China will have its own space station and the first module is already in orbit

Just the other day, a bright event in the world of cosmonautics took place, namely at 03:18 UTC on April 29, the successful launch of Tianhe, the first module of the orbital Chinese space station, took place. The broadcast could be watched live on the CGTN TV channel. This event is another important step in China's multi-year space program, the main goal of which is the exploration and scientific exploration of outer space.

China space exploration program

The very idea of ​​building its own orbital station appeared on September 21, 1992, when the Government of the Celestial Empire was was given official approval for the construction of its own station and its own space program called "Project 921».

According to this decree, three main stages were envisaged:

1. Launch of a manned spacecraft (completed successfully).

2. The launch of the orbital scientific laboratory (also completed with the launch of the Tiangong-1 and Tiangong-2 experimental modules).

3. Creation of your own space station.

At the moment, China is in the third stage of the "Project 921". By now, China has done some serious preparatory work and created all the required infrastructure on the ground. Two cosmodromes "Jiuquan" and "Wenchang" were implemented, a control system for tracking and controlling the trajectory of missiles was implemented.

How the first module of the Chinese orbital station was created

The very construction of the first module of the space station began back in 2013. Already in the second half of 2014, the main structure passed a whole series of bench tests. Docking adapters and assemblies were tested in June 2015. And in fact, the module was already ready to be sent into orbit in 2016. But due to the difficulties that arose with the launch vehicle, the launch into orbit had to be postponed.

So the Tianhe module has a mass of 22 tons, and its main function is to provide future cosmonauts in orbit with everything they need. The module can accommodate three astronauts for up to 6 months.

The module was delivered to orbit by the Changzheng-5B carrier rocket and this is just the second launch of this carrier rocket in this configuration. The first one took place in May 2020, during which a prototype of a new-generation Chinese manned spacecraft was delivered into orbit.

The solemn moment of the start can be seen in the video below.

What's next

So already in May of this year, the module will visit the Tianzhou-2 spacecraft, and in June, the Shenzhou-12 with the first Chinese astronauts on board will be sent to the module.

Thus, by the end of this year, China will receive its own space station in orbit, which means that the struggle for space is becoming more acute.

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