Fengyun 4B launched
03 June 2021
In the early morning of the 3 June, China sent the new Fengyun 4B (FY-4B) meteorological satellite into planned orbit from the Xichang Satellite Launch Centre in Sichuan Province. The satellite was launched by a CZ-3B rocket at 00:17 BJT. This was the 372nd flight of a Long March rocket. The first of China's new-generation meteorological satellites in geostationary orbit, the FY-4B will be used in the fields of weather analysis and forecasting, and environmental and disaster monitoring.
MORE...
35th Episode of Dongfang Hour broadcast
30 May 2021
This week's episode of the Dongfang Hour includes details on the launch of the Tianzhou 2 cargo mission, China’s Efforts to ensure a successful deployment of Zhurong on the Martian ground and a summary of the Euroconsult webinar on China Satellite Manufacturing Chain.
MORE...
Link to the related The Dongfang Hour Newsletter - Issue #4
Shenzhou 12 mission will include EVAs but not woman taikonaut
31 May 2021
Yang Liwei, China's first taikonaut and Deputy Director of CMSA told Chinese media that the upcoming Shenzhou 12 mission will include EVAs of 2 crew members at a time for working in the open cosmos. However, all 3 crew members are trained for EVAs. The crew composition for the manned missions Shenzhou 12, 13, 14 and 15 is concluded and will involve taikonauts from the from the 1st and 2nd batch of astronauts (2011 selection). While Shenzhou 12 will be a all-male crew, the 3 missions after SZ-12 will include always a female crew member. Those missions are planned as a 6 month stay in space. All taikonauts are undergoing intensive training to prepare them for their tasks.
MORE....
A closer look at Tianzhou 2
30 May 2021
The Tianzhou 2 cargo ship has a length of 10.6 m and a width of 14.9 m when its two solar arrays are fully deployed. With a maximum take-off weight of 13.5 t, it has a payload capacity of 6.9 t.
MORE...
MORE...