhe core module of China's Tiangong space station.

"Shenzhou 13's re-entry capsule successfully landed," state broadcaster CCTV said.

Live footage from CCTV showed the capsule landing in a cloud of dust, with ground crew who had kept clear of the landing site rushing in helicopters to reach the capsule.

Ground crew applauded as the astronauts each took turns to report that they were "feeling good."

The trio originally launched in the Shenzhou-13 from the Gobi Desert in northwestern China last October, as the second of four crewed missions during 2021-2022 sent to assemble the country's first permanent space station -- Tiangong, which means "heavenly palace."

Wang became the first Chinese woman to spacewalk last November, as she and her colleague Zhai installed space station equipment during a six-hour stint.

Mission commander Zhai, 55, is a former fighter pilot who performed China's first spacewalk in 2008, while Ye is a People's Liberation Army pilot.

The trio have completed two spacewalks, carried out numerous scientific experiments, set up equipment and tested technologies for future construction during their time in orbit.

The astronauts spent the past few weeks tidying up and preparing the cabin facilities and equipment for the crew of the incoming Shenzhou-14, expected to be launched in the coming months.

China's previous record spaceflight mission length was set by last year's Shenzhou-12 mission, which lasted 92 days.

Six months will become the normal astronaut residence period aboard the Chinese space station, according to state broadcaster CCTV.

Space Race

The world's second-largest economy has put billions into its military-run space programme, with hopes of having a permanently crewed space station by 2022 and eventually sending humans to the Moon.

The country has come a long way in catching up with the United States and Russia, whose astronauts and cosmonauts have decades of experience in space exploration.

But under Chinese President Xi Jinping the country's plans for its heavily-promoted "space dream" have been put into overdrive.

Besides a space station, Beijing is also planning to build a base on the Moon, and the country's National Space Administration said it aims to launch a crewed lunar mission by 2029.

China has been excluded from the International Space Station since 2011, when the US banned NASA from engaging with it.

While China does not plan to use its space station for global cooperation on the scale of the ISS, Beijing has said it is open to foreign collaboration although the scope of that cooperation is not yet clear.

The ISS is due for retirement after 2024, although NASA has said it could remain functional until 2030.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

 

[LKJ86]

Core module of China's space station achieves anticipated goal

Core module of China's space station achieves anticipated goal-

english.news.cn

Core module of China's space station achieves anticipated goal​

Source: Xinhua Editor: huaxia 2022-04-17 21:02:15

BEIJING, April 17 (Xinhua) -- Tianhe, the core module of China's space station, has completed its verification of key technologies and achieved its expected goal.

Yang Hong, chief designer of the space station system of the China Manned Space Program at the China Academy of Space Technology, made the remarks at a press conference in Beijing on Sunday.

Yang said the core module has been in orbit for almost one year, and all missions have been carried out smoothly and according to plan, including rendezvous and docking with two manned spacecraft and two cargo spacecraft, as well as the three-month stay of the Shenzhou-12 crew and the six-month stay of the Shenzhou-13 crew.

Missions involving extravehicular activities, robotic arm transposition cargo spacecraft and manual remote operations have also been carried out in the past year.

Key technologies related to physical and chemical recycling and life support, large complex control, as well as large flexible solar cell wings and driving, have been verified.

Evaluation results show that Tianhe's current functions perform better than their design, Yang said.

Tianhe's recycling and life-support system has provided a good environment for astronauts' metabolism needs in orbit, Yang said.

Moisture discharged by astronauts is collected as condensed water, and urine is recycled and processed into drinking water and electrolyte oxygen. Tianhe's water recycling efficiency is higher than 95 percent.

The amount of drinking water and oxygen that needs to be carried by cargo spacecraft has been greatly reduced thanks to the technology.

Large-scale flexible solar cell wings have been providing energy for the core module and its complex. The assessment showed that the solar cell wings have a generation capacity approaching 10-kilowatt power, beyond the expectations of their design.

Four extravehicular activities conducted by the Shenzhou-12 and Shenzhou-13 crews covered the operations, installation and maintenance of electronics, machines, pipelines and other typical equipment outside the cabin, and laid a solid foundation for astronauts to install and maintain extravehicular facilities during long-term operational periods after the completion of the space station, Yang said.

The robot arm played an important role in the whole key technology verification process and performed excellently. Its joint motion ability and terminal positioning accuracy met its design expectations. And its stiffness proved to be capable of lifting and transferring large loads, Yang said.

 

[onebyone]

 

[LKJ86]

https://english.news.cn/20220418/e1068c15f18c45b58d45f51abbe81b74/c.html

Two lab modules to be central work area on China's space station​

Source: Xinhua Editor: huaxia 2022-04-18 00:06:45

BEIJING, April 17 (Xinhua) -- The Wentian and Mengtian lab modules will be sent into space this year, and will become the central working area for astronauts in orbit after China's space station construction is completed, according to a press conference on Sunday.

The Wentian lab module will be launched in July and Mengtian in October, Hao Chun, director of the China Manned Space Agency, said at the press conference.

Yang Hong, the chief designer of the space station system of the China Manned Space Program at the China Academy of Space Technology, said that both modules are equipped with experiment cabinets and an installation platform for extravehicular payloads. In the two lab modules, astronauts will be able to research space science, space materials, space medicine and space exploration.

The Wentian lab module is equipped with the same astronaut living facilities as the Tianhe core module, including three sleeping areas, a toilet and a kitchen. Wentian and Tianhe can support six astronauts living in space during the rotations of two spacecraft crews.

A small mechanical arm is installed on the Wentian lab module. It can be used alone or work with the larger robotic arm on the Tianhe core module to assist astronauts in extravehicular activities.

An airlock cabin in the Wentian lab module will serve as the main exit-entry point for extravehicular activities once the construction is completed. The node cabin in Tianhe will then serve as a backup.

To ensure the reliability of the space station, Wentian will act as a backup for the management and control of the space station complex if there is an issue with the core module.

In the Mengtian lab module, a cargo airlock cabin and a deployed extravehicular platform will serve future extravehicular research projects. The science equipment that needs to be installed outside will first be sent to the space station by cargo craft, then transferred outside through the cargo airlock cabin, and then installed on the extravehicular platform by mechanical arms or astronauts.

Yang said the Wentian lab module has completed integrated assembly and testing in Tianjin and is ready for launch. The Mengtian lab module has completed part of its integrated assembly and testing, and is currently undergoing further testing as planned.

Zhong Hong'en, deputy chief designer of the China Manned Space Program's space utilization system, said that the container-free experiment cabinet and high-quality microgravity experiment cabinet in the Tianhe core module have achieved world-leading conditions to carry out frontier research.

In addition to these cabinets, the space station will have another 12 experiment cabinets installed, said Zhong, who is also a researcher at the Technology and Engineering Center for Space Utilization of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Every cabinet serves as a miniature space lab.

Three large payload hanging points and two experimental exposure platforms will also be deployed, along with the Xuntian space telescope, which will fly in the same orbit as the space station.

Zhong said that the research facilities aboard China's space station will help researchers make breakthroughs in fundamental and cutting-edge scientific issues and promote China's space science research and applications to reach a new level.

Hao Chun noted at the press conference that crewed spaceflights, which can promote economic and social development, are closely related to the national economy and the people's livelihoods.

Hao said that the Beijing Winter Olympics adopted many aerospace technology achievements, from its opening and closing ceremonies to athlete training equipment.

Since China launched its crewed space program 30 years ago, more than 4,000 technological achievements have been widely used in various industries of the national economy, driving technological innovation and industrial upgrading, Hao said.

He said that more space technology progress will be transferred to civil fields to improve the lives of the people, such as using crystalized protein in space to develop new drugs that fight osteoporosis and muscle atrophy.

In the future, China's space station will carry out scientific experiments and technology verification related to the life sciences, material science, microgravity fluid physics, aerospace technology and aerospace medicine, Hao said.

"We believe that more space technologies will serve social and economic development and people's livelihoods," he said.

 

[LKJ86]

 

[LKJ86]

GLOBALink | Shenzhou-13 manned spaceship: Mission complete​

 

[LKJ86]

Tianzhou-3 docks with Tianhe's front docking port​

Source: Xinhua Editor: huaxia 2022-04-20 11:20:37

BEIJING, April 20 (Xinhua) -- China's cargo spacecraft Tianzhou-3 separated from the country's space station core module Tianhe and redocked with the module on Wednesday.

Tianzhou-3 detached from the rear docking port of Tianhe at 5:02 a.m. (Beijing Time), moved to the module's front port and completed a computer-orchestrated rendezvous and docking at 9:06 a.m., according to the China Manned Space Agency.

It also said the combination of Tianhe and Tianzhou-3 is in good condition, waiting to dock with the Tianzhou-4 cargo craft, the Shenzhou-14 manned spaceship and the lab module Wentian.

China plans to complete the in-orbit construction of its space station by the end of 2022.

A total of six missions are planned for this year, including the launch of the Tianzhou-4 cargo spacecraft in May, the Shenzhou-14 manned spacecraft in June, the lab module Wentian in July, and the lab module Mengtian in October.

The three modules will form a T shape to complete the in-orbit construction of China's space station.

 

[LKJ86]

 

[LKJ86]

BeiDou boosts tech support for Chinese smartphone industry

BeiDou boosts tech support for Chinese smartphone industry-

english.news.cn

BeiDou boosts tech support for Chinese smartphone industry​

Source: Xinhua Editor: huaxia 2022-04-20 16:24:30

BEIJING, April 20 (Xinhua) -- China-developed BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS) is boosting the country's mobile phone industry by enhancing product performance.

Mobile phones equipped with the BDS-3 short message communication function will soon be available in the consumer market. It will help expand the application and function of smartphones and effectively ensure the safety of people's lives and property, according to the China Satellite Navigation Office.

This also demonstrates BDS' ability to deeply integrate with a variety of other industries, such as telecommunication, transportation, disaster prevention and mitigation, agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry and power supply.

BDS has achieved a comprehensive breakthrough in mass consumption represented by its extensive application in smartphones and smart wearable devices, according to the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC).

In 2021, the number of China-made smartphones with BDS application support reached 324 million units, accounting for 94.5 percent of the country's smartphone shipment that very year, showed statistics from the NDRC.

 

[LKJ86]

Via 中国载人航天

 

[LKJ86]

 

[LKJ86]

China to Start Engineering Phase 4 Lunar Exploration Missions This Year​

China will start engineering the fourth phase of its lunar exploration program this year, China National Space Administration Vice Administrator Wu Yanhua said on Sunday.