The Chinese spacecraft “Shenzhou-12” with three astronauts on board successfully entered orbit and headed for the Tiangong orbital station under construction, according to the country’s Space Administration. This is the first manned flight since 2016 and the seventh in the framework of the Chinese space program.
The launch was carried out according to the schedule at 09:22 local time (04:22 Moscow time) from the Jiuquan cosmodrome on the border of Gansu province and the Inner Mongolia autonomous region (North China). To launch the vehicle into orbit, the Changzheng-2F (CZ-2F) launch vehicle was used. The ship “Shenzhou-12” has a crew consisting of the tycoonauts Nie Haisheng (commander), Liu Bomin and Tang Hongbo.
Shenzhou 12 is the fourth mission in the verification phase of key space station technologies and the first manned mission in the multi-module space station phase. As part of this flight, work will be carried out on the construction of the Tiangong station and issues of long-term stay in orbit will be worked out. The Shenzhou 12 mission will last three months.
In April this year, China successfully launched the Tianhe base module for its new Tiangong space station. It will be the third orbital station in the PRC and the first multi-module. The already launched module is the largest spacecraft developed by China. The total length of the Tianhe is 16.6 m, the maximum diameter is 4.2 m, and the take-off weight is 22.5 tons. The Tianhe can dock with three spacecraft at the same time for a short stay or two for a long time.
China plans to build a completely new Tiangong space orbital station during 2021. It will be T-shaped with a main module in the center and a laboratory capsule on each side. Each module will weigh more than 20 tons. When the station is docked with manned or cargo spacecraft, its weight can reach almost 100 tons. The station will operate in low earth orbit at an altitude of 340 to 450 km. The design service life will be 10 years with a possible extension up to 15 years.
China’s manned space program was launched in 2003, thus, Beijing is the third after the United States and Russia to fully master the technology of manned orbital flights. The Chinese program uses Shenzhou devices. The first taykunaut was Yang Liwei.
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