CNSA news, Updates and Discussions

[skywatcher]

A Long March 5 rocket launched the Tianwen-1 Mars mission to attempt China’s first landing on Mars on 23 July 2020. The robotic mission includes an orbiter, a lander and a mobile rover to explore the surface of Mars.
It is the 340 flight of Long March series.

Coming up next:
A Long March 4B rocket will launch a Ziyuan-03 optical 3D mapping satellite on 25 July 2020.

 

[skywatcher]

 

[skywatcher]

 

[skywatcher]

It should be noted that there are considerable disctinctions between the mockup and the real rover in appearance because many detailed were removed for simplification.

various rovers undergoing test

 

[skywatcher]

A Long March 5 rocket launched the Tianwen-1 Mars mission to attempt China’s first landing on Mars on 23 July 2020. The robotic mission includes an orbiter, a lander and a mobile rover to explore the surface of Mars.
It is the 340 flight of Long March series.

A Long March 4B rocket launched a Ziyuan-03 optical 3D mapping satellite on 25 July 2020.
It is the 341 flight of Long March series.

 

[skywatcher]

It should be noted that there are considerable disctinctions between the mockup and the real rover in appearance because many detailed were removed for simplification.

I think this is the real Tianwen Mars rover. It looks quite different from the model showed to the public while both has the same dimensions. Secretive as always. Hmm... The screenshot pic is from a video that I don't know where it is.

 

[skywatcher]

Another source is that yeasterday at a CNSA news conference on Tianwen and subsequent events, CNSA reconfirmed the launch of Chang'e 5 lunar sample return mission by the end of this year. The most likely launch date is 24 Nov 2020.

 

[skywatcher]

Tianwen Mars spacecraft

 

[skywatcher]

A Long March 4B rocket launched a Ziyuan-03 optical 3D mapping satellite on 25 July 2020.
It is the 341 flight of Long March series.

A Long March 2D rocket launched a Gaofen-04 Earth observation satellite on 6 Aug 2020.
It is the 342 flight of Long March series.

Coming up next:
A Smart Dragon rocket will launch two multi-spectral satellites in Aug 2020.

 

[skywatcher]

Another source is that yeasterday at a CNSA news conference on Tianwen and subsequent events, CNSA reconfirmed the launch of Chang'e 5 lunar sample return mission by the end of this year. The most likely launch date is 24 Nov 2020.

artistic rendering of Chang'e 5 moon sample return spacecraft

The 8.2 ton Chang'e 5 spacecraft is composed of four parts:
1.Descent Module
2.Ascent Module
3.Orbiting Module
4.Reentry Module

The Descent Module would collect about 2 kg of moon samples from 2 metres below the surface and place them in Ascent Module that will be launched from lunar surface. The Ascent Module will make an automatic lunar orbit rendezvous and docking with Orbiting Module that would transfer the samples into Reentry Module for their delivery to Earth.

The reentry module is similar to Chang'e 5 T1 below

 

[scatterStorm]

Meanwhile in China

 

[skywatcher]

Meanwhile in China

That's actually outdated news from 2019. Linkspace is not going to achieve anything in short term. It has serious problems in fund raising. Another startup iSpace has raised over $150 million and is pretty serious about rocket hopping and there will be a 100km hopping(first stage of methalox Hyperbola-2) in Dec 2020.

 

[skywatcher]

That's actually outdated news from 2019. Linkspace is not going to achieve anything in short term. It has serious problems in fund raising. Another startup iSpace has raised over $150 million and is pretty serious about rocket hopping and there will be a 100km(first stage of methalox Hyperbola-2) hopping in Dec 2020.

iSpace Hyperbola-1 solid launcher next launch is on 22 Oct 2020.

 

[skywatcher]

A Long March 2D rocket launched a Gaofen-04 Earth observation satellite on 6 Aug 2020.
It is the 342 flight of Long March series.

A Long March 2D rocket launched a Gaofen 9-05 Earth observation satellite on 23 Aug 2020.
It is the 343 flight of Long March series.

 

[skywatcher]

China is aiming to attract partners for an international lunar research station

China is aiming to attract partners for an international lunar research station

spacenews.com

HELSINKI — China has developed a vision for an international lunar research station and is seeking international involvement in the project.

The project, named the International Lunar Research Station (ILRS), is to be situated in the lunar south pole region. It will be developed through a number of upcoming robotic Chang’e missions across the 2020s and expanded through the 2030s.

The ILRS envisions the Chang’e-,6, -7 and -8 missions and potential international missions as forming the basic setup. In the early 2030s an expanded ILRS will involve long-term robotic and potentially short-term crewed missions. A long-term human presence at the lunar south pole is the goal for 2036-2045.

Objectives include “construction and operation of human[ity]’s first sharing platform in the lunar south pole, supporting long-term, large-scale scientific exploration, technical experiments and development and utilization of lunar resources’, according to a presentation to the Scientific and Technical Subcommittee of the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS) earlier this year.

China National Space Administration official Pei Zhaoyu stated last year that a lunar project will be jointly designed, with its implementation to be coordinated and the results and achievements to be shared.

Both Roscosmos and the European Space Agency have had discussions with China with regards contributing to the project.

Roscosmos chief Dmitry Rogozin last month told Russian media China and Russia had agreed they will “probably” build a moon research base together, following talks with Director of the China National Space Administration Zhang Kejian.

The two sides have earlier agreed to open the Chinese Chang’e-7 and Russian Luna 26 missions to science payload contributions from the other party.

ESA is also quietly interested. “At ESA we are following the Chinese lunar exploration plans very closely in order to see where our respective programmatic interest could meet, primarily the CE-6, -7 and -8 missions but also the ILRS initiative”, Karl Bergquist, ESA’s international relations administrator, told SpaceNews.

The ILRS initiative appears to somewhat echo the notion of the ‘Moon Village’ put forward by Jan Woerner, the Director General of the ESA.

China is expected to launch its Chang’e-5 lunar sample return mission on a Long March 5 around November. If successful, the backup Chang’e-6 mission will then target the lunar south pole for sample return around 2023-24.

Chang’e-7 is also scheduled for 2024. Chang’e-8, scheduled for around 2027, designed for in-situ resource utilization and 3D-printing technology tests, as well as life science and tentative deployment of a small scale inflatable, will follow.

China is aiming to attract partners for an international lunar research station

China is aiming to attract partners for an international lunar research station

spacenews.com

 

[skywatcher]

iSpace update: continuous variant thrust 200 seconds test on 8 July 2020

星际荣耀完成近12亿B轮融资，北京金融街资本运营中心领投 | 航天爱好者网

www.spaceflightfans.cn

Chinese startup iSpace raises $173 million

Chinese startup iSpace has raised $173 million(1.193 billion Yuan) in Series B round funding to be used in the development of Hyperbola rockets.

The new round of funding was led by following venture capital:

The new launcher Hyperbola-2(SQX-2) is powered by liquid methane-liquid oxygen rocket engines. A 100km VTVL test flight is scheduled for early 2021(delayed from Dec 2020).

It takes the total raised by iSpace to $300 million.

星际荣耀完成近12亿B轮融资，北京金融街资本运营中心领投 | 航天爱好者网

www.spaceflightfans.cn

 

[fire starter]

China is aiming to attract partners for an international lunar research station

China is aiming to attract partners for an international lunar research station

spacenews.com

HELSINKI — China has developed a vision for an international lunar research station and is seeking international involvement in the project.

The project, named the International Lunar Research Station (ILRS), is to be situated in the lunar south pole region. It will be developed through a number of upcoming robotic Chang’e missions across the 2020s and expanded through the 2030s.

The ILRS envisions the Chang’e-,6, -7 and -8 missions and potential international missions as forming the basic setup. In the early 2030s an expanded ILRS will involve long-term robotic and potentially short-term crewed missions. A long-term human presence at the lunar south pole is the goal for 2036-2045.

Objectives include “construction and operation of human[ity]’s first sharing platform in the lunar south pole, supporting long-term, large-scale scientific exploration, technical experiments and development and utilization of lunar resources’, according to a presentation to the Scientific and Technical Subcommittee of the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS) earlier this year.

China National Space Administration official Pei Zhaoyu stated last year that a lunar project will be jointly designed, with its implementation to be coordinated and the results and achievements to be shared.

Both Roscosmos and the European Space Agency have had discussions with China with regards contributing to the project.

Roscosmos chief Dmitry Rogozin last month told Russian media China and Russia had agreed they will “probably” build a moon research base together, following talks with Director of the China National Space Administration Zhang Kejian.

The two sides have earlier agreed to open the Chinese Chang’e-7 and Russian Luna 26 missions to science payload contributions from the other party.

ESA is also quietly interested. “At ESA we are following the Chinese lunar exploration plans very closely in order to see where our respective programmatic interest could meet, primarily the CE-6, -7 and -8 missions but also the ILRS initiative”, Karl Bergquist, ESA’s international relations administrator, told SpaceNews.

The ILRS initiative appears to somewhat echo the notion of the ‘Moon Village’ put forward by Jan Woerner, the Director General of the ESA.

China is expected to launch its Chang’e-5 lunar sample return mission on a Long March 5 around November. If successful, the backup Chang’e-6 mission will then target the lunar south pole for sample return around 2023-24.

Chang’e-7 is also scheduled for 2024. Chang’e-8, scheduled for around 2027, designed for in-situ resource utilization and 3D-printing technology tests, as well as life science and tentative deployment of a small scale inflatable, will follow.

China is aiming to attract partners for an international lunar research station

China is aiming to attract partners for an international lunar research station

spacenews.com

good but plz don't start claiming moon as your territory.

 

[no smoking]

good but plz don't start claiming moon as your territory.

We won't as long as India does not move McMahon line over there.

 

[fire starter]

We won't as long as India does not move McMahon line over there.

Actually it was British.

 

[skywatcher]

eerie Moon rocks imaged by Yutu