China Outer Space Science, Technology and Explorations: News & Updates

[JSCh]

China to develop micro rockets, aiming at huge market

2018-03-19 08:30 Xinhua Editor: Wang Fan

China plans to develop micro solid-propellant carrier rockets for commercial use to meet growing needs for launching micro-nano satellites.

China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology (CALT) said that its subsidiary company, China Rocket, was in the process of appraising the plan.

"The micro rockets will be developed with strong ability, high precision, low cost and a short launch preparation cycle," according to a CALT online statement.

In general, small solid-propellant rockets have a carrying capacity of 100-500 kilograms. The micro-solid rockets are more flexible and cost-efficient, according to the CALT.

Since its establishment in 1957, the CALT has been China's largest developer and producer of carrier rockets. It has designed and manufactured the Long March carrier rockets, which have a good reputation globally.

"The development of micro-solid rockets is an important step for China Rocket to build a world-class commercial space company," the CALT said.

According to the CALT, the global demand for commercial satellite launches will exceed 10,000, and domestic demand will reach 1,000. Many Chinese tech giants also have satellite launch plans.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1024218109257740288

People's Daily,China‏ Verified account @PDChina
China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation on Tuesday unveiled the name of its micro-rocket under development as "Jie Long," or "Swift Dragon." It will be able to carry satellites weighing no less than 150kg to 700-km sun-synchronous orbit.

5:00 PM - 31 Jul 2018

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China航天
57分钟前 来自 OPPO R15 梦镜版
“捷龙一号”运载火箭为四级固体发动机串联的总体构型，700千米太阳同步轨道运载能力不低于150千克。火箭可为卫星提供直径1.1米、高度1.5米的完整舱段空间，满足用户一箭一星或一箭多星的发射需求。“捷龙一号”运载火箭的单位载荷入轨成本低于国际同类产品，同时履约周期短，与用户签约后6个月即可出厂。采用一车一箭方式，运抵发射场后能够实现24小时内快速发射。°中国航天科技集团发布新款微小型固体运载火箭...¡查看图片

The "Jie long-1" launch vehicle has a four-stage tandem overall configuration with solid-engine capable of 700-kilometer sun-synchronous orbit, carrying capacity of no less than 150 kg. The rocket can provide a complete cabin space of 1.1 meters in diameter and 1.5 meters in height for the payload to meet the needs of users with one rocket plus one or multiple satellite. The unit launch cost of the "Jie long-1" launch vehicle is lower than similar international products, and the contract period is short. It can be delivered 6 months after signing with the user. Using one launch truck per rocket, it can be quickly launched within 24 hours after being delivered to the launch site. Expected first flight is late this or early next year.

 

[cirr]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1024218109257740288

People's Daily,China‏ Verified account @PDChina
China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation on Tuesday unveiled the name of its micro-rocket under development as "Jie Long," or "Swift Dragon." It will be able to carry satellites weighing no less than 150kg to 700-km sun-synchronous orbit.

5:00 PM - 31 Jul 2018

​

China航天
57分钟前 来自 OPPO R15 梦镜版
“捷龙一号”运载火箭为四级固体发动机串联的总体构型，700千米太阳同步轨道运载能力不低于150千克。火箭可为卫星提供直径1.1米、高度1.5米的完整舱段空间，满足用户一箭一星或一箭多星的发射需求。“捷龙一号”运载火箭的单位载荷入轨成本低于国际同类产品，同时履约周期短，与用户签约后6个月即可出厂。采用一车一箭方式，运抵发射场后能够实现24小时内快速发射。°中国航天科技集团发布新款微小型固体运载火箭...¡查看图片

The "Jie long-1" launch vehicle has a four-stage tandem overall configuration with solid-engine capable of 700-kilometer sun-synchronous orbit, carrying capacity of no less than 150 kg. The rocket can provide a complete cabin space of 1.1 meters in diameter and 1.5 meters in height for the payload to meet the needs of users with one rocket plus one or multiple satellite. The unit launch cost of the "Jie long-1" launch vehicle is lower than similar international products, and the contract period is short. It can be delivered 6 months after signing with the user. Using one launch truck per rocket, it can be quickly launched within 24 hours after being delivered to the launch site. Expected first flight is late this or early next year.

China's newest micro-rocket has fast production cycle

2018-07-31 22:52:28 Xinhua Editor : Wang Fan

China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC) on Tuesday unveiled its micro rocket the Lightning Dragon No.1.

The rocket, the first in the Lightning Dragon series, could have a carrying capacity of no less than 150 kilograms and operate on the sun-synchronous orbit, said CASC.

The rocket is capable of launching within 24 hours after arriving at the launch site. It can be delivered to the customer six months after the signing of the contract.

It is now under development by Chinarocket Co., Ltd. under CASC.

The device features a complete cabin space of 1.1 meters in width and 1.5 meters in height.

The rocket is capable of carrying out launch missions consisting of one-rocket-one-satellite and one-rocket-multiple-satellites, said CASC.

"The Lightning Dragon series micro-rocket is named after the Chinese word for dragon, as they are both fast, agile, and flexible," said Tang Yagang, president of Chinarocket.

The unit loading cost is lower than other similar products in the global market.

 

[JSCh]

Selective functionalization of methane, ethane, and higher alkanes by cerium photocatalysis
27 JULY 2018

The Zuo Group at the School of Physical Science and Technology recently developed a photocatalytic methane conversion methodology which can directly transform methane, ethane and other gaseous alkanes into value-added liquid product. This breakthrough in organic chemistry provides a novel, green and mild catalytic platform for natural gas utilization, and could lead to broad applications in the energy/chemical industry. Their result was published as “Selective functionalization of methane, ethane, and higher alkanes by cerium photocatalysis” in Science on July 27th. Postdoctoral researchers Anhua Hu and Jingjing Guo are co-first authors, graduate student Hui Pan is the second author, and Zuo Zhiwei is the corresponding author.

Methane and other gaseous alkanes have been traditionally viewed more as clean energy fuels than economical chemical feedstocks by the chemical community. With dwindling oil supplies and the growing importance of reducing worldwide dependence on petroleum-based chemical products, the recent discovery of huge volumes of unconventional reservoirs and soaring production of natural gas has made these gaseous hydrocarbons economically attractive and strategically important basic raw materials. The intrinsic inertness of C–H bond in methane and other gaseous alkanes has, however, brought extreme challenges for catalytic systems. These challenges are not only in the activation step, but also in controlling chemoselectivity to avoid solvent functionalization and overfunctionalization under frequently utilized harsh conditions (high temperature, superacids or strong oxidants). Moreover, the gaseous substrates’ low solubility in most solvents has raised substantial practical difficulties. Elegant catalytic systems utilizing transition metals such as Pd, Ir, Rh, Ru have been reported; however, the “grand challenge” remains the development of efficient catalytic systems with inexpensive catalysts and ambient conditions.

The Zuo group has been focused on the development of sustainable catalyst for highly efficient transformations. The unique electron structure of high valence cerium complexes, as well as their unique photophysical properties, attracted their research attention to explore valuable synthetic methodologies utilizing the ligand-to-metal charge transfer (LMCT) excitation process, a common photoexcitation manifold among coordination complexes of transition metal with an empty valence shell which has been under-investigated in synthetic organic transformations via modern photoredox catalysis. In 2016, they first found that CeCl3 could act as photocatalyst in the C-C bond cleavage and amination of cycloalkanols. Then, in 2017, they demonstrated that the LMCT process could be utilized with 1,5-HAT event for the selective distal C-H functionalization of primary alcohols. On the basis of this work, after 2202 trials and optimizations, they have developed a general and highly efficient platform for the catalytic functionalization of methane and other gaseous alkanes under LED irradiation at ambient temperature with abundant and inexpensive cerium salts as photocatalysts. Critically, the use of LMCT catalysis to generate highly reactive alkoxy radicals enables the challenging HAT event from the strong C–H bonds of the light alkanes employed. This photocatalytic platform has enabled a number of direct transformations of methane and other gaseous hydrocarbons, including amination, alkylation, and arylation, and offers intriguing opportunities for further functionalization of feedstock alkanes.

Professor Kuiling Ding, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) academician and dean of Shanghai Institute of Organic Chemistry at CAS, said, “The direct functionalization of C–H bond in methane is one of the basic chemical transformations in energy and chemical processes. The high stability and low polarity of the C–H bond has brought extreme challenges for methane functionalization, therefore harsh conditions such as high temperature and high pressure are often required. The C–H functionalization of methane under mild conditions is considered a “holy grail” in the chemistry community. Through the exquisite design of the photocatalytic system, this work by the Zuo group showcases a new breakthrough in methane conversion at room temperature, and provides a new pathway for the extensive utilization of methane feedstock.”

Professor David MacMillan, one of the pioneers of modern photoredox catalysis, member of the National Academy of Sciences (USA), distinguished professor at Princeton University said, “The results of this study by the Zuo group are simply astonishing. Over the last decade, there have been many new directions arising from photoredox with significant societal impact. This study introduces a new direction (LMCT) wherein alkanes such as methane and ethane can undergo direct amination. The potential for use in sectors such as pharmaceuticals, agrochemical, and fine chemical, among others, are clearly evident. This is a remarkable paper from a young Chinese chemist that will be widely influential on a global scale. I cannot wait to see what he will do next.”

Experts from Shell, senior principal scientist Alexander van der Made and program lead methane to product Sander Van Bavel both spoke highly of the paper, “This paper on photocatalytic functionalization of alkanes showcases excellent and intriguing chemistry on the very relevant topic of alkane activation. Moreover, the paper presents a key first step towards a green route to activate alkanes under mild conditions. Ultimately, this route could lead to more extensive use of abundantly available natural gas as feedstock by chemical industry.”

“ShanghaiTech University has been striving to construct an independent and innovative academic atmosphere with full academic freedom, allowing our PIs to release their energy and creativity to the greatest extent. The breakthrough of the Zuo Group is a positive demonstration. The research group creatively used the unique rare-earth resources of China to solve the key scientific problem of methane activation, which has great importance for China and the world, in a very short period of time.” said Peidong Yang, Founding Dean of School of Physical Science and Technology, member of the National Academy of Sciences (USA) and professor at University of California, Berkeley.

This work was funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (21772121) and the “Thousand Plan” Youth Program.

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Selective functionalization of methane, ethane, and higher alkanes by cerium photocatalysis | ShanghaiTech University

Anhua Hu, Jing-Jing Guo, Hui Pan, Zhiwei Zuo. Selective functionalization of methane, ethane, and higher alkanes by cerium photocatalysis. Science (2018). DOI: 10.1126/science.aat9750​

Chinese researchers convert methane into fuel with highly efficient catalyst
Source: Xinhua| 2018-08-01 18:58:11|Editor: ZX


BEIJING, Aug. 1 (Xinhua) -- Chinese researchers have developed a low-cost, high-efficiency method called ceriumphotocatalysis to convert methane into liquified fuel, such as rocket propellant fuel, at room temperature.

A team at ShanghaiTech University found cerium can capture sunlight and cause a light-catalyzed reaction. After extensive experiments, they developed a catalyst combination of cerium and alcohol, which can convert methane into fuel at room temperature, with no need of heat or condensation.

Methane is often found as the main component of natural gas, one of the most important and valuable natural resources. However, methane conversion is currently difficult, requiring high temperatures and the use of rare, costly metals, such as platinum and palladium.

The researchers turned to rare earths, and eventually chose cerium, a soft, ductile and silvery-white metal which accounts for about 50 percent of rare earths.

China is the world's largest rare earth producer and exporter. Cerium is abundant and inexpensive in China.

The new catalyst costs 18,000 yuan (about 2,650 U.S. dollars) per tonne, equivalent to one-10,000th of the price of traditional metal catalysts, said lead researcher Zuo Zhiwei.

It also has great potential application in the pharmaceutical and agricultural chemistry industries. Some Chinese companies have already flagged intentions to cooperate with the research team.

The research was published online in the journal Science last week.

 

[JSCh]

Telescope in Xinjiang alerts spacecraft to solar interference
By Shan Jie in Wenquan Source:Global Times Published: 2018/8/1 17:08:40

The solar magnetic field telescope in Wenquan county, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. Photo: Shan Jie/GT

A solar magnetic field telescope in Northwest China's Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region has been helping China's aerospace industry avoid solar interference, authorities said on Tuesday.

The telescope monitors the sun and indirectly alerts spacecraft to help them avoid unstable magnetic activity, Yang Junmin, head of the meteorological bureau in Wenquan county, Bortala Mongolian Autonomous Prefecture, told the Global Times.

"The solar magnetic field telescope takes six sets of photos every 30 minutes, which are immediately sent to the National Meteorological Administration," Yang said.

The telescope is the world's fourth and China's second such device, according to a statement the bureau sent to the Global Times on Wednesday.

The other solar magnetic field telescope is located in Beijing's Huairou district.

The Wenquan telescope is a significant part of China's space weather alert program and is mainly used to study "the vector magnetic field of the solar photosphere and the magnetic field of the solar chromosphere," China News Service reported.

The telescope could cover the entire central Asia area, Yang said, and its data could be shared with other countries.

The telescope was developed by a team led by Ai Guoxiang, an academician at the Chinese Academy of Sciences. The telescope started operation in October 2013.

"Wenquan is surrounded by thin, clear air," Yang said, "which is perfect for observing the sun."

 

[Galactic Penguin SST]

GF-11: China Enters The Select Club Of Countries That Can Acquire NIIRS 8-9 Satellite Imagery

2 August 2018

On July 31st, China added a new member to its Gaofen Earth Observation constellation: Gaofen-11 (GF-11) was launched atop a CZ-4B rocket. While the early Gaofen satellites were openly described by their designers, this one is a bit more obscure. It was not in the list of planned Gaofen satellites, and the launch caught observers by surprise, so most likely it is a military satellite operating under the guise of the Gaofen programme.

However, the Chinese always lift a bit of the veil of secrecy by releasing footage of the launch, with views of the rocket and of the control center, but also footage of satellite separation. Interestingly, 3D computer models are used in the control center to represent the rocket and its payload, and these models are not censored by the CCTV state television. They even showed those models with some of the military Yaogan satellites, probably as a form of strategic signaling towards their competitors. That way they can show the United States for instance that they mean business when it comes to strengthening their intelligence capabilities. Here is the footage for GF-11:

The most interesting part is this image of the satellite still attached to the third stage of the Long March rocket.

▲ Another view of GF-11, still attached to the third stage of the Long March rocket.

Knowing the stage has a diameter of 2.9m, and is almost completely parallel to the virtual camera, the diameter of the satellite’s aperture can be estimated at 1.7m. That means it carries a big mirror: the largest mirror carried by a commercial Earth Observation satellite is Worldview 3 & 4 ‘s 1.1m mirror, manufactured in the USA by ITT Exelis. For non-commercial satellites, the French have published images of their Helios 2 spy satellites, suggesting they have a 1.4m mirror. GF-1 beats them all, and is in fact only outclassed in its category of an optical imaging satellite by two US products:

– the Hubble Space Telescope, which has a 2.4m mirror working at optical wavelengths

– the KENNEN optical spy satellites, generally known under the KH-11 designation, which are rumoured to have a similar mirror size to Hubble. This is supported by the fact that the National Reconnaissance Office gifted two 2.4m optical mirrors it no longer had use for to NASA, which plans to use it for its WFIRST observatory. Additionally, people who have seen high-resolution images of these satellites have described them as “stubby Hubbles“.

▲ Artist’s view of a KH-11 based on a modified Hubble image.

▲ The Hubble Space Telescope

So China seems to have accomplished a great leap forward in space optics. As GF-11 is positioned on a 470km circular 247x693km elliptical orbit, a 1.7m mirror would give it a ground resolution of 7 to 10cm at perigee, at around 10AM local solar time and at 20°N, right over India and the South China Sea. At the average altitude of 470km, the resolution is still 15 to 20cm, surpassing all commercial satellites and most reconnaissance satellites. This propels China into the select club of countries that can acquire NIIRS 8-9 satellite imagery, meaning the resolution is high enough to identify small hand-held weapons. Presumably the only members of this club are the US and now China, and that will continue to be the case in the foreseeable future, with maybe Russia joining them later if the Razdan program fulfills its promises.

▲ Another view of GF-11, showing a similar architecture to Hubble

Interestingly, China plans to launch a “Chinese Hubble” to accompany its next space station, in the form of a dockable optical astronomy telescope with a 2m mirror. There are likely synergies between the developments in space optics for this national prestige project and the military satellites. Future developments will be even more impressive, and China is clearly aiming to be the new leader in this domain.

▲ The Xuntian space telescope (left) docked to the Tianhe space station

https://satelliteobservation.net/2018/08/02/gf-11-how-do-you-say-kennen-in-chinese/

 

[JSCh]

Spotlight: China welcomes all UN member states to jointly utilize its space station
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-29 04:54:24|Editor: Chengcheng


VIENNA, May 28 (Xinhua) -- China announced Monday that all member states of the United Nations are welcome to cooperate with China to jointly utilize its future China Space Station (CSS).

"CSS belongs not only to China, but also to the world," said Shi Zhongjun, China's ambassador to UN and other international organizations in Vienna.

"All countries, regardless of their size and level of development, can participate in the cooperation on an equal footing," he said.

Interested public and private organizations, including institutes, academies, universities and private enterprises with scientific orientations, can identify their appropriate models of cooperation on board CSS, may it be the growth of a space plant, or even the accommodation of an astronaut, said the ambassador.

HOME OF COOPERATION FOR MUTUAL BENEFIT

CSS, expected to be launched by 2019, and complete and brought into operation by 2022, will be the world's first space station that is developed by a developing country and open for cooperation with all UN member states.

Consisting of one core module and two experiment modules, CSS will have the capacity to accommodate up to three astronauts at the same time and maximum six during rotation.

Operating in low-Earth orbit about 400 kilometers above the Earth's surface, CSS will be used in a wide range of research fields, including space medicine, life science, biotechnology, microgravity science, Earth science and space technology.

"Through the vehicle of CSS, we would like to build up a model of sincere mutual beneficial cooperation among countries in the peaceful exploration and use of outer space," said the Chinese ambassador.

As a developing country itself, China stands ready to help other developing countries in their development of space technology and space capacity building in particular, he said.

Guided by the idea of a shared future for mankind, CSS will be a home that is inclusive and open, a home of peace and goodwill, and a home of cooperation for mutual benefit, he added.

Priyani Wijesekera, ambassador of Sri lanka to the UN in Vienna, believes that CSS would benefit developing states like Sri lanka which lacks financial means and expertise to launch such a project.

"It's very interesting and we are looking forward to cooperating with China," she told Xinhua.

CHINA'S MOVE TO SHARE WELCOMED

Simonetta Di Pippo, director of the UN Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) welcomed China's move to share its "state of the art space program" which is "one of the most holistic and technologically advanced in the world."

"With the global challenges we all face here on Earth, it is therefore important to foster collaboration and cooperation in the field of space activities," she said.

The director said technical advances in space have broader benefits to all humankind, as space is a driver and a tool for socio-economic sustainable development.

In 2016, the United Nations, represented by UNOOSA, confirmed its partnership with the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) by signing a Memorandum of Understanding to allow "Access to Space" to all UN member states, developing countries in particular, to address all 17 Sustainable Development Goals by jointly utilizing CSS.

Following Monday's announcement, the UNOOSA has extended official letters to all Permanent Missions in Vienna and New York as well as offices of the United Nations Development Program, kicking off a three-month application period for public organizations, industries and private sector organizations with scientific orientation.

"By working together, the sky is no longer the limit," said Di Pippo.

"I believe that all the efforts that we are making together will be highly beneficial to our cooperation, to all Member States of the United Nations, and to the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals," she said.

China's exploration into outer space has been at the core of global attention since the launch of the first Chinese satellite in 1970. The planned launch of CSS next year follows the launch of space laboratory, Tiangong-1, in 2011.

China has been consistent in its peaceful commitment to the outer space. Yang Liwei, China's first "taikonaut", exhibited the UN flag to the whole world on China's first space safari in 2003, followed by 10 more Chinese in his footsteps making trips into the outer space.

The core module of CSS is named Tianhe, or "Harmony of the Heavens" in the Chinese language, which conveys China's hope to promote mutual trust and peace through cooperation aboard CSS.

Maria Assunta Accili Sabbatini, Italy's ambassador to the UN in Vienna, said the project offers a great opportunity for Italy as the two countries' space agencies have maintained close ties.

"We believe this opens a lot of room for cooperation," she said.

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From UN Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) -> UN and China invite applications to conduct experiments on-board China's Space Station

China Focus: China solicits int'l cooperation experiments on space station
Source: Xinhua| 2018-08-05 21:07:33|Editor: Chengcheng


BEIJING, Aug. 5 (Xinhua) -- China is asking the world to collaborate in experiments on its planned space station so as to promote international space cooperation and sustainable global development.

The Committee on Science and Technology Experiments of the Chinese Space Station was established recently under the China Academy of Space Technology (CAST).

The offer is open to the entire international community. Proposals and projects can be submitted online (www.css-research.cn) and peer-reviewed. The candidate projects will go through to the China Manned Space Agency.

China is accelerating its timetable for the Tiangong space station, with the Tianhe core capsule expected to be launched in 2020. The whole station is due for completion around 2022.

Weighing 66 tonnes, it will comprise Tianhe and the Wentian and Mengtian lab capsules. The station could be enlarged to 180 tonnes if required for scientific research. It could accommodate three to six astronauts and is designed to last at least 10 years, but this could be prolonged through in-orbit maintenance, said Zhou Jianping, chief designer of China's manned space program.

Cargo ships and manned spacecraft will travel from Earth to service the station. Once it's fully commissioned, experiments will be conducted in space.

Its main purpose will be cutting-edge scientific research, including space medicines, space life sciences and biotechnology, material sciences, microgravity basic physics, astronomy and astrophysics, said Zhou.

"We are looking forward to experiments to better sustain space exploration. We also expect China's space station to be an in-space incubator of new technologies that can improve people's lives," said Zhang Hongtai, president of CAST.

CAST might also provide opportunities to conduct some international cooperation experiments on other spacecraft or satellites, said Zhang.

"China is further opening up, and space exploration is a shared challenge for China and other countries. We hope to solicit and evaluate experiments with common international practices, and select the most promising and innovative projects. The research data will be shared by the international community," said Bao Weimin, chairman of the newly established committee and an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

The committee comprises 14 Chinese scientists, and scientists from other countries are welcome to participate, Bao said. It is based in the Qian Xuesen Laboratory of Space Technology under CAST, which focuses on the development of new space technologies.

"We welcome scientists around the globe to submit projects or to become peer-review experts. We hope to have in-depth cooperation," said Chen Hong, head of the Qian Xuesen Laboratory.

"We'd like to provide engineering consultation and support for the international cooperation projects to ensure the implementation of cutting-edge experiments on the space station," said Long Jiang, head of the Institute of Manned Space System Engineering under CAST, the main manufacturer of China's space station.

To stimulate interest in young people and foster their imaginations and creativity, a special program, the Youth Program of Scientific Education Experiment on the Chinese Space Station, was launched at the beginning of 2018.

The program has collected nearly 200 youth education experiments nationwide, and selected a preliminary list of 30 projects. The program is mainly for primary and middle school students. "We also welcome young students from around the world to participate," said Yao Wei, a researcher at the Qian Xuesen Laboratory.

 

[Galactic Penguin SST]

Looks like a Hwasong-15's TEL carrying a Pukguksong-3, but it's only the next KZ-1A Y8!

Payload: 微厘空间一号系统S1试验卫星 Test Satellite (Centispace-1-S1)
Orbit: 700km SSO

 

[JSCh]

PUBLIC RELEASE: 6-AUG-2018
Chinese astronomers discover most lithium-rich giant in galaxy with LAMOST
CHINESE ACADEMY OF SCIENCES HEADQUARTERS

​

This is a diagrammatic stetch of the Li-rich giant star and location in the galaxy. CREDIT: NAOC

A research team, led by the astronomers from National Astronomical Observatories of China (NAOC), Chinese Academy of Sciences, discovered the most lithium-rich giant ever known to date, with lithium abundance 3,000 times higher than normal giants. It is in the direction of Ophiuchus, north side of the Galactic disk, with a distance of 4,500 light years to Earth.

The findings were realized with the help of The Large Sky Area Multi-Object Fiber Spectroscopic Telescope (LAMOST), a special quasi-meridian reflecting Schmidt telescope located in Xinglong Observatory of NAOC in northern China. The telescope can observe about 4,000 celestial bodies at one time and has made a massive contribution to the study of the structure of the Galaxy.

Their result of the study was published online in Nature Astronomy on August 6th, 2018.

Lithium, atomic number 3, is considered one of the three elements synthesized in the Big Bang, together with Hydrogen and Helium. The abundance of the three elements was regarded as the strongest evidence of the Big Bang.

The evolution of lithium has been widely studied in modern astrophysics, however, a few giants were found to be lithium-rich in the past three decades. This makes the lithium study remarkably challenging.

"The discovery of this star has largely increased the upper limit of the observed lithium abundance, and provides a potential explanation to the extremely lithium-rich case," said Prof. ZHAO Gang.

Detailed information of the star was obtained by a follow-up observation from the Automated Planet Finder (APF) telescope at Lick Observatory.

Besides measuring the anomalously high lithium abundance, the research team also proposed a possible explanation to the lithium-rich phenomenon by the nuclear network simulation with the up-to-date atomic data as an input.

The research team was led by Dr. YAN Hongliang, Prof. SHI Jianrong and Prof. ZHAO Gang from NAOC. Scientists from other five institutions, including China Institute of Atomic Energy and Beijing Normal University, also joined the team.

Finished in 2008 and began regular survey mission in 2012, LAMOST has helped Chinese scientists with a final catalogue of about 10 million spectra after its six-year regular survey, and establish the world's largest databank of stellar spectra this June.


Chinese astronomers discover most lithium-rich giant in galaxy with LAMOST | EurekAlert! Science News

 

[JSCh]

Micro satellite developed by Chinese university starts to work around Moon
Source: Xinhua| 2018-06-14 19:26:43|Editor: ZX


BEIJING, June 14 (Xinhua) -- A micro satellite, developed by the Harbin Institute of Technology in northeast China's Heilongjiang Province and sent into an orbit around the Moon, has started to transmit data back to Earth.

Two micro satellites, Longjiang-1 and Longjiang-2, were sent into space on May 21 together with the Chang'e-4 lunar probe's relay satellite from southwest China's Xichang Satellite Launch Center.

Longjiang-2 successfully reached its destination near the Moon on May 25, and entered a lunar orbit with the perilune at 350 km and the apolune at 13,700 km. However, Longjiang-1 suffered an anomaly and failed to enter lunar orbit, according to the China National Space Administration (CNSA).

Longjiang-2, weighing 47 kg, has become the world's first lunar orbiter developed by a university.

It carries an optical camera developed by the King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology of Saudi Arabia, as well as a low-frequency radio detector developed by the National Space Science Center of Chinese Academy of Sciences.

The scientific instruments on the satellite have all started to work, CNSA said.

+++#####+++​

China, Saudi Arabia unveil lunar images gained from space cooperation
Source: Xinhua| 2018-06-14 19:16:40|Editor: Yurou

A released photo shows part of the moon with the earth as background. China and Saudi Arabia on June 14, 2018 jointly unveiled three lunar images acquired through cooperation on the relay satellite mission for Chang'e-4 lunar probe. An optical camera, developed by the King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology of Saudi Arabia, was installed on a micro satellite, named Longjiang-2. The micro satellite is orbiting around the Moon. The camera, which began to work on May 28, has conducted observations of the Moon and acquired a series of clear lunar images and data. (Xinhua)

BEIJING, June 14 (Xinhua) -- China and Saudi Arabia on Thursday jointly unveiled three lunar images acquired through cooperation on the relay satellite mission for Chang'e-4 lunar probe.

This is an important cooperation achievement between China and Saudi Arabia in the relay satellite mission, the China National Space Administration said in a statement.

The relay satellite for the Chang'e-4 lunar probe, named Queqiao or Magpie Bridge, was launched on May 21 and entered the Halo orbit around the second Lagrangian (L2) point of the Earth-Moon system, about 65,000 km from the Moon, at 11:06 a.m. Thursday after a journey of more than 20 days.

An optical camera, developed by the King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology of Saudi Arabia, was installed on a micro satellite, named Longjiang-2, which was launched together with Queqiao.

The micro satellite is orbiting around the Moon. The camera, which began to work on May 28, has conducted observations of the Moon and acquired a series of clear lunar images and data.

According to a memorandum of understanding signed between China and Saudi Arabia on March 16, 2017, the two countries will share the scientific data in this cooperation.

China is pushing forward space cooperation with countries participating in the Belt and Road Initiative.

A released photo shows part of the Mare Imbrium on the moon.

A released photo shows part of the moon with the earth as background.
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https://twitter.com/x/status/1028566732351397888

Andrew Jones‏ @AJ_FI 60m 60 minutes ago
The Moon's Mare Nubium imaged by a student-developed camera (not the Saudi KACST imager) aboard the 47 kg Longjiang-2/DSLWP-B lunar microsatellite launched along with China's Chang'e-4 relay satellite in May.

BG2BHC

 

[JSCh]

From website of China Academy of Launch Technology,

2020年前谁想搭载长征火箭？余量充足，有7次机会 - 中国运载火箭技术研究院
Who wants to piggyback on Long March rocket before 2020? Ample margin, 7 opportunities - CALT

Column from left to right - launch time, rocket type, orbit, and piggyback capacity available in Kg.​

长征火箭将发射余量用于商业卫星搭载服务，面向全社会，包括有需求的个人、企业、学校、社会团体等，既面向中国大陆和港澳台客户，也面向国外客户。此前没有经验的客户也没有关系，火箭院将为您提供最专业的建议。

Translation:
The Long March rocket will use the surplus launch margin for commercial satellite launch services and is opened to whole society, including individuals, enterprises, schools, social groups, etc., which also are available to both mainland China, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan as well as foreign customers. It doesn't matter if you have no previous experience, the Academy will provide you with the most professional advice.

 

[JSCh]

China Focus: Flowers on the Moon? China's Chang'e-4 to launch lunar spring
Source: Xinhua| 2018-04-12 18:22:19|Editor: Lifang

Photo provided by National Astronomical Observatories of Chinese Academy of Sciences shows a high-resolution image of lunar surface on the moon. The image is shot by Chinese Chang'e 3, an unmanned lunar exploration probe, and Yutu rover. (Xinhua)

BEIJING, April 12 (Xinhua) -- China's Chang'e-4 lunar probe is expected to do many things unprecedented in space history after it launches later this year, such as touching down softly on the far side of the Moon and taking the first flowers to blossom on the lifeless lunar surface.

The probe will carry a tin containing seeds of potato and arabidopsis, a small flowering plant related to cabbage and mustard, and probably some silkworm eggs to conduct the first biological experiment on the Moon.

The "lunar mini biosphere" experiment was designed by 28 Chinese universities, led by southwest China' s Chongqing University, a conference on scientific and technological innovation of Chongqing Municipality has heard.

LIFE ON THE MOON

The cylindrical tin, made from special aluminum alloy materials, is 18 cm tall, with a diameter of 16 cm, a net volume of 0.8 liters and a weight of 3 kilograms. The tin will also contain water, a nutrient solution, air and equipment such as a small camera and data transmission system.

Researchers hope the seeds will grow to blossom on the Moon, with the process captured on camera and transmitted to Earth.

Although astronauts have cultivated plants on the International Space Station, and rice and arabidopsis were grown on China's Tiangong-2 space lab, those experiments were conducted in low-Earth orbit, at an altitude of about 400 kilometers. The environment on the Moon, 380,000 kilometers from the Earth, is more complicated.

Liu Hanlong, chief director of the experiment and vice president of Chongqing University, said since the Moon has no atmosphere, its temperature ranges from lower than minus 100 degrees centigrade to higher than 100 degrees centigrade.

"We have to keep the temperature in the 'mini biosphere' within a range from 1 degree to 30 degrees, and properly control the humidity and nutrition. We will use a tube to direct the natural light on the surface of Moon into the tin to make the plants grow," said Xie Gengxin, chief designer of the experiment.

"We want to study the respiration of the seeds and the photosynthesis on the Moon," said Liu.

"Why potato and arabidopsis? Because the growth period of arabidopsis is short and convenient to observe. And potato could become a major source of food for future space travelers," said Liu. "Our experiment might help accumulate knowledge for building a lunar base and long-term residence on the Moon."

The public, especially young people, are being encouraged to participate in the Chang'e-4 mission. The China National Space Administration (CNSA) launched a contest among students across China in 2016, collecting ideas on the design of the payloads.

The "lunar mini biosphere" experiment was selected from more than 200 submissions, according to the CNSA.

THE FAR SIDE

Tidal forces of the Earth have slowed the Moon's rotation to the point where the same side always faces the Earth, a phenomenon called tidal locking. The other face, most of which is never visible from the Earth, is the far side of the Moon.

With its special environment and complex geological history, the far side is a hot spot for scientific and space exploration. However, landing and roving there requires a relay satellite to transmit signals.

It has been reported that China plans to send a relay satellite for Chang'e-4 to the halo orbit of the Earth-Moon Lagrange Point L2 in late May or early June 2018, and then launch the Chang'e-4 lunar lander and rover to the Aitken Basin of the south pole region of the Moon about half a year later.

The Von Karman Crater, named after a Hungarian-American mathematician, aerospace engineer and physicist, in the Aitken Basin, was chosen as the landing site for Chang'e-4. The region is believed to have great scientific research potential.

The transmission channel is limited, and the landscape rugged, so the mission will be more complicated than Chang'e-3, China's first soft landing on the Moon in 2013, said Liu Tongjie, deputy director of the Lunar Exploration and Space Program Center of CNSA.

As the relay satellite will be sent to the Earth-Moon Lagrange Point L2 about 450,000 kilometers from the Earth, where a gravitational equilibrium can be maintained, it could stay in stable orbit and operate for a long time.

"We will make efforts to enable the relay satellite to work as long as possible to serve other probes, including those from other countries," said Ye Peijian,a leading Chinese aerospace expert and consultant to China's lunar exploration program.

The Lunar Exploration and Space Program Center of the CNSA has invited the public to write down their hopes for lunar and space exploration, and those hopes and the names of participants will be carried by the relay satellite into deep space. More than 100,000 people have taken part, according to the center.

INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION

As the far side of the Moon is shielded from electromagnetic interference from the Earth, it's an ideal place to study the space environment and solar bursts, and the probe can "listen" to the deeper reaches of the cosmos, said Liu Tongjie.

The Chang'e-4 probe will also carry scientific payloads developed by the Netherlands, Sweden, Germany and Saudi Arabia.

"The Chinese and Dutch low-frequency radio spectrometers might help us detect 21-cm hydrogen line radiation and study how the earliest stars were ignited and how our cosmos emerged from darkness after the Big Bang," said Chen Xuelei, an astronomer with the National Astronomical Observatories of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

The rover will also carry an advanced small analyzer, developed in Sweden, to study the interaction between solar winds and the Moon surface.

And a neutron dosimeter, developed in Germany, will be installed on the lander to measure radiation at the landing site. Scientists say it is essential to investigate the radiation environment on the lunar surface in preparation for human missions.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1029547696925732864

 

[JSCh]

China Focus: Chinese scientists intend to chase solar eclipse in space
Source: Xinhua| 2018-08-14 18:38:46|Editor: Yurou


BEIJING, Aug. 14 (Xinhua) -- Total solar eclipses formed by the moon shadowing the sun are spectacular opportunities for scientists to observe the sun's corona, but too short and rare to capture.

So Chinese scientists have put forward a novel idea to view a total solar eclipse in space by using the earth to cover the sun, so they might have a longer and more accurate observation and study the source of solar storms.

NASA's Parker Solar Probe, the fastest spacecraft in history, blasted off on Sunday, on a mission to study the sun at a closer range than any other spacecraft. The probe is expected to enter the sun's fiery corona after a journey of about seven years.

Chinese scientists have proposed another approach: flying in the earth's shadow.

The corona -- the sun's rarefied gaseous envelope -- is more than a million degrees centigrade and often generates solar storms that damage satellites, navigation and communication systems, said Luo Bingxian, a researcher at the National Space Center of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS).

"The heating process of the corona is one of astronomy's biggest mysteries, but our understanding of it is still lacking due to our inability to observe it," Luo said.

"It's very difficult to see the corona clearly from Earth, since its brightness is less than a millionth of that of the sun's disk," Luo said.

The corona is normally visible only during a total solar eclipse, when it is seen as an irregularly shaped glow around the darkened disk of the moon.

However, total solar eclipses are rare and usually last only minutes. Sometimes the best view is from the ocean or the weather conditions are poor, making them very difficult to observe.

Although scientists have devised a special instrument, the coronograph, to observe the corona, it's easily affected by factors such as stray light, vignetting and atmospheric scattering.

"Since we can see the moon between the sun and earth during a total solar eclipse, I thought we could put a telescope, the earth and sun in a straight line," said Luo.

His team calculated the best place for the telescope was close to the second Lagrange point (L2) of the sun-earth system, about 1.4 million kilometers from the earth.

There, the relative positions of the sun, earth and telescope would remain unchanged with the gravity of the sun, earth and a little propulsion, Luo said.

They still face challenges in technology, such as how to power the probe, since it must stay in the shadow of the earth and traditional solar panels would be useless.

"We are discussing different solutions, such as a radioisotope power source. Another possibility is to position a spacecraft with a solar sail in the sunlight and the probe in the earth's shadow, and connect them with a wire," Luo said.

"If our idea can be realized, our ability to observe the corona could help unravel the mystery of solar storms and forecast the space environment," he said.

"The prediction of solar eruptions is very important since they can damage satellites, power grids, submarine cables, petroleum pipelines, and aircraft, navigation and communication systems that are indispensable in the modern world," Luo said.

Cooperating with scientists from the University of Science and Technology of China and the Innovation Academy of Microsatellites of the CAS, Luo took the idea to a contest of innovative future technologies in Shenzhen, south China's Guangdong Province, recently and it was selected as one of 30 winning projects. The contest encouraged young Chinese scientists to conceive groundbreaking technologies and trigger innovation.

 

[HariPrasad]

China's outer space ends at geostationary orbit. Chinese outer space, space exploration etc are big mouth words for Chinese. China should first of all carry out a successful mission to moon.

 

[Adam WANG SHANGHAI MEGA]

Soft land of Change 3 is fake to you with Jade rabbit！

？

Yutu (Chinese: 玉兔; pinyin: Yùtù; literally: "Jade Rabbit") is an unmanned lunar rover that formed part of the Chinese Chang'e 3 mission to the Moon. It was launched at 17:30 UTC on 1 December 2013, and reached the Moon's surface on 14 December 2013. The mission marks the first soft landing on the Moon since 1976 and the first rover to operate there since the Soviet Lunokhod 2 ceased operations on 11 May 1973.

 

[JSCh]

China plans remote sensing satellites over South China Sea
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-15 15:45:30|Editor: Mengjie



SANYA, Dec. 15 (Xinhua) -- China's southern island province of Hainan has unveiled a satellite launch plan to assist remote sensing coverage over the South China Sea.

The Sanyan Institute of Remote Sensing said the mission would start in 2019, when it would launch three optical satellites.

After that, it will add another three optical satellites, two hyperspectral satellites and two SAR satellites to complete the Satellite Constellation Program by 2021, for conducting round-the-clock remote-sensing over the tropical sea area.

Yang Tianliang, director of the institute, said that the network was calculated to broadly cover the area between 30 degrees north and south of the equator.

Yang said the program would provide scientific support for China's initiative of the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road and emergency response efforts at sea.

Beidou is for navigation only. It is not capable of remote sensing.
This Hainan province's project is multiple of optical and radar satellite that watch SCS and anywhere plus minus 30 degree latitude that coincide with area of the maritime silk road.

Hainan eyes new satellite network
By Zhao Lei | China Daily | Updated: 2018-08-16 08:59

The heavy-lift carrier rocket Long March 5 blasts off Nov 3, 2016 at Wenchang Space Launch Center in South China's Hainan province.[Photo/Xinhua]

The southernmost island province of Hainan is preparing a satellite network that is expected to enable China to conduct effective and efficient surveillance over the South China Sea.

Design work for the Hainan Earth-Observation Satellite Constellation, a project headed by the Sanya Institute of Remote Sensing in Hainan and sponsored by the provincial government, has begun at the institute and by its contractors.

The first in the constellation, a Hainan 1 optical satellite, is scheduled to be launched in the second half of 2019, according to a statement from the institute.

The statement said the constellation will have 10 satellites that will be launched in four stages by the end of 2021. First, three Hainan 1 optical satellites are scheduled to enter orbit in 2019. The following year, three Hainan 1 satellites and two Sanya 1 multispectral remote-sensing satellites will be launched. In 2021, two Sansha 1 synthetic aperture radar satellites are expected to be sent into space.

At a meeting in Sanya on Tuesday, Chinese space experts reviewed and approved technical plans for the first four Hainan 1 satellites.

According to the institute, each Hainan 1 will weigh 50 kilograms, and will operate in a low-Earth orbit 500 kilometers above Earth and move at 7.9 km per second.

Yang Tianliang, director of the institute and chief designer of the constellation, said in a phone interview on Wednesday that Hainan 1 satellites will carry two types of instruments - cameras and identification technology.

"The combination of cameras and automatic identification systems will allow us not only to monitor ships lawfully sailing in the South China Sea, but also to detect and track illegally operating ones," Yang said.

Automatic identification systems can receive and process signals concerning positioning data, courses of vessels as well as speed readings sent by a moving ship. The technology is often mounted on ships and satellites and assists vessel operators in understanding maritime traffic situations while also helping maritime authorities to track and monitor vessel movements.

Yang said Hainan administers hundreds of islands and reefs in the South China Sea, so it requires the assistance of a space-based platform to monitor these territories and surrounding waters.

He also noted that once the satellite network becomes fully operational by 2021, it will be able to cover the entire South China Sea and will be very helpful in a wide range of sectors, such as marine transportation, fisheries, island management and maritime search and rescue.

Gao Enyu, a manager from Hainan MinoSpace Technology Co, was quoted by China News Service as saying on Tuesday that researchers optimized Hainan 1's cameras to make them suitable for monitoring large expanses of waters.

He added that the satellite is capable of detecting and identifying all midsize and large vessels.

Gao's company is in charge of the research and development of some of Hainan 1's equipment.