China's Space Program News Thread

[Xizor]

This is the "miss-understanding due to similar looks" that I was talking about. It is similar but not necessarily the same inside with same capability.

This is what was claimed and a speculation, but not proven or demonstrated so far. My question was about the "can". I'd like to see it doing it before I believe.

Can Canadarm2 function on the truss? If yes, then there is no use of these ports. In this working mode, there is no crawling.

Or the arm has to be connected to these port to function? If yes, the truss is doing the moving not the arm. This is not really "crawling" just like F-35B is not really TVC in the sense of SU-35 and F-22.

I didn't mention it was same inside. Yes, the Canadarm 2 can move like that. The ports and truss both are needed to work.

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[Xizor]

Since 2002 the canadarm2 has been attached to a mobile trolley that runs in rails spanning the entire length of ISS main truss. So there is no need for it detech itself on the end connected to the trolley to move around the station.

But between 2000, when it was first installed, and 2002, when the trolly and truss system was installed, the canadarm moved around the outside of ISS modules using the same method as the arm of Tianhe. in the time no other means of movement was available to the Cabadarm 2.

This. There are videos of Canadarm moving about without truss in the time-lapse reconstruction of space station assembly. @taxiya

 

[paleski]

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JIUQUAN, July 5 (Xinhua) -- China sent a new meteorological satellite into planned orbit from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China on Monday morning.

The satellite, Fengyun-3E (FY-3E), was launched by a Long March-4C rocket at 7:28 a.m. (Beijing Time), and this was the 377th flight mission of the Long March rocket series, according to the China National Space Administration.

Equipped with 11 remote sensing payloads, FY-3E will be the world's first meteorological satellite in early morning orbit for civil service.

It is designed with a lifespan of eight years and will mainly obtain the atmospheric temperature, humidity, and other meteorological parameters for numerical prediction applications, improving China's weather forecast capacity.

It will also monitor the global snow and ice coverage, sea surface temperature, natural disasters, and ecology to better respond to climate change and prevent and mitigate meteorological disasters.

In addition, the satellite will monitor solar and space environments and their effects, as well as ionospheric data to meet the needs of space weather forecasts and supporting services.

The satellite and rocket were developed by the Shanghai Academy of Spaceflight Technology. It operates under the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation.

 

[anzha]

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JIUQUAN, July 5 (Xinhua) -- China sent a new meteorological satellite into planned orbit from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China on Monday morning.

and a lil more:

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[PeregrineFalcon]

It is designed with a lifespan of eight years

I've always wondered why the life span of these things are quite short. With all the trouble and expense taken to design and launch satelittes why not do something that can last maybe at least 20 years? Does anyone know?

 

[Xizor]

I've always wondered why the life span of these things are quite short. With all the trouble and expense taken to design and launch satelittes why not do something that can last maybe at least 20 years? Does anyone know?

Fuel stores for orbital correction and maneuvers are finite and limited. Technology ages as years go by. Hence.

 

[AndrewS]

Vastly easier to launch masses off the Moon, which is why I want to make the solar panels (which are like 99% of the mass of an SPS) from lunar substances.



Easier but far more expensive to launch from Earth. Making the panels on the Moon will add complexity but save a bundle; China's engineering population is large enough to handle complex projects -- which we're seeing right now with a successful orbiter/lander/rover combination at Mars on the first try.



An SPS's solar panels do not need the latest tech; if we use lunar mass for them, and enough propellants are at hand, it's possible to compensate for panels of less efficiency by simply launching extra panels. Hence a factory can be simple, a solar powered SiO2 refinery and some 3D printers.

Railguns might be possible for launching the finished panels from the Moon. It may be possible to time the launches so the panels can arrive at GEO with precisely the right velocity. So mining Phobos/Ceres for propellants might not even be necessary; I'll have to think about this.

Remember that Starship is targeting launch costs of $10/lb.

If they get anywhere near that, then it will be far cheaper to launch solar panels from the Earth than to develop a solar panel factory on the Moon (which would take billions and years to debug. The lower gravity and lunar dust pose all sorts of challenges)

Best to focus on nearer-term developments which will be the first to be profitable and viable.

That means lower costs from reusable Methalox rockets launched from Earth.
Then that opens up more possibilities for orbital or Moon-based industries.

 

[anzha]

If they get anywhere near that, then it will be far cheaper to launch solar panels from the Earth than to develop a solar panel factory on the Moon (which would take billions and years to debug. The lower gravity and lunar dust pose all sorts of challenges)

Not to be a party pooper, but it will remain cheaper to just place them on the ground. I really, really want these, but...terra firma remains cheaper than ad astra.

 

[taxiya]

This. There are videos of Canadarm moving about without truss in the time-lapse reconstruction of space station assembly. @taxiya

At 0:23 the arm is attached to the module with both attachment ports at the lower side of the module. Then at 0.27, the arm is moved to the truss on the upper side of the module. The CG does not demonstrate how that movement was made, then the arm remains on the truss till the end of the CG.

 

[taxiya]

Continue to 8651,
The module that the arm was attached initially was "Unity"? During the time before the truss was installed, was the arm always on Unity? If yes, then there was no reason for it to move, and probably it never did.