Discussion The Ultimate Chinese Space Discussion Thread!

[fsci123]

China plays 'America the beautiful' during satellite launch - YouTube

Are you/they serious?

 

[T.Neo]

Are you/they serious?

Of course not. China is a nation of evil commies who are steely intent on obliterating the United States off the world map.

It is, of course, common knowledge that every good Chinese citizen practices America-Destroying techniques daily.

There is no hope for you now. Your only chance for survival is nuclear weapons wielded by foreign policy written by Micheal Bay. And constantly insisting on outdated, inappropriate "evil commie" stereotypes for everyone else who launches cool spaceships into orbit.

 

[orb]

Aviation Week: China Set To Launch Space-docking Craft

Universe Today: China’s Shenzhou-8 Mission Poised For Launch

 

[Scruce]

Ah, Shenzhou 8. If the mission is successful, it will make China the fourth country to independently dock an unmanned spacecraft to a space station, after Russia, the USA and Japan.

Let's hope all goes to plan.

 

[MattBaker]

Ah, Shenzhou 8. If the mission is successful, it will make China the fourth country to independently dock an unmanned spacecraft to a space station, after Russia, the USA and Japan.

Well, actually the Japanese HTV does not dock with the ISS, it's berthed (it "parks" near the ISS and Canadarm2 docks it on a free port), so it's not really the same like Shenzou/Soyuz/ATV/Shuttle/Progress-like-docking (although berthing seems to be more difficult than docking, in my opinion).

 

[Cosmic Penguin]

Aviation Week: China Set To Launch Space-docking Craft

Universe Today: China’s Shenzhou-8 Mission Poised For Launch

Rollout pictures:

Short rollout video (in Chinese)

I have seen an unconfirmed launch time of around 6 a.m. local time on November 1st (~22:00 UTC on October 31st), but that could still subject to change. I will make a more detailed report on the upcoming Shenzhou 8 mission and the rendezvous / docking attempts later.

 

[orb]

RIA Novosti: China to launch 20 space freighters with 25 satellites in 2011 - aerospace expert

 

[Cosmic Penguin]

RIA Novosti: China to launch 20 space freighters with 25 satellites in 2011 - aerospace expert

Which means the Chinese will go crazy launching rockets in November and December: I count 12 orbital launch attempts with 12 satellites in 2011 as of this moment (with 1 failure). Which means there will be 8 more launches and 13 spacecrafts going up in the next 60 days! :blink:
And I am unable to match the number of satellites (even after accounting that several scheduled military launches are known to carry multiple payloads), so there might be some surprises lurking around...

 

[MattBaker]

I think the Shenzou 8 mission, which will launch the day after tomorrow, is one of the most important missions in this year.
China must proof that they could dock two spacecrafts, without this, no manned space station, no bigger stations like Tiangong 3, no Moon/Mars mission.
If they fail unexpectedly (I think everyone will be fine), they have trouble with all of their plans for the next years.

And a general question, what is easier, a Gemini 8-mission, so a manned docking, or a Shenzou 8 (I think the numbers are intended to be so), unmanned docking? (Or Progress vs Soyuz, Gemini didn't have the computer ressources we have today)

 

[Scruce]

Euronews - China hopes Shenzhou 8 will aid space lab project

From the article:

The blast-off marked a successful launch for China in a mission that will test its bid to become a major power in space.

The unmanned Shenzhou 8 craft was sent into orbit from northwestern China, another step in a programme that aims to build a full space laboratory that can house astronauts – the Chinese call them ‘yuhangyuans’ – for long stretches.

After a couple of days, 340 kilometres above the earth, the Shenzhou 8 will attempt to join the Tiangong 1 module launched in September, before they circle the globe together. If successful, it will be the first time China has joined two space vehicles together.

Wu Ping, a spokeswoman for China’s manned space programme, said Beijing was working with Germany under an agreement signed in 2008.

“Shenzhou 8 is equipped with biological cultivation experimental devices including bio-incubators provided by Germany and controlling and docking devices provided by China. This equipment will enable Chinese and German scientists to conduct 17 research programmes aboard Shenzhou 8,” she said.

The cooperation is expected to help Chinese astronauts and engineers prepare for future manned space missions. Next year, Shenzhou 9 is due to be launched with a three-member crew.

China hopes to build its space station by about 2020 – a smaller one than the International Space Station jointly operated by the US, Russia and other countries.

Eight years after the first Chinese manned space mission, Beijing has its sights set on the moon – with plans for an unmanned landing next year and a possible manned mission in the future.

From the YouTube video:

The blast-off marked a successful launch for China in a mission that will test its bid to become a major power in space.

The unmanned Shenzhou 8 craft was sent into orbit from northwestern China, another step in a programme that aims to build a full space laboratory that can house astronauts - the Chinese call them 'yuhangyuans' - for long stretches.

 

[orb]

Discovery News: China's Unmanned Spacecraft Blasts Off

 

[Scruce]

Xinhuanet released this image of the future Chinese space station:

 

[MaverickSawyer]

Looks like a lot of Russian influence...

 

[Scruce]

Xinhua News: From Shenzhou 1 to 8: Chinese spacecraft grow by leaps and bounds over past decade.

JIUQUAN, Nov. 2 (Xinhua) -- China successfully launched its Shenzhou-8 spacecraft early Tuesday morning, marking a key step toward fulfilling the country's dreams of establishing its own space station.

The spacecraft is due to dock with the Tiangong-1 space lab module early Thursday morning. The Tiangong-1 was sent into space in late September.

The rendezvous and docking between Shenzhou-8 and Tiangong-1 are pivotal, as the procedures are a must for the construction of a permanent manned space station, which China hopes to build around 2020.

China has succeeded in launching seven spacecraft and sending six astronauts into space since 1999, building up experience for the launch of the Shenzhou-8, as well as the planned launches of the Shenzhou-9 and -10 in 2012.

The country's first spacecraft, the Shenzhou-1, was launched in November 1999, heralding the beginning of China's foray into manned space exploration.

The main goal of the Shenzhou-1 launch was to examine the performance and reliability of the launch vehicle, a Long March-2F carrier rocket, and evaluate key space exploration technology.

"Within only seven or eight years, China's space experts have completed what their foreign counterparts took three to four decades to achieve," said Wang Yongzhi, the chief designer of the Shenzhou-5 and -6 spacecraft.

The Shenzhou-2 was China's first "formal" unmanned spacecraft. It was launched in January 2001, conducting experiments in the areas of materials science, astronomy and physics in a microgravity environment.

The Shenzhou-3, launched in March 2002, carried human physical monitoring sensors and "dummy astronauts." It was also equipped with escape and emergency rescue functions.

Successful tests aboard the Shenzhou-3 laid a firm foundation for the realization of manned flight, Wang said.

Nine months later, the Shenzhou-4 was launched, featuring radiation-proof facilities and manual emergency rescue systems, despite the fact that the vessel was unmanned.

The launch of the Shenzhou-5 in October 2003 was another milestone for China's manned space program, as the mission successfully sent astronaut Yang Liwei into space, making China the third country to send a man into space after the Soviet Union and the United States.

The Shenzhou-5 orbited Earth 14 times before bringing Yang back to Earth in good condition after 21 hours and 23 minutes in space.

Two years later, China conducted another manned spaceflight, this time sending astronauts Fei Junlong and Nie Haisheng into space aboard the Shenzhou-6. The astronauts carried out scientific and medical experiments onboard the craft.

China achieved its first spacewalk, conducted by astronaut Zhai Zhigang, with the launch of the Shenzhou-7 in September 2008. Zhai carried out the spacewalk for 19 minutes and 35 seconds while astronauts Liu Boming and Jing Haipeng remained inside the Shenzhou-7.

China thus became the third country in the world to conduct extravehicular activity in space, following the Soviet Union and the United States.

The first seven Shenzhou spacecraft were launched from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China's Gobi Desert, using Long March-2F carrier rockets to launch all of the vessels. The Shenzhou-8 and Tiangong-1 were launched from the same center with upgraded launch vehicles.

China's efforts to achieve human spaceflight have been "slow-paced but steady," according to John Logsdon, a professor emeritus of political science and international affairs at George Washington University.

China will send the Shenzhou-9 and -10 for another two docking missions in 2012. At least one of the two spacecraft will carry astronauts.

Once China has mastered rendezvous and docking procedures, it will be armed with the capacity required for building a permanent space station, said Zhou Jianping, the current chief designer of China's manned space program.

"It will make it possible for China to carry out space exploration on a larger scale," Zhou said.

 

[orb]

Universe Today: China Technology Surges Forward with Spectacular First Docking in Space

SPACE.com: Inside China's Space Rendezvous Success (Infographic)

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[orb]

Parabolic Arc: AIAA Deepens Cooperation With Chinese Space Scientists

SPACE.com: NASA Chief Says US Could Work with China in Space

 

[orb]

SPACE.com: China Opens 'Space' Post Office on Docked Spacecraft

 

[N_Molson]

Which means the Chinese will go crazy launching rockets in November and December: I count 12 orbital launch attempts with 12 satellites in 2011 as of this moment (with 1 failure). Which means there will be 8 more launches and 13 spacecrafts going up in the next 60 days!

China has the economic & industrial power to sustain an ambitious space program. Now they are (successfully) validating the technologies & their hardware. If USA/Russia/Europe continue to play this stupid banking "Eurodebt" game (off topic, but that's nothing else), the next prestigious achievements (and not only in space) will be Chinese. Not that it is a big problem for me, as long as mankind closes from the stars...

 

[IronRain]

Spaceflight Now: Two women among finalists for China's next spaceflight

Two female astronauts are among the candidates to fly on China's upcoming human space mission, which could attempt a manual docking with a bus-sized orbital laboratory next year, according to Chinese media.

The female astronauts, both cargo airplane pilots, are among nine finalists for one or two crewed flights in 2012, China's state-run Xinhua news agency reported at the end of October.

Xinhua quoted Chen Shanguang, director of the Astronaut Center of China, as saying China must assess both males and females on missions in order to advance its space progam.

"Space exploration activities would be incomplete without the participation of female astronauts," Chen said, according to Xinhua.

The former Soviet Union flew Valentina Tereshkova, a female cosmonaut, in 1963. The first U.S. woman astronaut was Sally Ride, who flew on the space shuttle in 1983.

Xinhua reported both Chinese female astronauts are married and around 30 years old, but official sources did not disclose their names.

 

[orb]

NASASpaceflight: Long March 4B launches YaoGan Weixing-12 for China