Reentry capsule testbed concludes Long March 7 mission, ushers new era for Chinese space program.
After orbiting the Earth for more than 20 hours, a Chinese testbed spacecraft landed in the Mongolian desert yesterday, June 26.
Designed by CASC - the Chinese Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation - the capsule is a technological pathfinder for the eventual replacement of the crewed Shenzhou spacecraft. Around 60% the size of the eventual spacecraft, it measures 7.5 feet tall and 8.5 feet wide, and weighs in at over 2.6 tons.
China’s next generation crew capsule testbed module in preflight processing.
The key objectives of the 12 orbit, 20 hour flight was “to collect aerodynamic and heat data for a re-entry capsule, to verify key technologies such as detachable thermal protection structure and lightweight metal materials manufacturing, and to carry out blackout telecommunication tests,” according to CASC.
The capsule was one of several payloads on the maiden flight of the Long March 7 rocket, with lifted off June 25, on the first mission from China’s newest spaceport on Hainan island. Accompanying the capsule into orbit were two data relay satellites, a debris-clearing testbed satellite named Aolong-1, and a scientific cubesat.
Graphic of the reentry capsule attached to the Long March 7′s Yuanzheng-1A upper stage. The capsule is located on the right of the image.
China is the third country to launch a crewed spacecraft technology demonstrator in the last two years. America launched Orion in December 2014, with India’s CARE module a few weeks later. It’s also the third country to debut a new medium-class launch vehicle in the last year, behind Russia’s Angara, and India’s GSLV Mk III.
Finally, the launch from Hainan island inaugurated the Wenchang space center, the second new spaceport to be constructed and used, behind Russia’s Vostochny in April, 2015. Both space centers are intended for long-term use, with the majority of launch operations converted over within the next few decades.
Long March 7 launches from Wenchang space center, June 25, 2016, carrying multiple payloads into orbit, including a reentry capsule testbed.
areudirty
snowghoul
s-u-f-j-a-n-s-t-e-v-e-n-s
discoholicmusic
