On December 26, the Long March 11 carrier rocket developed by the First Academy of China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation ignited and lifted off in the waters near Yangjiang, Guangdong, and successfully put the test 24C satellite into the predetermined orbit, and the launch mission was a complete success. This launch is the 17th launch mission of the Chang-11 rocket since its first flight, and it is also the first time that the Chang-11 rocket has carried out a launch mission in the waters near Yangjiang, Guangdong.
Four days ago, this reporter set off from Beijing and traveled more than 2,000 kilometers to Yangjiang City, Guangdong Province. "I hear your accent like you're from out of town, you're here for a tourWe've had a lot of fun lately. I heard that I was shooting rockets in the sea some time ago, so recently everyone likes to go to the beach to see if they can pick up the rocket wreckage. Yangjiang online car-hailing drivers introduced the recent "Yangjiang Interesting Stories" to reporters.
The selection of the Yangjiang launch site comprehensively considers the satellite orbit requirements, launch safety, mission realization and other factors, which is a direct reflection of the flexibility of sea launch, and at the same time accumulates valuable experience for possible future sea launch business. Jin Xin, commander-in-chief of the Changxi Rocket, explained to reporters the reason for the location of Yangjiang.
Jin Xin is also the commander-in-chief of the Jielong-3 rocket, and most of the model team members of the two types of rockets coincide, "On December 6, the Jielong-3 rocket carried out the launch mission, and we actually measured the environmental parameters of the transportation process during the rocket navigation, which provided an important basis for the Chang 11 rocket to perform the mission, and also fully assessed the mission adaptability of the launch site." Jin Xin told reporters that the two missions used the same launch ship, and the launch interval was only 20 days (including 12 days for the round-trip ferry time of the launch ship), which set a record for the shortest time interval between the sea launches of the two types of rockets, laying the foundation for the high-frequency launch of solid rockets at sea.
In the early morning of December 19, the launch ship "escorted" the Chang-11 rocket from Shandong. "The team members accompanying the ship will report the status of personnel, product status, sea conditions, climate and other aspects in the group every day. Jin Xin explained that the process of channel design and adaptability analysis of long-distance maritime transportation requires coupling analysis at the level of time and space, and it is also a cross-border integration of aerospace technology and offshore technology.
After five and a half days, the Chang 11 rocket arrived in the waters near Yangjiang in Guangdong Province as scheduled, but the complex sea conditions in winter brought many variables to the follow-up work.
The biggest difficulty of this mission is that the wind and waves in the launch area are relatively large. Jin Xin said that the sea conditions at the launch point are complex, and it may face difficulties in anchoring and staff boarding and evacuation before shooting.
When the sea conditions are good, the two boats are docked side by side, and the transfer can be achieved back and forth with only pedal personnel. When the sea conditions are a little worse, the operator needs to be "grabbed" onto the ship using cranes and cages. According to Jin Xin's analysis, the sea conditions in the launch area are complicated and the wind and waves are too strong, so it is necessary to formulate a thorough plan for personnel boarding and evacuation before the launch in advance. The test team must always pay attention to the meteorological information and constantly deduce the emergency plan. However, they had limited time to "solve the problem", and there were only 22 hours left before they boarded the boat.
On the morning of the 24th, the first batch of team members assembled in Yangjiang Port. At this time, the sea surface of the port still looks calm, the sound of the waves crashing against the hull of the ship is mixed with the sound of the team talking, and the five-star red flag hanging on the mast of the ship is also reflected in the sun, which looks more eye-catching and solemn. The test team members lined up in a line, carrying suitcases and daily necessities, waiting to board the ship in turn, and they had to stay on board until the launch mission was completed.
In the afternoon, the second group of team members arrived at Yangjiang Port one after another. A wooden gangway was erected between the ship and the ground for the team members to board the ship, and a billboard erected next to the boarding gate was printed with the slogan "Lian Zhan Lian Won the Successful Conclusion". Before departure, the reporter asked again about the latest progress, Jin Xin said, "We plan to go to the anchorage with good sea conditions to carry out personnel boarding work, and then go to the scheduled launch point to carry out pre-launch test work." ”
In the evening of the same day, due to the sea conditions in the launch area could not meet the anchoring conditions, in order to rush the progress, the test team immediately carried out relevant test work. At the same time, we will focus on the meteorological and sea state forecasts for the past two days, and formulate plans and follow-up work plans.
On the morning of the 25th, Guan Hongren, chief designer of the Chang 11 rocket, stood on the deck of the command ship, the huge wind and waves drove the hull up and down. ”
Fortunately, soon after, the wind and waves began to "ease". The model team immediately started the anchor work. At noon, the anchoring work was successfully completed. In the afternoon, the model test team successfully completed the program drill ...... evacuation of the launch shipDespite all the preparations, no one dared to relax until the last moment.
At 6:39 on the 26th, the Chang 11 rocket took off, and a burst of cheers rang out on the deck. At this moment, the discomfort caused by seasickness was left behind, and their hanging hearts were finally completely let go.
Photo by Wang Letian.
Edited by Li Shuhui and Gao Yiming.
Proofreading Ren Changsheng.
Executive Producer: Huang Xi.