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

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China Space Day 2019 recent achievements video
Andrew Jones
Published on Apr 23, 2019

Video released by Chinese social media account Our Space to mark the 2019 China Space Day on April 24, 2019.

 

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Pools of water inside a gamma ray observatory’s central building detect particles from air showers.
INSTITUTE OF HIGH ENERGY PHYSICS/CHINESE ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

China’s ambitious telescopes rise in the thin air of the Tibetan Plateau
By Dennis Normile Apr. 25, 2019 , 2:00 PM

DAOCHENG COUNTY IN CHINA—"I've seen people faint here," warns physicist He Huihai as he deplanes at Daocheng Yading Airport, the world's highest at 4411 meters above sea level. Many of his colleagues at the Institute of High Energy Physics (IHEP) in Beijing take a day to acclimate before resuming work on the Large High Altitude Air Shower Observatory (LHAASO), an ambitious new observatory here on the eastern edge of the Tibetan Plateau.

Although troublesome for humans, the thin air is exactly what makes Tibet good for observing the staggeringly energetic photons that crash into Earth from unidentified objects across the universe. After 3 years of construction, LHAASO is nearly finished and begins observations on 26 April.

LHAASO is just the first in a batch of observatories taking shape across the Tibetan Plateau, which might one day rival the high, dry, Atacama Desert in Chile as a home for premier observatories. IHEP's Ali CMB Polarization Telescope (AliCPT), under construction in the plateau's west, will start its hunt for signs of primordial gravitational waves next year. This year, the National Space Science Center will begin to build the Daocheng Solar Radio Telescope (DSRT), which will study the sun's violent outbursts. And the National Astronomical Observatories of China (NAOC) in Beijing is studying sites on the northwestern rim of the plateau for a 12-meter Large Optical-Infrared Telescope (LOT), larger than any existing telescope.

Astronomers have long recognized the potential of the Tibetan Plateau, which has the highest average elevation of any region on Earth. In 1990, IHEP established a small cosmic ray observatory near Lhasa at 4300 meters. Since 2010, NAOC's Ali Observatory, at 5100 meters, has hosted several small telescopes. But the scientific building boom accelerated after the four new observatories won funding under China's latest Five-Year Plan, covering 2016 to 2020, as part of the nation's efforts to boost basic research. New roads and airports, built as part of China's controversial effort to tie Tibet more closely to the nation, are also encouraging astronomers to come.

Now, the country's biggest optical telescope is a 4-meter facility near Beijing that has not lived up to expectations. The LOT, in contrast, would be one of the most powerful telescopes on Earth. A dispute over its design has delayed progress, but once NAOC settles on a site it hopes to move forward, says NAOC Vice President Xue Suijian. Such an instrument would allow China's astronomers to join the hunt for exoplanets, study the evolution of galaxies, and watch for optical counterparts to gravitational waves, he says.


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--> China’s ambitious telescopes rise in the thin air of the Tibetan Plateau | Science | AAAS

 

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Observatory searches for gamma rays
By WANG XIAOYU | China Daily | Updated: 2019-04-27 07:47

The Large High Altitude Air Shower Observatory, or LHAASO. MUKESH MOHANAN/CHINA DAILY

A giant observatory in Sichuan province-designed to detect high-energy gamma rays with the utmost sensitivity and accuracy-launched its first set of detectors on Friday, complementing concerted global efforts to decode the origin of cosmic rays.

Set high on Haizi Mountain, the 136-hectare Large High Altitude Air Shower Observatory will consist of more than 6,300 detectors, an array of 12 Cherenkov telescopes and three water ponds containing 3,000 detecting units, according to the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

As its initial operation unfolds, about one-fourth of the full-scale detector and telescope arrays-which were completed in February-will be deployed to begin intercepting gamma rays and collecting data, while the remaining construction is expected to conclude in 2021, according to Cao Zhen, the observatory's chief scientist and a researcher with the Institute of High Energy Physics at the academy.

One highlight of the latest installation is the 2.25-hectare water pond with a 900-unit Cherenkov Detector Array, Cao said.

"The sky-surveying sensitivity of this water pond has surpassed the most advanced installation in this field in other countries by 30 percent."

As the construction is expected to wrap up in two years, the whole set of three water ponds will be able to scan over 60 percent of the sky each day, unaffected by the light of the sun, moon, stars or weather changes, thus ensuring round-the-clock, comprehensive observations, the academy said.

"Compared to the other domestic observatory intended to capture high-energy gamma rays, known as the ARGO-YBJ International Observatory in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, the new observatory's sensitivity will surpass that by 56 times when it's fully complete," Cao said.

The origin of cosmic rays has puzzled scientists for a century, and cracking this mystery by capturing and analyzing high-energy gamma rays, believed to be produced alongside cosmic rays, has emerged as a viable and promising method in recent years.

Benedetto D'Ettorre Piazzoli, former vice-president of the National Institute of Nuclear Physics in Italy, said the observatory's dense detector arrays, coupled with effective calibration and control, will yield revealing data.

"The energy ranges these different detectors are capable of spotting will overlap in such a way that would help scientists to better calibrate and gain more accurate data," he said. "It's a key merit of this observatory."

Masahiro Teshima, director of the Max Planck Institute of Physics in Munich, Germany, also said accuracy is the lifeblood of studies in physics. "Given the Cherenkov Detector Array's capability to measure precisely the gamma rays of very high energy from the universe, the massive data will complement experiments and research on gamma rays in other parts of the world."​

 

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Slides about Long March-11M, which is the sea launch version of LM-11.
source: jingyan66@9ifly.cn.

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22:47, 27-Apr-2019
China’s first seaborne rocket launch set in June
By Gong Zhe

China's first seaborne rocket launch is scheduled for June 2019. The Long Match-11 carrier rocket will blast off from the sea, sending satellites into the Earth's orbit, reported Jilin Network Television.

Rocket models in Chang Guang Satellite Science Museum. / Photo via JLNTV

The satellites were independently developed by Chang Guang Satellite Technology Co., Ltd, which, up until now, has successfully launched 12 Jilin-1 satellites into space. “All those satellites function properly,” said Jia Hongguang, deputy manager of this technology company.

China will achieve a breakthrough in the seaborne launch this year. “We will launch 20 more satellites by the end of this year. And there will be up to 32 satellites in space by that time,” said Jia.

It is reported that the seaborne launch plan was modified from a colossal vessel. Compared with the land launch, the seaborne launch can be more flexible and safer.

If it succeeds, the seaborne launch technology will also be used for Belt and Road countries.

(Top image via JLNTV)

 

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China and Pakistan sign space exploration agreement
Source:Global Times Published: 2019/4/28 23:07:58

China and Pakistan signed a cooperation agreement on manned space missions, marking the cooperation between the two countries in space exploration entering a new phase, according to the China National Space Administration (CNSA) on Sunday.

CNSA Director Hao Chun and Chairman of the Pakistan Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (SUPARCO,) Amer Nadeem, signed the agreement Saturday in Beijing, according to a statement on the CNSA WeChat account.

The space agreement will serve as a high-level foundation for cooperation from both sides in space science and exploration.

Both nations will conduct scientific and technological experiments, astronaut training, along with manned space applications and achievement transformation, said the CNSA statement.

CNSA and SUPARCO will establish a China-Pakistan space committee chaired by top officials from both sides to address future collaborative issues.

Last year, China sent two Pakistan satellites into orbit, blasting off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in Northwest China.

The PRSS-1, Pakistan's first optical remote sensing satellite, and the PakTES-1A, a smaller observation craft, were both lifted into space by China's Long March-2C carrier rocket.

 

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China private rocket firm signs 100-mln-yuan contracts with UK, Italian counterparts
Source: Xinhua| 2019-04-26 21:50:41|Editor: mingmei

HANGZHOU, April 26 (Xinhua) -- China's private rocket company Land Space Technology Corporation Ltd. signed contracts with UK's Open Cosmos and Italy's D-Orbit Thursday, totaling over 100 million yuan (14.8 million U.S. dollars).

The Hangzhou-based company will seek cooperation with the two overseas launch service and mission management providers in the launch of CubSat, a miniaturized satellite for space research and in-orbit delivery, according to Land Space.

Land Space's strength in technology and its strong team give Open Cosmos confidence in our cooperation, said Tristan Laurent, vice president of Open Cosmos.

Land Space, focusing on liquid-fuel rocket engines and low-cost commercial launch vehicles, has also sought business partners in the Middle East, North Africa, Europe and plans to launch Zhuque-2, a liquid-fueled medium lift carrier rocket, in 2020.

The Chinese government encourages the participation of private enterprises in the space industry. The country now has more than 60 private companies in the commercial space industry.

 

[JSCh]

NOTE:

NEA is Near earth asteroid, MBC is Main belt comet.
NEA target is 469219 Kamoʻoalewa - Wikipedia

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MBC target is 7968 Elst–Pizarro - Wikipedia

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NEWS | 30 APRIL 2019
China plans mission to Earth’s pet asteroid | Nature
Spacecraft will return samples to Earth and be open to researchers around the world.

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China’s space agency wants to send a craft to a rock that loops around Earth.Credit: Xinhua/eyevine

China has set its sights on deep space. The China National Space Administration (CNSA) is planning a robotic mission that would return samples from an asteroid and visit a comet — and it has invited international researchers to take part.

The ten-year mission, which has yet to be formally approved by the government, could launch from 2024, CNSA’s international cooperation manager Yang Ruihong told Nature.

Japan and the United States both currently have spacecraft orbiting asteroids and, in 2010, Japan’s Hayabusa mission became the first to bring samples of asteroid material back to Earth.

The CNSA wants to encourage foreign research institutions to propose scientific payloads that could fly on its mission — either developed independently or in collaboration with Chinese partners, according to details published by the agency on 19 April.

The asteroid mission would put a probe on the rock 2016 HO3, and would later return to Earth’s orbit and drop a sample-containing capsule back to the ground. The small asteroid — also known as Kamo‘oalewa, a Hawaiian name that refers to an oscillating celestial object — is thought to be less than 100 metres across and was discovered in 2016. It is classed as a quasi-satellite: it loops constantly around Earth, but is too far away to be considered a normal satellite (see ‘Earth’s pet rock’). The maximum distance from Earth to HO3 is around 100 times the distance to the Moon.

After visiting HO3, the Chinese craft would undertake a seven-year journey beyond Mars, to the Solar System’s asteroid belt. There, it would study the comet 133P/Elst–Pizarro, which is sometimes also classified as an asteroid because of its location. However, like a comet, 133P releases dust and gas to create a ‘tail’.

The mission aims to find clues about the formation and evolution of small bodies in the Solar System and their interaction with the solar wind. It also intends to compare their compositions with those of material on Earth, to illuminate the origins of life on our planet, says the CNSA.

In February, Japanese spacecraft Hayabusa2 touched down on the surface of asteroid Ryugu to collect a sample that it hopes to return next year. Meanwhile, NASA’s OSIRIS-REx is making a detailed study of a smaller target, the asteroid Bennu, before attempting to collect a sample in 2020.

 

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14:58, 02-May-2019
What’s it like to work in isolated space for 200 days?
By Zhao Yunfei, Meng Mingwei

Yi Zhihao, 28, still sometimes gets emotional when thinking about his volunteering experience living in a self-contained lab in early 2018.

"It's incredible, I really did not expect to be able to make it for 200 days," Yi said.

His group, along with another one, broke a world record by working rotations at a bio-regenerative life support system in Beihang University in Beijing for a combined 370 days.

Yuegong-1 is a simulated space lab, designed to observe how animals, plants, and micro-organisms can co-exist in a lunar environment. The volunteers planted crops and managed waste according to a recycling system. Only two percent of the supplies came from outside.

For Yi and his team, everything took place in the 150-square-meter lab, from making traditional mooncakes to throwing a birthday party.

The physical and mental states of volunteers were closely watched. /Photo via Beihang University

Yi specialized in agriculture. His education background qualified him for this interdisciplinary project.

"I never thought that my major somehow correlated with a space program. I wanted to do something for my country, that's why I was strongly motivated," Yi said.

China plans to send astronauts to the Moon by 2036. The drills in Yuegong-1 provided the scientific support needed for such a mission.

"The lunar base project gives us a better understanding of what it's like to live and conduct explorations on the Moon over a longer period of time. We'll also need this kind of system if we go to Mars," said Wang Jun from the Chinese Academy of Engineering.

Thirty student researchers committed to the Yuegong-1 project, as more and more young people are interested in China's space industry.

A group of four volunteers lived in a self-contained cabin for 200 days in Beijing. /Photo via Beihang University

"Young people dream big, and they are ambitious. They are not afraid of making mistakes. I have confidence in China's space exploration career," said Yuegong-1's chief designer Liu Hong.

"If we want to reach the top globally, we must have a global vision. We should conduct more international projects to broaden our horizons," Yi stated.

More has to be done, as the space lab program should anticipate many more of the conditions that outer space has to offer. The Yuegong-1 team was awarded last month a May Fourth outstanding group medal by the Central Committee of the Communist Youth League of China.

 

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Private firms race to build carrier rockets
By Zhao Lei | China Daily | Updated: 2018-07-16 07:21

Hyperbola-1S, i-Space's carrier rocket, awaits its launch in April. [Photo/China Daily]
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The research and development of carrier rockets is a major sign of a space-faring nation's capability and had been long dominated by government-backed giants around the world.

However, in the wake of emerging business opportunities, the United States and China have realized that it is necessary to introduce new players to stimulate innovation and competition and to fill in market gaps left by established contractors.

As an important part of his endeavor to strengthen China's space industry, President Xi Jinping has requested that the long insulated industry should open its doors to private enterprises and take advantage of their participation to boost sustainable growth.

Meanwhile, several government departments have published policies and guidelines that encourage private businesses to take part in space-related businesses.

As a result, nearly 10 private rocket firms have been launched in China over the past three years.

Among them, i-Space and OneSpace Technology, two startups based in Beijing, have taken leading positions, as each has launched a test rocket developed on their own to verify their designs and equipment.

The two have made it clear that they have no intention of grabbing government-funded missions from State-owned space giants, namely China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp and China Aerospace Science and Industry Corp, but aspire to satiate the huge demand in launch service from newly founded satellite companies, most of which also are privately owned.

They are now focused on assembling new prototypes for further tests and striving to develop mass-production models that are expected to fulfill commercial contracts.

Xie Fang, a senior designer at i-Space, said the company plans to lift a Hyperbola-1Z experimental rocket in the coming months at a national space launch center, which he declined to name.

The mission is mainly tasked with demonstrating technologies for the Hyperbola-1, i-Space's first mass-production carrier rocket.

He said the Hyperbola-1Z will conduct a flight to an altitude of about 150 kilometers before placing a retrievable mini satellite into orbit.

The mission will mark the first time a privately developed rocket is launched from a national space facility, as opposed to previous launches that used non-space testing fields, he said.

Xie said Hyperbola-1 will have its debut flight in the first half of 2019.

It will have a diameter of 1.4 m, a length of 20 m and a liftoff weight of 31 metric tons.

The rocket will be able to transport a 300-kilogram satellite into a low-Earth orbit or a 100-kg satellite into a sun-synchronous orbit.

He noted that four launches of Hyperbola-1 rockets are scheduled in 2019 to lift clients' satellites.

His company has also begun to design the Hyperbola-3, a larger type rocket with nine 15-ton-thrust, liquid-propellant engines, and plans to launch it as early as 2020, Xie said.

In late June, i-Space announced it has received an investment of 600 million yuan ($90 million) from more than 10 domestic funds and venture capital.

OneSpace, headquartered near i-Space, is probably the most talked about firm in the media compared to its peers, thanks to its high-profile founder Shu Chang.

It has been preparing for the first mission of its OS-M1, a 19-m, solid-propellant rocket which OneSpace has pinned high hopes of attracting launch contracts for small satellites.

The company has garnered total investment of nearly 500 million yuan from domestic agencies and plans for an annual manufacturing capacity of around 50 rockets in 2020.

In addition to the two that have had launches, another heavyweight player, Land-Space, which is also a space industry startup in Beijing, has published a plan to build "the largest and most powerful carrier rocket designed and built by a Chinese private rocket company".

It expects to make its debut flight in 2020.

The company said in a statement sent to China Daily that the design of the ZQ 2, a 48.8-m, liquid-propellant rocket, was completed in June and construction of the rocket's key components has begun.

It said the rocket will go through a series of ground tests before the end of 2019 and if everything goes well in accordance with its schedule, ZQ 2 will conduct its maiden flight in 2020.

The ZQ 2 will have a diameter of 3.35 m, the same as most of China's Long March-series rockets, and a weight of 216 tons.

With a liftoff mass of 268 tons, it will be capable of placing a 2-ton payload into a sun-synchronous orbit 500 kilometers above the Earth or a 4-ton spacecraft to a low-Earth orbit with an altitude of 200 km.

Zhang Changwu, founder and CEO of LandSpace, said that upon its completion, the ZQ 2 will become the biggest and mightiest carrier rocket that has been developed by a Chinese private enterprise.

"The participation of private firms will substantially reduce the launch cost and help to boost the commercialization of the entire space industry," said Wu Zhijian, director-general of China Space Foundation.

He said private players with creativity and technology are crucial to achieving the nation's goal of building a strong space power.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1124428472628260869

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LaunchStuff@LaunchStuff

While we're on the topic of Interstellar ________: In a recent article the VP of Interstellar Glory (iSpace) has said that their 4 stage solid fuel rocket, Hyperbola-1, will be heading to the launch site in late May. It will be carrying 7 payloads.

 

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08 MAY 2019
Scientists confirm ancient Chinese astronomical observations
Galaxy cluster nebula one of the earliest things recorded outside the solar system. Andrew Masterson reports.

The text, dating from 48BCE, recording the glow in a particular spot in the night sky.
ÖTTGENS, ET AL

Scientists have repeated observations made almost 2070 years ago by Chinese astronomers, confirming one of the earliest ever discoveries of an event occurring beyond the solar system.

In 48BCE, the Chinese sky-watchers recorded a bright glow in a particular part of the night sky.

Now a team of researchers led by astrophysicist Fabian Göttgens from the University of Göttingen in Germany have shown that the observations related to a nova – an explosion of hydrogen on the surface of a star, located in a global cluster known as Messier 22.

The cluster, one of at least 150 thus far identified in the Milky Way, is a tightly packed group of stars located close to the galaxy’s centre, some 10,600 light-years from Earth. It is sometimes called the Sagittarius Cluster.

Göttgens and colleague used the Multi Unit Spectroscopic Explorer (MUSE)

instrument attached to the Very Large Telescope at the European Southern Observatory of the European Southern Observatory in Chile to study Messier 22.

They discovered the remains of a nova, now a red nebula of hydrogen and other gases, with a diameter roughly 8000 times the distance between the Earth and the sun.

“The position and brightness of the remains match an entry from 48 BC in an ancient collection of observations by Chinese astronomers,” says Göttgens.

“They probably saw the original nova in the same place.”

The research is soon to be published in the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics. A version is available on the preprint server arXiv.

ANDREW MASTERSON is editor of Cosmos.


Scientists confirm ancient Chinese astronomical observations | Cosmos

 

[JSCh]

22:47, 27-Apr-2019
China’s first seaborne rocket launch set in June
By Gong Zhe

China's first seaborne rocket launch is scheduled for June 2019. The Long Match-11 carrier rocket will blast off from the sea, sending satellites into the Earth's orbit, reported Jilin Network Television.

Rocket models in Chang Guang Satellite Science Museum. / Photo via JLNTV

The satellites were independently developed by Chang Guang Satellite Technology Co., Ltd, which, up until now, has successfully launched 12 Jilin-1 satellites into space. “All those satellites function properly,” said Jia Hongguang, deputy manager of this technology company.

China will achieve a breakthrough in the seaborne launch this year. “We will launch 20 more satellites by the end of this year. And there will be up to 32 satellites in space by that time,” said Jia.

It is reported that the seaborne launch plan was modified from a colossal vessel. Compared with the land launch, the seaborne launch can be more flexible and safer.

If it succeeds, the seaborne launch technology will also be used for Belt and Road countries.

(Top image via JLNTV)

China航天
5月7日 13:50
今天7时17分， “吉林一号”高分03A星出征仪式在长光卫星技术有限公司航天信息产业园举行。据了解，“吉林一号”高分03A星将6月份择期在海上发射，此次发射将是中国首次卫星海上发射。发射成功后，“吉林一号”高分03A星将与此前发射的12颗“吉林一号”卫星组网，为林业、农业、草原、海洋、资源、环境等行业用户提供更加丰富的遥感数据和产品服务。“吉林一号”高分03A星是由长光卫星技术有限公司自主研发的新一代光学遥感卫星，分辨率1m、幅宽17km、重量仅为42kg、轨道高度579km，具有低成本、轻量化、短周期的特点O网页链接

China航天
May 7 at 13:50

At 7:17 today, the Jilin-1 Gaofen-03A satellite rolled-off ceremony was held in the Aerospace Information Industry Park of Changguang Satellite Technology Co., Ltd. It is understood that the Jilin-1 Gaofen-03A satellite will be launched at sea in June, and the launch will be China's first satellite sea-launch. After the successful launch, the Jilin-1 Gaofen-03A satellite will network with the existing 12 Jilin-1 satellites previously launched to provide richer remote sensing data and product services for industrial users in forestry, agriculture, grassland, ocean, resources and environment. Jilin-1 Gaofen-03A satellite is a new generation of optical remote sensing satellite independently developed by Changguang Satellite Technology Co. Ltd. with a resolution of 1m, a swath width of 17km, a weight of only 42kg and a orbit height of 579km. It has characteristic of low cost, light weight and short revisit period.

 

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航天科技一院研制的我国首件5米直径共底结构贮箱下线
来源：中国航天报 日期：2019年05月09日​

前不久，我国首件5米直径共底结构贮箱在中国航天科技集团有限公司一院211厂天津火箭公司成功下线。

共底贮箱的外表看起来是一个贮箱，而内部通过特殊的共底结构将贮箱分成两个内腔，分别贮存不同的推进剂，相当于两个贮箱。它能够有效减轻贮箱结构重量，具有体积大等特点，能够有效提高火箭运载能力。（徐婷婷/文 蒙丹阳/摄）

China's first 5m diameter common bulkhead structure tank developed by China Aerospace Science and Technology Institute
Source: China Aerospace News
Date: May 09, 2019

Not long ago, China's first 5 m diameter common bulkhead structure tank was successfully launched in Tianjin Rocket Company, the 211 factory of China Aerospace Science and Technology Group Co., Ltd.

The appearance of the common bottom tank seem to be one single tank, but the interior is divided into two chambers by a special common bulkhead structure, which respectively store different propellants, equivalent to two tanks. It can effectively reduce the weight of the tank structure and has the characteristics of large volume, which can effectively improve the rocket carrying capacity. (Xu Tingting / Wen Meng Danyang / photo)

 

[JSCh]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1092393975422615552

https://twitter.com/x/status/1125503390321119235

 

[JSCh]

From weibo user,

STS-001
今天 18:23 来自 微博 weibo.com 已编辑
YF480样机似乎下线了！

#长征九号#

STS-001
Today 18:23 from Weibo

The YF480 prototype seems to launched offline! #CZ-9#