Tag: Chinese Space Station
-
Tianzhou-3 cargo craft launches to the Chinese Space Station
China successfully launched a Long March 7 from the Wenchang Satellite Launch Center at 07:10 UTC (3:10 PM Beijing time), beginning its journey to the Chinese Space Station. The spacecraft then docked to the station just under seven hours later. This launch of the Tianzhou-3 spacecraft comes days after the successful return of the Shenzhou-12…
-
Chinese Space Station taikonauts conduct second spacewalk
The crew of Shenzhou-12 has conducted the second spacewalk of the mission, and the second spacewalk of the new Chinese Space Station’s lifetime. The extravehicular activity (EVA) comes two months into their planned 90-day mission in low Earth orbit. Mission commander Nie Haisheng and first operator Liu Boming exited the Tianhe core module at 00:38…
-
Chinese Long March rocket launches oceanography satellite
A Long March 4B rocket takes off with China’s Haiyang 2D oceanography satellite. Credit: Xinhua A Long March 4B rocket successfully launched an oceanography satellite Wednesday from northwestern China, hours before officials at a different spaceport scrubbed the planned launch of a cargo ship to deliver supplies to the Chinese space station. China’s unpiloted Tianzhou…
-
NASA chief criticizes China for uncontrolled rocket re-entry
The core stage of China’s Long March 5B rocket, seen here before launch, re-entered the atmosphere over the Arabian Peninsula and Indian Ocean late Saturday. Credit: Xinhua NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said Saturday that China is failing to meet “responsible standards” on space debris after a massive Long March rocket stage fell back to Earth…
-
Large Chinese rocket tumbling toward toward unguided re-entry this weekend
A Long March 5B rocket lifts off with the Tianhe space station module. Credit: Xinhua For the second time in a year, a large spent Chinese rocket stage intentionally left in orbit is heading for an unguided plunge back into Earth’s atmosphere Saturday or Sunday somewhere between 41.5 degrees north and south latitude. The heavy-lift…
-
Assembly of Chinese space station begins with successful core module launch
A Chinese Long March 5B rocket lifts off with the Tianhe space station core module. Credit: Xinhua Chinese officials confirmed the successful launch of the first element of the country’s space station early Thursday, laying the keystone to a permanently-inhabited orbiting habitat that could welcome its first astronauts this summer. The liftoff of the Tianhe…
-
First element of Chinese space station ready for liftoff
The core module of China’s space station undergoes a vacuum test to simulate the conditions it will see in orbit. The core module of China’s space station is packaged inside the nose cone of a heavy-lift Long March 5B rocket for liftoff late Wednesday (U.S. time), the first of 11 launches to deliver astronauts, supplies,…
-
China to begin construction of space station this year
Components for the Long March 5B rocket that will launch the core module of China’s space station. Credit: CASC The core section of China’s space station is scheduled to launch in the next several months, the first of 11 missions carrying lab elements, cargo, and astronauts to the fledgling outpost over the next two years,…
-
China’s next-generation crew spacecraft lands after unpiloted test flight
The Chinese crew capsule after landing Friday, concluding an unpiloted orbital test flight. Credit: Xinhua A next-generation Chinese capsule designed to carry astronauts to the country’s planned space station, and eventually the moon, wrapped up a nearly three-day unpiloted orbital test flight Friday with a landing in northwestern China. The prototype for China’s new reusable…
-
Experimental Chinese cargo return capsule malfunctions during re-entry
Artist’s illustration of the experimental cargo return vehicle. Credit: CCTV An experimental cargo return craft launched as a secondary payload on China’s Long March 5B rocket malfunctioned during its return to Earth on Wednesday, while an unpiloted prototype for the country’s next-generation crew capsule continues raising its orbit before its scheduled landing Friday, Chinese officials…