Image: Reuters Berita 24 English - China will launch a spaceship carrying three astronauts to the unfinished Chinese space station's co...
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| Image: Reuters |
Berita 24 English - China will launch a spaceship carrying three astronauts to the unfinished Chinese space station's core module, where they will work and reside for six months as building progresses.
According to a China Manned Space Agency official, a Long March-2F rocket carrying the Shenzhou-14 spacecraft will launch from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in Gansu's northern province at 10:44 a.m. local time (0244 GMT) on Sunday.
On board Shenzhou, which means "Divine Vessel" in Chinese, mission commander Chen Dong will be joined by Liu Yang and Cai Xuzhe.
Lin Xiqiang, an agency official, stated, "All preparations for the launch are practically ready."
Shenzhou-14 will be the third of four crewed missions required to complete the space station by the end of the year, and the seventh of a total of 11 missions.
With the launch of Tianhe, the first and largest of the station's three modules, China began construction of its three-module space station in April 2021.
Once the T-shaped space station is built, Tianhe, which is little larger than a metro bus, will serve as the living quarters for visiting astronauts.
The last two modules, the laboratory cabins Wentian and Mengtian, will be launched in July and October, respectively, following Shenzhou-14.
A robotic arm, an airlock cabin for visits outside the station, and living accommodations for an additional three astronauts during crew rotations will also be included aboard Wentian.
The crew from Shenzhou-14 will assist with the setup of Wentian and Mengtian, as well as perform functional testing on both modules.
The space station is expected to last for ten years. It will be somewhat heavier than Russia's decommissioned Mir, weighing 180 tonnes, and around 20% the mass of the International Space Station.
