When will the Tianzhou-7 cargo spacecraft be launched?This is something that a lot of enthusiasts are paying attention to. Because the launch of the Tianzhou-7 spacecraft means that the mission of the Tianzhou-6 cargo spacecraft is about to end, and it also means that the launch time of the Shenzhou-18 spacecraft is not far away.
In fact, the Shenzhou-17 spacecraft was launched on October 26 and has been in orbit for two months. According to the mission arrangement, the Shenzhou 17 spacecraft will be in orbit for 6 months, that is to say, the Shenzhou 17 spacecraft will return to Earth in about 4 months. It was previously reported that the Shenzhou-17 spacecraft will return to Earth around April next year.
Referring to the previous flight experience, a few days before the Shenzhou-17 spacecraft returns to Earth, we will launch the Shenzhou-18 spacecraft to the Chinese space station, so as to ensure that our space station will always have astronauts stationed.
Although there are still almost 4 months before the launch of the Shenzhou-18 spacecraft, the Tianzhou-7 cargo spacecraft is ready to go. Previously, we announced the manned space mission in 2024, and will launch 2 Shenzhou manned spacecraft and 2 Tianzhou cargo spacecraft to the Chinese space station next year, of which the Tianzhou-7 cargo spacecraft will be the first to go to the Chinese space station, which is scheduled to be launched early next year. Although the plan for next year has been announced, the specific launch time of the Tianzhou-7 cargo spacecraft has not yet been announced, so we are not sure when it will be launched.
Tianzhou-7 was launched on January 15
During this time, everyone is paying attention to the launch of the Tianzhou-7 cargo spacecraft, although the official has not yet announced the specific time, but the network has appeared that the Tianzhou-7 cargo spacecraft will be launched on January 15 next year. What's going on?Could it be a leak?
Some time ago, the Tianzhou-7 cargo spacecraft and the Long March-7 Yao-8 carrier rocket used to launch Tianzhou-7 have been successively transported to the Wenchang Space Launch Site, and the next step is to carry out the launch site area and test work. The arrival of rockets and spacecraft at the launch site also means that the launch time of the Tianzhou-7 cargo spacecraft is very close.
The Tianzhou-6 cargo spacecraft was launched in May this year, and the flight time in orbit has been more than six months, and the time in orbit will reach eight months by January next year, and the mission is nearing completion. Combined with the launch time and operation time of the Tianzhou-6 cargo spacecraft, the Tianzhou-7 cargo spacecraft should be launched in January next year.
Because starting from the Tianzhou-6 cargo spacecraft, the new cargo spacecraft has been greatly upgraded and carries more materials, so it can support astronauts to operate in orbit for a longer time. Theoretically, the extra supplies could support an additional 3 months of operation. And before the supplies of the Tianzhou-6 cargo spacecraft are about to run out, the Tianzhou-7 cargo spacecraft will definitely be launched.
Although there are speculations on the Internet about the launch time of the Tianzhou-7 cargo spacecraft, which is accurate to the day or even minutes and seconds, this does not mean that it is a leak. Because the orbital parameters of our space station are public, a slightly more professional person may know when and where our space station is running after seeing the orbital parameters of our space station.
We disclose the orbital parameters of the space station, also for safety and other reasons. Because there are many satellites, spacecraft and other spacecraft operating in low earth orbit, these spacecraft need to have a safe operating orbit, if the orbital parameters of these spacecraft are not disclosed, then everyone may not know whether these spacecraft will collide with other spacecraft. After the flight parameters of these spacecraft are disclosed, the space agency will know that these spacecraft fly to the first place, and if there is a spacecraft that may approach or collide, it will carry out orbit change maneuvers in advance to avoid space accidents.
Whether it is a manned spacecraft or a cargo spacecraft, there needs to be a launch window to go to the space station, because the space station is flying at high speed in low-earth orbit, and the spacecraft launched from the ground needs to catch up with the space station and arrive at the right place at the right time, and then complete the rendezvous and docking with the space station assembly.
If the spacecraft is launched too early or too late, the space station assembly may be missed, and if this is the case, the spacecraft will take longer to rendezvous and dock with the space station assembly, and the process will also involve complex orbit change maneuvers that require a lot of fuel.
In order to welcome the arrival of these spacecraft, the space station usually undergoes orbit adjustments in advance to make room for the spacecraft to launch a window. Some netizens calculated and extrapolated based on the flight conditions and orbit changes of our space station, and speculated on the launch time of our spacecraft. Of course, this is just the speculation of netizens, and the specific launch time is subject to the official release.