China China launches 3 astronauts to space station

[xizhimen]

China launches 3 astronauts to space station​

June 5, 2022

BEIJING, June 5 (Reuters) - China launched a spacecraft on Sunday carrying three astronauts to the Chinese space station, due to be completed by the end of the year, as construction entered a pivotal stage.

A Long March-2F rocket transporting the Shenzhou-14, or "Divine Vessel" in Chinese, blasted off from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China at 10:44 a.m. (0244 GMT), a live broadcast by state television showed.


Construction of the space station began last year with the launch of the first and largest of its three modules - Tianhe - the living quarters of visiting astronauts. The modules Wentian and Mengtian are to be launched in July and October, respectively, docking with Tianhe to form a T-shaped structure.

Shenzhou-14 mission commander Chen Dong, 43, and team mates Liu Yang, 43, and Cai Xuzhe, 46, all from China's second cohort of astronauts, will live and work on the space station for six months before returning to Earth in December with the arrival of the Shenzhou-15 crew.


Former air force pilot Chen with Liu, who became China's first female astronaut in space a decade ago, and space mission debutant Cai, will oversee the rendezvous, docking and integration of Wentian and Mengtian with the core module.

They will also install equipment inside and outside the space station and carry out a range of scientific research.

"The Shenzhou-14 mission is a pivotal battle in the construction stage of China's space station," Chen told a news conference in Jiuquan on Saturday. "The task will be tougher, there will be more problems and the challenges will be greater."


The space station is designed for a lifespan of at least a decade.

Chinese astronauts blast off to space station as construction enters high gear

China sent three astronauts on Sunday on a six-month long mission to oversee a pivotal period of construction of its space station, whose final modules are due to be launched in the coming months.

www.reuters.com

 

[Jackdaws]

Well done China.

 

[xizhimen]

3 Astronauts Enter China's Space Station Module After Successful Launch and docking​

Jun 05, 2022 08:06 PM IST

Beijing/Jiuquan, Jun 6 (PTI) China's strategically significant space station project entered the final phase on Sunday as three astronauts entered its orbiting module after they were successfully launched to complete its construction this year to further the Communist giant's dream to emerge as a major space power.

Hours after they were launched into the designated orbit by the Shenzhou-14 spacecraft, which later docked with orbiting module of the space station called Tianhe and cargo crafts attached to it, the three astronauts, Chen Dong, Liu Yang, and Cai Xuzhe, successfully entered for a six-month stay, during which they will be completing its remaining construction, the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) said.

Earlier in the day, the spacecraft lifted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in northwest China. Minutes later, the official at the ground control declared the mission a great success, saying the spacecraft has reached its designated orbit.

The trio will cooperate with the ground team to complete the assembly and construction of the Tiangong space station, developing it from a single-module structure into a national space laboratory with three modules -- the core module, Tianhe, and two lab modules -- Wentian and Mengtian.

Once ready, China will be the only country to own a space station. The International Space Station (ISS) of Russia is a collaborative project of several countries.

The significant feature of China's under-construction space station is its two robotic arms, especially the long one over which the US has previously expressed concern over its ability to grab objects including satellites from space.

The 10-metre-long arm was in action previously seen in action successfully grabbing and moving a 20 tonne Tianzhou-2 cargo ship in a test, according to China Manned Space Engineering Office (CMSEO).

One of the noteworthy tasks for the Shenzhou-14 crew is to test and operate the large and small mechanical arms.

The core module is mounted with a big mechanical arm, and the Wentian lab module with a small one, Huang Weifen, the chief designer of the China manned space programme's astronaut system, told state-run Xinhua on Sunday.

The small arm is quite flexible and can perform operations with greater precision.

During the Shenzhou-14 mission, the crew will, for the first time, be aided by the small mechanical arm to get out of the space station, Huang said.

The space station is designed to be a versatile space lab, capable of accommodating 25 experiment cabinets for scientific exploration, he said.

The experiment cabinets can support experiments on life and ecology and biotechnology. Astronauts can conduct experiments on molecules, cells, tissues, and organs in Wentian by using diverse online detection methods, such as visible light, fluorescence, or microscopic imaging, he said.

Wentian lab can also simulate variable gravity environments to support the comparative study on the biological growth mechanism in different gravity conditions.

The latecomer Mengtian lab module is equipped with experiment cabinets to study the effects of microgravity, covering the physics of fluids, material science, combustion science, and basic physics.

Mengtian will have a space-based cold atomic clock system consisting of a hydrogen clock, a rubidium clock, and an optical clock, building a precise time and frequency system in space that can serve the gravitational redshift research, the measurement of fine structure constants, and other applications.

In February, China unveiled an ambitious plan for its burgeoning space industry which included over 50 space launches and six manned space flights to complete the building of its space station.

The China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC) said that China will carry out more than 50 space launches in 2022, sending over 140 spacecraft into space.

During their stay in orbit, the Shenzhou-14 crew will witness the two lab modules, Tianzhou-5 cargo craft and Shenzhou-15 crewed spaceship dock with the core module Tianhe.

They will rotate with the Shenzhou-15 crew in orbit, and return to the Dongfeng landing site in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region in December, Lin said.

China began constructing its three-module space station in April 2021 with the launch of Tianhe - the first and biggest of the station's three modules.

World News | 3 Astronauts Enter China's Space Station Module After Successful Launch | LatestLY

Get latest articles and stories on World at LatestLY. Beijing/ China's strategically significant space station project entered the final phase on Sunday as three astronauts entered its orbiting module after they were successfully launched to complete its construction this year to further the...

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[xizhimen]

China to launch new lab, robotic arm to under-construction space station in July​

Chinese astronauts, who docked at the space station on Sunday, will conduct several space walks to bring Tiangong closer to completion.​

June 6, 2022UPDATED: June 6, 2022 13:10 IST

Chinese space station robotic arm

A day after the third batch of taikonaut (Chinese astronauts) boarded the under-construction space station, Beijing revealed plans to launch the next module to the flying laboratory. The Wentian lab module carrying a small mechanical arm will be launched in July and will enhance Tiangong's construction and operation.

Tinagong is China's response to the International Space Station, which is aimed at boosting research, science experiments, and studies in zero gravity. The space station, currently under construction, is targetted to be completed by the end of this year as China mounts a massive space programme.

According to China's People's Daily, the weight and length of the mechanical arm set to be launched to the space station in July will be about half of that of the large one, while its positioning accuracy will be five times better than the latter. The module will be installed by the three taikonauts who docked to the station on Sunday.

The Shenzhou-14 mission will test nine different formations for the assembly of the space station during which they will change the capsule position twice, and conduct five dockings and three separations and evacuations. The taikonauts will also conduct space walks using robot arms.

"They will for the first time enter the Wentian and the Mengtian space labs to unlock and test more than a dozen experimental boxes and many others," Huang Weifen, chief astronaut system designer of the China Manned Space Program said in a statement.

The space station, when completed by the year-end, will lay a significant milestone in China's three-decade-long manned space programme, first approved in 1992 and initially code-named "Project 921". It will also flag the start of permanent Chinese habitation in space.

Construction began in April last year with the launch of the first and largest of its three modules - Tianhe - the living quarters of visiting astronauts. The lab modules Wentian and Mengtian are to be launched in July and October, respectively.

Shenzhou-14 mission commander Chen Dong, 43, and teammates Liu Yang, 43, and Cai Xuzhe, 46, all from China's second cohort of astronauts, will live and work on the space station for about 180 days before returning to Earth in December with the arrival of the Shenzhou-15 crew.


A Long March-2F rocket, which was used to launch China's first crewed spaceflight on the Shenzhou-5 mission in 2003, lifted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in the Gobi Desert in northwest China at 10:44 a.m. (0244 GMT) with the spacecraft Shenzhou-14, or "Divine Vessel", and its three astronauts.

China to launch new lab, robotic arm to under-construction space station in July

Chinese astronauts, who docked at the space station on Sunday, will conduct several space walks to bring Tiangong closer to completion.

www.indiatoday.in

 

[wolveray1]

Very impressive...

 

[xizhimen]

life of the previous 3 astronauts during their 6 months stay in the Chinese Tiangong space station

 

[xizhimen]

China’s space station may get the most precise clock in orbit –losing or gaining one second every 30 billion years​

• Optical atomic clock will be delivered to Tiangong in October if it clears technical evaluation next week, according to scientist familiar with project
• It is designed to achieve accuracy of one quintillionth of a second – equivalent to losing or gaining one second every 30 billion years

Published: 1:00pm, 25 Jun, 2022

The basic structure of China’s Tiangong space station is expected to be completed by the end of this year. Photo: Weibo


China’s new space station could soon have the most precise clock in orbit if it passes a technical evaluation next week, according to a scientist familiar with the project.
The optical atomic clock is designed to achieve accuracy of one quintillionth of a second – equivalent to losing or gaining one second every 30 billion years – which could make it a game changer for both military and civilian purposes.

If it passes the evaluation, the atomic clock – developed by a team led by the National Time Service Centre in Xian – will be delivered to the Tiangong space station in October for cutting-edge physics research, said the scientist, who declined to be named due to the sensitivity of the matter.

It will also form a timekeeping network with the BeiDou navigation satellites and ground-based time services over the next few years and is expected to improve accuracy by four orders of magnitude or more, the scientist said.

Optical atomic clocks enable faster communications and better navigation, but they are also important for national defence. Launching a new optical atomic clock programme in January, the US Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency said time synchronisation was “critical to achieving mission success in modern warfare”.

Satellite navigation and internet time are not possible without atomic clocks. Photo: Science Photo Library

The scientist said the Chinese atomic clock had already achieved quintillionth-second accuracy – or 10−18 uncertainty, in technical terms – on the ground but the team was waiting for a key test result to see how well it would perform in space.

Testing began in late April, according to the National Time Service Centre website.
The clock’s target uncertainty in orbit is also 10−18, according to the Chinese space station’s handbook and resources for international cooperation.

That level of uncertainty would be “amazing”, said Jun Ye, a physicist with the US National Institute of Standards and Technology and the University of Colorado Boulder.

“It’s essentially the best uncertainty – internationally – on the ground, and achieving such uncertainty in space will be incredible,” said Ye, who heads a team that has developed the world’s most accurate optical clock in a laboratory.

He said developing optical clocks that are smaller and lighter for use in space was quite different from creating them for use in a lab. “The major challenges lie with how to realise a compact size and robust operation,” Ye said, adding that his team did not plan to send their clock to a space station because of those challenges.

The lab-sized optical clock developed for Tiangong had to be more than 20 times smaller to fit on the space station’s experiment rack, according to state news agency Xinhua.

China put the first module of its space station into orbit last year and plans to add more modules, with the basic structure expected to be completed by the end of the year. Three astronauts are currently at the space station on a six-month mission overseeing the final stages of its construction.

Throughout history, people have used natural phenomena with regular periods of oscillation to keep track of time – relying on the rotation of the Earth and the movement of stars for thousands of years. That is, until the world’s first atomic clock was invented in 1949 to measure time by monitoring the frequency of radiation of atoms, which are extremely stable.

Today, satellite navigation and internet time are not possible without atomic clocks.

There are various types, based on the element used and the radiation detected. For instance, hydrogen atomic clocks help navigation satellites achieve metre-level positioning on the ground, while a strontium optical clock can measure height differences up to 1mm.

Many countries have developed their own atomic clocks but none are operating in space. Scientists in Europe have been working on a project called the Atomic Clock Ensemble in Space, which originally aimed to put a network of atomic clocks on the International Space Station by 2021 but has yet to do so.

China’s space station may get most precise clock in orbit – if it passes test

Optical atomic clock will be delivered to Tiangong in October if it clears technical evaluation next week, according to scientist familiar with project.

www.scmp.com