Mengtian Experimental Module Successfully Launched, "T" Configuration of China Space Station to be Built
2022-11-01
(Mengtian experimental module tested on the ground) On October 31, 2022, China successfully launched the last segment of the main segment of the third module of the China Space Station, Mengtian experimental module, by using the Long March 5B carrier rocket at the Wenchang Space Launch Site in Hainan Province. Later, Mengtian experimental module and Tianhe core module will be rapidly rendezvous and docking, and the plane transposition will be carried out at the right time. At that time, the basic "T" configuration of the space station consisting of three modules will be fully completed. As a new generation carrier rocket with the largest low earth orbit delivery capacity in China, the Chang5B carrier rocket is the best choice to launch the main cabin segment of the space station. Previously, China successfully launched the space station, the core module and the sky inquiry experiment module in April 2021 and July 2022, respectively, using the Long 5B rocket. This time, the Long 5B rocket once again launched the Mengtian experimental module to the scheduled orbit. It also successfully launched three times in a row to declare to the world that the era of Chinese space station is coming! Huang Bing, the deputy chief designer of the Changwu Rocket, said that in order to meet the requirements of the large segment launch mission of the space station, the Changwu B Rocket has broken through a number of key technologies, including the 20.5m Asian largest fairing separation technology, the 4.1 m large diameter module rocket connection separation technology, the high thrust direct orbit entry deviation precise control technology, etc., and expanded the launch window from "zero window" to "narrow window" of ± 2.5 minutes, It greatly improves the reliability of the Long 5B rocket in carrying out the space station construction task. In addition, the Chang5B rocket uses only one and a half stages to directly enter the orbit, from ignition to orbit. It is also the only one stage semi direct to orbit launch vehicle in active service in China. Since interstage separation is one of the most complex and problem prone links in rocket flight, the fewer the number of stages, the fewer the separation times, and the lower the probability of failure. The first and a half stages of the Chang5B rocket are directly put into orbit, reducing separation times and further improving reliability. It is understood that the Changwu B will also undertake the launch mission of China's first large space survey telescope. At that time, the telescope will fly in the same orbit with the space station to carry out more space exploration and cutting-edge scientific research. In addition, ChangwuB will form a combination with the upper level of the Expedition Series in the future to form a multi satellite network launch capability, giving full play to the advantages of large carrying capacity and good economy of unit payload, and meeting the needs of different national launch missions. Li Pingqi, the chief designer of Long March 5B carrier rocket of the First Academy of Aerospace Science and Technology Group, told the Global Times that the Long March 5B series rocket had already been tested by a series of major national aerospace projects, and some major launch missions in the future also put forward new requirements for the Long March 5B rocket, including the launch mission of large volume application load. In addition, the transport capacity of the Long March 5 series carrier rockets is relatively large, which puts forward a demand for Long March 5 to carry out the "one rocket with multiple satellites" launch mission. In response to these needs, the project team has carried out relevant research and development work. On the basis of the small fairing of the long five rocket with a two-stage semi configuration, the project team is developing a larger fairing, such as the one with a length of 18.5 meters
Edit:Li Jialang Responsible editor:Mu Mu
Source:huanqiu.com
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