Tag: China

  • Shenzhou-9 successfully returns to Earth

    Shenzhou-9 successfully returns to Earth

    The three member crew of China’s Shenzhou-9 have safely returned to Earth, following a successful – and historic – docked mission with the unmanned space module Tiangong-1. The crew – including China’s first female taikonaut – touched down at the primary landing site in Inner Mongolia at around 2am UTC on Friday. Shenzhou-9 Return: The…

  • China’s Shenzhou-9 successfully docks with Tiangong-1

    China’s Shenzhou-9 successfully docks with Tiangong-1

    The three person crew of Shenzhou-9 – including the first Chinese woman to fly in space – have successfully conducted the first crewed docking for their country. Docking between their vehicle and the Tiangong-1 module – which has been on orbit since last year – was conducted at around 6:07am UTC on Monday morning. Chinese…

  • Chinese Long March 2F/G launches Shenzhou-9 on historic mission

    Chinese Long March 2F/G launches Shenzhou-9 on historic mission

    Four years after the launch of the historical Shenzhou-7 EVA mission, China is writing another chapter his space history with the launch of the manned Shenzhou-9 mission. On board, the three person crew – including the first female taikonaut – launched at 10:37 UTC on Saturday onboard the Long March 2F/G, from the 921 Launch Pad…

  • China launches Yaogan 15 via Long March 4C at short notice

    China launches Yaogan 15 via Long March 4C at short notice

    A Chinese Long March 4C has launched with a military passenger – understood to be the Yaogan 15 military satellite – from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center. Launch was recorded at 07:31 UTC, catching out most observers, with the only news of the launch on Tuesday leaking out on the internet, prior to official media…

  • China launches Tianhui-1B via Long March 2D

    China launches Tianhui-1B via Long March 2D

    China launched the second TH-1 Tianhui-1 satellite – Tianhui-1B – on Sunday, using a Long March 2D (Chang Zheng-2D) launch vehicle from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center. Launch took place at 07:10UTC from the 603 launch pad from the LC-43 launch complex.Chinese Launch: Like the first satellite, launched on August 24th, 2010, the new satellite will be used…

  • Chinese Long March 3B/E launches Apstar-7

    Chinese Long March 3B/E launches Apstar-7

    China opened their 2012 commercial launch manifest with the lofting of the Apstar-7 into orbit. The launch took place at 10:27UTC from the LC2 launch platform at the from the Xichang satellite Launch Center, using a Long March 3B/ (Chang Zheng-3B/E) launch vehicle. Chinese Commercial Launch: Apstar-7 satellite is an advanced telecommunications satellite based on…

  • China paving the way for first female taikonaut

    China paving the way for first female taikonaut

    China appears to be on the brink of selecting female taikonaut for the up-coming Shenzhou 9 mission, likely to launch in early June. Following the success of last year’s Shenzhou-8 and Tiangong-1 unmanned docking, 2012 is expected to mark another first, with a crewed Shenzhou-9 set to launch and dock with Tiangong 1. Chinese Preparations…

  • Long March 3C launches fifth Compass-G satellite into orbit

    Long March 3C launches fifth Compass-G satellite into orbit

    The Chinese were back in action on Friday, launching the fifth Compass-G satellite into orbit via their Long March 3C (Chang Zheng 3C) launch vehicle. The 16:12 UTC launch from the C2 launch complex of the Xichang Satellite Launch Center, in Sichuan Province was China’s third launch of the year. Chinese Launch: The Compass Navigation Satellite…

  • China opens 2012 with ZiYuan-3 launch via Long March 4B

    China opens 2012 with ZiYuan-3 launch via Long March 4B

    China launched a new high-resolution remote sensing satellite on Monday at 03:17 UTC using the Long March 4B (Chang Zheng-4B -Y26) launch vehicle from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center. According to the official Xinhua News Agency, the ZiYuan-3 its first high-resolution geological mapping satellite, to be used for civil purposes. Chinese Launch: The ZiYuan-3 (ZY-3) is…

  • China in surprise launch of Long March 4B with ZiYuan-1

    Despite an expected launch date of December 26, China launched their Long March 4B (Chang Zeng 4B) rocket at 03:26 GMT on Thursday from a wintry Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center. The launch – adding to what is a record year for the Chinese, a  year they beat the United States in orbital launches – carried the…