SPACE STATION CHECK-IN
‘ Divine Vessel’ makes first docking for manned mission
As the three astronauts of the Shenzhou- 12 manned spacecraft crew successfully moved into the Tianhe space core module at 6: 48 pm Thursday, following the epic rendezvous and docking with the orbiting destination in a rapid and automated fashion, Chinese people have entered its own space station for the first time in history.
It was a much shorter and more enjoyable ride for Chinese veteran astronaut Nie Haisheng when he embarked on his third space trip on Thursday morning. The Shenzhou- 12 manned spacecraft, in which Nie and his two fellow crew members were traveling, pulled off the country’s first- ever automated rapid rendezvous and docking for a manned spacecraft with the orbiting Tianhe space station core module at 3: 54 pm on Thursday, just 6.5 hours after the former was launched Thursday morning on the Long March- 2F Y12 carrier rocket from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in Northwest China’s Gansu Province, the Global Times learned from the China Manned Space Agency ( CMSA) on Thursday.
As some may wonder why it took a few hours to enter the space station’s core cabin after docking, Pang Zhihao, a Beijing- based senior space expert, told the Global Times that after Shenzhou- 12’ s docking with the core cabin, a series of tests were conducted by the astronauts, including sealing and locking tests, leak detection, pressure balance, and air purification.
“The process takes about one to two hours each time, sometimes longer,” Pang explained.
Based on the mission plan, the three new residents would conduct brief checks of their new home and rest after a long day of travel. On Friday, they are projected to open the door of Tianzhou- 2 cargo craft and unbox their supplies that had arrived ahead.
The crew’s smooth arrival marks yet another significant milestone in China’s progress in the field of manned space travel, with the first linear complex, comprised of the Tianhe core cabin in the middle, and Shenzhou- 12 manned ship and Tianzhou- 2 cargo ship each at one end, now completed.
The mission’s launch was broadcast live on CCTV, the country’s state broadcaster, and also livestreamed on China’s social media platforms on Thursday morning, drawing hundreds of millions of views and soon topping the trending list on China’s Twitter- like Sina Weibo.
Thrilled netizens, after five years of waiting since the last batch of astronauts visited space in 2016, brought the online community into a state of frenzy as they watched the three astronauts boarding the Shenzhou- 12 spaceship.
Emphasis on speed, safety
Compared with the previous Shenzhou series, the new model has greatly shortened the time of its space travel from launch to docking, reducing the duration from over 40 hours in the Shenzhou- 11 mission in 2016 to the current 6.5 hours.
The newly adopted autonomous rendezvous and docking capability, first used in the Tianzhou- 2 mission in late May, helped the craft to realize a docking with the space station’s core module in eight hour. Originally it took two days.
The success also shows that China has developed a highly advanced automation technology application in space and space tracking and monitoring capabilities, Wang Ya’nan, editor- in- chief of the Aerospace Knowledge magazine, told the Global Times on Thursday.
One of the key technological advances lies in the Guidance, Navigation & Control subsystem of the Shenzhou- 12 manned spacecraft, the core subsystem in charge of a series of operations from emergency rescue upon launch and altitude control during space flight, to the rendezvous and docking with the space station, the Global Times learned from stateowned space giant China Academy of Space Technology on Wednesday.
The GNC system was first adopted onboard China’s manned spaceship in 1999, and has been fully updated based on Shenzhou- 11’ s technical status. It uses units that had been verified from previous launches, including those from the Tianzhou- 1 cargo spacecraft, the new- generation manned spacecraft, and the Chang’e- 5 spacecraft, while updating system functions to adapt to more complex situations in the space station construction phase, and greatly improving the Shenzhou- 12 performance which shows fast, autonomous docking capability.
Following docking, the Shenzhou- 12 will berth and fly with the Tianhe core module for three months, marking another first in China’s space history.
Unlike China’s previous Shenzhou craft, Shenzhou- 12 will be able to return from a range of orbital locations, a design that is aimed to enhance the craft’s adaptability and reliability for its journey back to the Earth, and it would also mark a first in China’s space industry.
Largest space population
As observers pointed out, starting Thursday, there will be at least three Chinese astronauts working for a long period in space for the construction of China’s space station and future operations after 2022, and this number of space personnel is no less than that from the US and Russia, both major players in the International Space Station ( ISS), or from any other countries.
The three Chinese astronauts have brought the total space population to 10, bringing the number of human beings in space to double digits for the first time.
The Thursday mission has brought China to a world- leading position in terms of in- orbit astronaut population, as the country plans to rotate its astronaut candidates on a routine basis that ensures long- term human stays with no less than three people onboard the space station, which is at the same level as the US and Russia.
The fact that Chinese astronauts are excluded from ISS cooperation has motivated China’s manned space industry to pursue independent development, observers noted.
China’s progress in the manned space field should sound the alarm for the US, and prompt the latter to think twice about its current China policy, which is increasingly seeking the goal of containing and suppressing China’s technological development and even of decoupling from China in the sector, said Wu Xinbo, director of the Center for American Studies at Fudan University.
China has the capability to build a relatively independent development system. US efforts to contain China could only slow but would never stop China’s development, Wu noted.