China's Space Program Thread II
- Thread starter Blitzo
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by78
General
The first stage now has 24 240-ton oxygen/kerosene engines, as opposed to 26 oxygen/kerosene engines.
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A major correction: The first stage now has 24 240-ton oxygen/kerosene engines, as opposed to 26
I guess for the moment they're going with a more mature technology.
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The 240t Kerosene engine is a first time. Also the lift off thrust is much higher at 5873t. I am guessing that the engine is a single combustion chamber variant of YF-130.The latest design iteration on the CZ-9 (Long March 9) carrier rocket presented by Mr. Long Lehao. The design is no longer stepped, meaning the entire rocket has a single diameter (10.6m). The second and third stages still use 120-ton supplementary combustion hydrogen-oxygen engines. The first stage now has 24 240-ton oxygen/kerosene engines, as opposed to 26 oxygen/kerosene engines.
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The slide also reveals that the LOX/CH4 engine is in 预研, prestudy. The 240t Kerosene engine would be in a much more mature stage, as much as YF-130. 240t also reduces the demand for engine test facility of 500t.
I'd guess by now CZ-9 (2011) is likely out of question, CZ-9(2022) is likely the one we will see in early launches, CZ-9(2021) may be a follow-on. If and only if LOX/CH4 engine's development is surprisingly fast, so fast to catch up 240t engine, would we see the 2021 variant being the first and only variant of CZ-9.
It is similar to EMALS steal Steam cat's show.
Which one is CZ-9 (2022) and which one is CZ-9 (2021) again? 24 kerolox vs 26 methalox on first stage?
The engine technology is not unimportant, but I think the biggest deal now is whether the CZ-9 configuration they pursue first will be compatible with VTVL reusability to be able to fast track a super heavy rocket to be reusable with minimal delay.
Whether it's metholox or kerolox, imo at this stage is very much a secondary consideration.
edit: the more I think about it, the more that the latest 2022, 24x 240t kerolox engine makes sense.
It's basically a single chamber version of YF-130 which is already quite far along with development, meaning they can minimize wastage of time and resources that they've already committed.
24 engines on the first stage also means they can easily configure it for VTVL reusability.
And with the continuous all stages being 10.6m, this thing is looking more and more like a SpaceX Super Heavy with a sensible second/third stage vs Starship upper stage.
.... edit: and the takeoff thrust of CZ-9 (2022) of 24x 240t engines of 5873t is the exact same as the takeoff thrust of CZ-9 (2011) in its first stage with four booster configuration giving it 12x 480t engines, below:
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lcloo
Captain
It is a hopping probe. It fires small rockets and shut down some moments later, so that the probe move up from the ground, and landed some distance away. It is more like jumping from one spot to another, rather than flying.
2022-09-18 18:54:07CGTN Editor : Jing Yuxin
The China National Space Administration (CNSA) on Sunday released a batch of scientific research results from its Mars probe Tianwen-1 for the first time.
The Tianwen-1 orbiter had been operating for 780 days and the rover Zhurong had traveled 1,921 meters on the surface of the red planet as of Thursday, according to the CNSA's Lunar Exploration and Space Program Center.
Both the orbiter and rover have completed targeted scientific exploration missions, and acquired 1,480 gigabytes of raw scientific data, the center said.
Using data gathered by Zhurong, Chinese scientists revealed the relationship between the formation of geological features and water activities on Mars by conducting a comprehensive study of these geological features in the landing area.
Chinese scientists have also found hydrated minerals in platy-like rocks, a layer of "duricrust," proving that there has been substantial liquid water activity at the landing area since the Amazonian epoch, which was about 1 billion years ago.
Scientists have also found that the Martian soil has high bearing strength and low friction parameters, revealing the site where the rover landed must have experienced wind and possibly water erosion.
These results revealed the impact of wind and water activities on Mars' geological evolution and environmental changes, and provided support for the hypothesis that there was once an ocean in the Utopian Planitia, according to the CNSA.
In addition, Chinese scientists have obtained a number of scientific results on the relationship between the density of rocks on the Martian surface and the degree of surface erosion, the distribution of ions and neutral particles in the near-Mars space environment, and the gravity field of Mars.
Relevant studies were published in Nature Astronomy, Nature Geoscience and Science Advances.
Future missions will continue to conduct remote sensing surveys and accumulate scientific data, said the CNSA.
The Tianwen-1 probe, consisting of an orbiter, a lander and a rover, was launched on July 23, 2020. On May 15, 2021, it touched down at the pre-selected landing area in Utopia Planitia, a vast Martian plain, marking the first time that China has landed a probe on the planet.
Americans have no shame.