China's Space Program Thread II

[NeutralWarrior]

Thanks for the new thread.

 

[luosifen]

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Space enthusiasts can catch a glimpse of the Shenzhou-13 return capsule, which brought three Chinese space station taikonauts back to Earth after their six-month orbital trip, at the ongoing Beijing Science Carnival.


This is the first time the capsule has been put on display for the public since its touchdown on April 16. The parachute of the spacecraft and the debris of a Long March-3A carrier rocket are also on display at Beijing Science Center.


The science carnival, which kicked off Thursday, will offer the science-savvy audience an opportunity to engage with China's latest sci-tech achievements.


Space station elements are prominently featured at the event that will continue until Sept. 30.


Visitors can have immersive experiences of China's orbiting space station core module Tianhe and the newly-launched lab module Wentian using virtual reality devices.


Fitting instruments, toilets, sleep cabins, as well as experiment cabinets that are closely related to the life and work of taikonauts are also available for public view.

 

[taxiya]

I am aware that the single stack version for LEO is VTVL capable.

But the whole reason this CZ-5G/DY rocket is important is because it adopts basically the same architecture as the single stack VTVL reusable version....


And as I've written before, the most important thing about the future heavy and super heavy lift rockets is that their geopolitical and military significance would be greatly enhanced by being VTVL reusable for their first stages.

The 27t LTO for the CZ-5G is neat and all, and the lunar mission has some scientific significance yes...
.... but much more important is the potential reusable LEO (and GEO) launch capacity (which is likely to be fairly sizeable given it has a 70t LEO expended launch capacity).



For the Chinese space industry, the two most important things to watch out for in order of priority IMO is:
1. News on CZ-9 VTVL reusability
2. News on CZ-5G (three stack) VTVL reusability

Everything else is almost inconsequential, because those projects are going to be the rate limiting steps for proper future utilization of space for geopolitical and military means if needed.

Part of my post was to answer your question regarding that paper not mentioning VTVL variant of CZ-5DY. The answer is that you can't expect such information from a paper or research team that only concerns manned moon mission. It seems that you weren't really asking a question, but only to express "disappointment on the paper".

The rest of my post is only my observation of CASC's priority order.

 

[luosifen]

 

[tphuang]

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This is kind of big. China using it's space program to win over friends.

The UAE is a signatory of the US-led Artemis Accords, an international treaty that outlines responsible space exploration.

It is the first time a signatory of the accords is participating in a space project with China.

I wonder how this is going to work out. Clearly, some nations will see benefits in really cooperating with CNSA regardless of what US gov't might say.

 

[iantsai]

神舟十四号航天员乘组将于近日择机实施第二次出舱活动。

自2022年9月2日圆满完成首次出舱活动以来，神舟十四号航天员乘组先后完成了出舱活动恢复、机械臂测试与操作、第二次出舱活动准备等工作，持续开展空间材料研究、高等植物培养等空间科学实（试）验项目。

目前，神舟十四号航天员乘组状态良好，空间站组合体运行稳定，具备开展出舱活动条件。

Shenzhou-14 crew will take their second EVA soon.

Actually the Shenzhou-14 crew are the busiest team ever among all China's space exploration task groups.

They replenished the CSS with Tianzhou-4 supply, installed and ran the Wentian Lab Module and will redock it to the starboard side in September, and then welcome another Lab Module's arrival next month...

 

[taxiya]

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This is kind of big. China using it's space program to win over friends.


I wonder how this is going to work out. Clearly, some nations will see benefits in really cooperating with CNSA regardless of what US gov't might say.

Quote from the article

This November, the Emirates plans to launch its first Moon mission, which involves a 10-kilogram rover called Rashid.

A Japanese lander — Hakuto-R Mission 1 — will carry the rover to the lunar surface.

Without reading the details of the agreement, I can't be sure, but one possibility is that UAE is taking CNSA launch as a backup to the upcoming Japanese launch. Of course it can also be possible that UAE will have a 2nd rover regardless the fate of the Japan launched one.

 

[by78]

Quote from the article

This November, the Emirates plans to launch its first Moon mission, which involves a 10-kilogram rover called Rashid.

A Japanese lander — Hakuto-R Mission 1 — will carry the rover to the lunar surface.

Without reading the details of the agreement, I can't be sure, but one possibility is that UAE is taking CNSA launch as a backup to the upcoming Japanese launch. Of course it can also be possible that UAE will have a 2nd rover regardless the fate of the Japan launched one.

I think the collab is for future missions. Apparently, there will be more rovers sent to the moon.

 

[by78]

The Chinese space station in lunar transit.

 

[by78]

Space commode (lower-left hand corner of the image).