China set to launch final mission to complete its own orbital space station
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The Long March-2F rocket being transferred to the launching area at Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in China's Gansu province on Nov 21.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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BEIJING – China will launch the Shenzhou-15 spacecraft to its space station at 11.08pm on Tuesday, the final mission in the country’s plan to complete the crewed orbital outpost.
The China Manned Space Agency said in a news conference on Monday that three astronauts – Mr Fei Junlong, Mr Deng Qingming and Mr Zhang Lu – would be onboard. The space station will be handed over to them within a week by the three astronauts who arrived in early June.
“During the stay, the Shenzhou-15 crew will welcome the visiting Tianzhou-6 cargo ship and hand over the Shenzhou-16 manned spaceship, and are planning to return to China’s Dongfeng landing site in May next year,” said Mr Ji Qiming, a spokesman for the space agency.
“Currently, the space station combination is in stable status with all equipment functioning well, and ready for the rendezvous, docking and the crew handover.”
In April 2021, China began construction of the three-module space station with the launch of the Tianhe module, the main living quarters for the astronauts.
In July and November, it launched the remaining two laboratory modules, Wentian and Mengtian, where scientific experiments will be performed.
The completion of the space station, designed for a lifespan of at least 10 years, will be a milestone in China’s ambitions in low-earth orbit, with the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s ageing International Space Station potentially ceasing operations by the end of the decade. REUTERS
