BEIJING, June 4 (Xinhuanet) -- A spokesman from China’s manned space program says the Shenzhou-10 spacecraft will be launched in the middle of this month. The spacecraft will carry three astronauts to the Tiangong-1 space module, which was launched into low earth orbit two years ago.
CCTV reporter Tang Bo went to the Jiuquan satellite launch center in Northwestern China’s Gansu province to find out how preparations are going for the launch.
Moving closer to launch day -China’s Shenzhou-10 spacecraft and the Long March rocket have undergone a month of comprehensive technical checks, after being assembled in an assembly building.
The rocket is now being moved to the launch pad for final pre-launch preparations.
Xu Youxi, engineer of Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, said, “The vertical transportation approach is adopted under the principle of strengthening the function of the vehicle assembly area and simplifying that of the launch pad area. In other words, we can test the rocket and the spacecraft as much as we can in the assembly building to guarantee its quality before it’s sent out to the launch pad where the working environment is less suitable for technical checks.”
The launch vehicle is carried on this mobile launch platform from the vehicle assembly building to the launch pad. It moves on a 20 meter wide rail track, and carries the launch vehicle vertical stack on a maximum speed of 25 meters per minute. It takes 60 minutes to complete the 1,500 meter journey to the launch pad.
One and a half kilometers may not seem like a long distance, but moving a multi-ton rocket is never an easy task.
Risk factors such as wind speed and temperature will be taken into consideration before making the decision to transfer the rocket.
Xu Youxi said, “The biggest challenge during the vertical transportation process is to synchronize the motor of the mobile launch platform and the rail track. There could be rail grinding which can create shock forces and further affect the spacecraft and the vehicle if the problem is not handled well.”
When the launch vehicle arrives at the launch pad, four rotating platforms on the two sides of an adjacent tower are swung around it to allow for fuelling and final checkout procedures.
The tower is a 75 meter-high steel structure that is designed to power the launch vehicle and spacecraft with electricity and transfer the liquid and solid fuel.
Over the next couple of days, more tests will be conducted on the spacecraft, the rocket, and on the coordination between the launch pad and the launch control center before blast off.
(Source: CNTV.cn)
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