China's long March 2F carrier rocket launched smoothly and successfully aboard the Shenzhou-12 manned spacecraft at the Jiuquan Satellite launch Center at 09:22 on June 17, CCTV News reported.This is nearly five years after the Shenzhou 11 mission in October 2016, China launched another manned spaceship.

The astronauts aboard the Shenzhou spacecraft are Nie Haisheng, Liu Boming and Tang Hongbo. Among the three astronauts, special-class astronaut Nie Haisheng participated in the Shenzhou-6 and Shenzhou-10 manned missions, special-class astronaut Liu Boming participated in the Shenzhou-7 manned mission, and second-class astronaut Tang Hongbo flew for the first time.

This is the 12th mission of the Shenzhou series of spacecraft, and it is also the seventh manned mission.

The flight goal of Shenzhou 12 is to dock the Tianhe core module of China's space station, and the three astronauts will become the first batch of "occupants" of the Tianhe core module.

According to the plan, they will stay in the space station for three months, which will set a new record for the number of days our astronauts have stayed in space. During their stay in space, they will carry out a series of operations such as extravehicular maintenance, equipment replacement, scientific application of loads, and so on.

1. Manned Arrow: long March 2F

The long March 2F rocket is extremely safe and is mainly used for manned spaceflight. The rocket is 58.34 meters high and consists of four boosters, a core first stage rocket, a core two stage rocket, a fairing and an escape tower. Among them, the core stage diameter is 3.35 meters, the booster diameter is 2.25 meters, and the escape tower is located at the top of the rocket, so the recognition of the long March 2F rocket is very high. In the initial stage of launch, once the astronauts are in danger, the rockets on the escape tower will be ignited quickly, which can quickly take the astronauts to a safe altitude and eventually land safely.

2. Space ferry: Shenzhou spacecraft

Shenzhou spacecraft is developed by our country and is used to transport astronauts to and from heaven and earth. The main body of the spacecraft consists of an orbital module, a re-entry module and a propulsion module.

The orbital module is a cylinder with a total length of 2.8 meters and a maximum diameter of 2.27 meters. One end is connected with the re-entry module and the other end is connected with the space docking mechanism. The rail module integrates many functions, such as working, eating, sleeping and cleaning. Solar panels are installed on both sides of the orbital module and are also supplied with electricity when flying alone.

The re-entry module is bell-shaped and has doors communicated with the orbital module. The re-entry capsule is the command and control center of the spacecraft, which is 2 meters long and 2.4 meters in diameter. It is equipped with seats for three astronauts to recline, for astronauts to ride during the take-off, ascent and return phases.

The propulsion module is cylindrical in shape, 3 meters long, 2.5 meters in diameter and 2.8 meters in diameter at the bottom. It is loaded with engines and propellants from the propulsion system, providing the spacecraft with the power needed for attitude adjustment and orbit adjustment and braking and deceleration, as well as some equipment for power supply, environmental control and communication systems.

3. Space Express Brother: Tianzhou spacecraft

On May 29, 2021, the Tianzhou-2 cargo spacecraft was successfully launched and carried out rendezvous and docking, propellant replenishment and combination flight with the "Tianhe" core module. The airtight cabin of the Tianzhou-2 spacecraft carries about 4.69 tons of cargo, 1.95 tons of propellant and nearly 6.64 tons of materials. These include consumables that can be used by three people for three months, two sets of extravehicular spacesuits and platform materials. We have made preparations for the living materials for the Shenzhou 12 astronauts stationed in the space station.

4. A very brief history of Shenzhou spacecraft mission

Shenzhou-1 was launched on November 20, 1999 and successfully returned on November 21, 1999. The whole journey lasted 21 hours and 11 minutes. This is the first unmanned experimental ship.

Shenzhou II was launched on January 10, 2001 and successfully returned on January 16, 2001. the whole journey lasted 7 days, 10 hours and 22 minutes. This is the second flight test of China's manned space program, marking the new progress made in China's manned space program.

Shenzhou-3 was launched on March 25, 2002 and successfully returned on April 1, 2002. The journey lasted 6 days, 18 hours and 51 minutes. This is the third spacecraft launched by China's manned space program, and it is a genuine unmanned spacecraft.

Shenzhou IV was launched on December 30, 2002 and successfully returned on January 5, 2003. The journey lasted 6 days, 18 hours and 36 minutes. During its half-year operation, Shenzhou IV initially discovered the space environment of the spacecraft's orbit, accumulating valuable experience for the Shenzhou spacecraft's official manned flight.

Shenzhou V was launched by Yang Liwei on October 15, 2003 and returned successfully on October 16, 2003. The whole journey lasted 21 hours and 23 minutes. The successful launch of Shenzhou V realized the wish of the Chinese nation to fly for a thousand years.

Shenzhou VI was launched on October 12, 2005 with Fei Junlong and Nie Haisheng, and successfully returned on October 17, 2005. The whole journey lasted 4 days, 19 hours and 33 minutes, realizing the first multi-person and multi-day flight of Chinese astronauts.

Shenzhou VII was launched on September 25, 2008 with Zhai Zhigang, Liu Boming and Jing Haipeng, and returned successfully on September 28, 2008. The whole journey lasted 2 days, 20 hours and 27 minutes. During this period, the first space extravehicular activity of Chinese astronauts was realized.

Shenzhou-8 was launched on November 1, 2011 and returned successfully on November 17, 2011. the journey lasted 16 days, 13 hours and 34 minutes. This is an unmanned launch, the main purpose is to verify the docking of the Shenzhou spacecraft and Tiangong-1.

Shenzhou 9 was launched on June 16, 2012 with Jing Haipeng, Liu Wang and Liu Yang, and successfully returned on June 29, 2012. The journey lasted 12 days, 15 hours and 24 minutes. The spacecraft carried out automatic rendezvous and docking with Tiangong-1. During this mission, China's first female astronaut, Liu Yang, went into space.

Shenzhou-10, carrying Nie Haisheng, Zhang Xiaoguang and Wang Yaping, was launched on June 11, 2013 and successfully returned on June 26, 2013. The journey lasted 14 days, 14 hours and 29 minutes. During this period, Shenzhou-10 and Tiangong-1 flew for 12 days, and the astronauts gave lectures in space for the first time.

Shenzhou 11 was launched on October 17, 2016, carrying Jing Haipeng and Chen Dong, and successfully returned on November 18, 2016. The whole journey lasted 32 days, 6 hours and 29 minutes. During this period, Shenzhou-11 and Tiangong-2 realized automatic rendezvous and docking, laying a solid foundation for the construction and operation of China's space station and the long-term stay of astronauts.

Shenzhou 12, carrying Nie Haisheng, Liu Boming and Tang Hongbo, was launched on June 17, 2021 to dock the core module of China's space station Tianhe, where they will stay for 90 days, setting a new record for China's manned space flight.

5. Tianhe core module of the space station

The "Tianhe" core module is the core component of China's space station, with a total length of 16.6 meters, a maximum diameter of 4.2 meters and a mass of 22.5 tons. It was launched into orbit by the long March V series carrier rocket with the strongest carrying capacity in China. The core module has made a great breakthrough in design. The space for astronauts to work and live has reached 50 cubic meters, which can support three astronauts to stay in orbit for a long time.

6. What will the fully completed space station look like?

According to the plan, around 2022, the completed space station will be composed of a core module and two experimental modules, showing a T-shaped structure as a whole. In addition to this "Tianhe" core module, the other two experimental modules are called "ask Tian" and "Mengtian" respectively.

Among them, the core cabin can be subdivided into node module, life control module and resource module. The node module is used for docking the Shenzhou manned spacecraft, for the berthing of the space experiment module and for the departure of the astronauts; the life control module is used for the astronauts' work, experiment, sleep rest, etc.; the resource module provides energy security for the core module and docks the "Tianzhou" cargo ship.

The two experimental modules of "Mengtian" and "Mengtian" are used for scientific experiments in biology, materials, microgravity fluid and basic physics, respectively.

Specifically, the "ask the sky" experimental module is mainly used to carry out scientific and technical experiments in the cabin and extravehicular space, and it is also the place of work and life and emergency refuge for astronauts. It is equipped with a special airlock module for astronaut extravehicular activities to support astronaut extravehicular activities, as well as a small robotic arm, which can carry out automatic installation of extravehicular loads.

In addition, it has some key platform functions in the core module, which means that it can also take over the management and control of the space station when needed. In addition to having similar functions to the "Mengtian" experimental module, the "Mengtian" experimental module is also equipped with a special airlock module for cargo, which supports the automatic entry and exit of cargo and loads with the assistance of astronauts and robotic arms.

After the normal operation of the space station, three astronauts will stay as a crew for a long time and rotate regularly. During the rotation, up to six astronauts can work at the space station at the same time. After the completion of the handover, the previous group returned to Earth in a manned spacecraft.

Why do you have to go to space?

It can be seen from the above that the main purpose of building a space station is to do scientific research and to do experiments that cannot be well or simply realized on the ground. The space station moves around the earth at a speed close to the first universe, and the space station has been in a state of weightlessness, or microgravity, which provides unique conditions for experiments that take a long time to complete in weightlessness.

If it is only to achieve a brief state of weightlessness, there are usually other ways: one is to build a very high falling tower to maintain microgravity for only a few seconds during the fall of the experimental module. Located in the southeast of the core area of Zhongguancun in Beijing, the falling tower belonging to the National microgravity Laboratory is such a device. the tower was built in 2003 with a height of 116 meters, and the experimental objects actually fell freely from 83 meters. 3.6 seconds of microgravity can be obtained.

The second is to let the aircraft do parabolic flight, when the aircraft flies to the high altitude, adjust the aircraft to lean up, turn off the engine, and the aircraft does oblique throwing motion under the action of gravity, which can achieve a state of microgravity for dozens of seconds. At present, both the United States and Russia have such companies in operation that allow tourists to experience weightlessness.

Another unique way is to launch a suborbital rocket. The so-called suborbital rocket is a launch that is more than 100 kilometers high but is not yet in orbit and cannot move around the earth. Interestingly, it is expected that on July 20, 2021, Bezos, the former richest man in the world, will go into space on a New Shepard rocket developed by his own company (Blue Origin) and can experience weightlessness for about five minutes. Enjoy the beautiful arc of the earth bordering space, and then return to Earth.

At present, if you want to maintain a long period of weightlessness, of course you have to go to space. In the weightlessness environment of space for a long time, there are a wide range of projects that can be studied, including biology, physics, chemistry, metallurgy, technology, materials and other fields. Among them, the study of fluid behavior under microgravity, the preparation of materials under microgravity and the study of cell growth and animal and plant behavior under microgravity are the most common.

The astronaut is not only the executor of the experiment, but also the object of the medical experiment. In the future, it will take about eight months for humans to carry out manned deep space exploration, such as landing on Mars, which requires astronauts to have long-term experience of living in space, which can only be obtained on the space station.

8. Which space stations are currently operating in orbit?

At present, only the International Space Station, jointly built by the United States, Russia, Japan, Europe and Canada, is operating in Earth orbit, and all other space stations have been decommissioned.

The International Space Station was built in 1998, the first cabin was launched into orbit by the Russian Proton carrier rocket, followed by the construction and maintenance of the United States space shuttle and Russian spacecraft. In recent years, SpaceX's cargo and manned spacecraft have also been involved. After more than 10 years of construction, it was officially transferred to the stage of full use in 2010. The International Space Station is 73 meters long, 109 meters wide and weighs more than 400 tons. It is the ninth and largest space station in human history.

However, the International Space Station has begun to show signs of aging, with high annual maintenance costs, declining reliability and safety risks. In October 2010, astronauts found two leaking cracks on the space station, which were successfully plugged in March 2021. In April 2021, astronauts found three potential air leaks on the space station, which are said to have been repaired with sealant.

According to the plan, the initial service life of the International Space Station will be extended to 2015, and then gradually postponed to 2024. However, it is likely to continue to be delayed, after all, it cost 150 billion dollars to build.

On April 21, 2021, the Russian Space Agency announced that if approved by the state, Russia will withdraw from the International Space Station and build its own space station.

9. What are the famous space stations in history?

In 1971, the former Soviet Union secretly sent the Salyut space station into space for military activities. From 1971 to 1982, the former Soviet Union launched a total of nine space stations, seven of which were successful.

Under the pressure of space competition from the former Soviet Union, the United States launched its space station, Skylab (Skylab), with a Saturn V rocket in 1973. Skylab weighed 80 tons and received three groups of astronauts before and after. In 1979, it completed its historical mission and crashed into the earth's atmosphere and burned.

Apart from the International Space Station, the most famous space is the Mir space of the former Soviet Union. The Mir space station uses a modular design for the first time and is composed of multiple cabins and weighs 130 tons. In addition to the former Soviet Union's own spacecraft, the Mir space station has received several visits from the US space shuttle.

The astronauts on Mir completed a total of 78 extravehicular activities and accumulated a great deal of experience. Among them, three astronauts stayed for more than a year, accumulating a large amount of medical data for studying the changes of the human body under long-term space conditions. In 2001, he completed his historical mission and crashed into the earth's atmosphere and burned.

10. China Tiangong No.1 and Tiangong No.2 Space Lab

Tiangong-1, which was launched on September 29, 2011, is the first target vehicle launched by China's manned space program and China's first space laboratory.

On November 3, 2011, Tiangong-1 and Shenzhou-8 spacecraft completed China's first spacecraft automatic rendezvous and docking mission, and carried out a second automatic rendezvous and docking to form a combination.

On June 18, 2012, Tiangong-1 and Shenzhou-9 completed automatic rendezvous and docking, forming a combination.

On June 13, 2013, Shenzhou-10 and Tiangong-1 realized automatic rendezvous and docking, forming a combination, and the astronauts were stationed in Tiangong-1.

For the general public, the first space lecture given by Shenzhou-10 astronaut Wang Yaping in Tiangong-1 in 2013 was impressive. The space lecture was mainly aimed at primary and secondary school students, enabling them to understand the characteristics of object motion and the role of liquid surface tension under microgravity, and to deepen their understanding of basic physical concepts such as mass, weight and Newton's laws.

On March 16, 2016, Tiangong-1 officially terminated its data service and completed its historical mission in an all-round way.

On April 2, 2018, Tiangong-1 re-entered the atmosphere, and the re-entry area was located in the central South Pacific. Most of the devices were ablated and destroyed in the process of re-entry.

Let's take a look at Tiangong 2 again. Tiangong-2 was launched from the Jiuquan Satellite launch Center on September 15, 2016, docking with Shenzhou-11 and Tianzhou-1 successively, undertaking the important mission of verifying the relevant technology of the space station, and is China's first real space laboratory with fruitful scientific research. For example, the equipment carried on Tiangong-2 carried out quantum key distribution experiments for the first time; the gamma-ray burst polarization detection instrument detected a total of 55 gamma bursts, and also observed the signal of the Crab Nebula pulsar, and used pulsar signals to determine the orbit for the first time in China.

On July 19, 2019, Tiangong-2 completed its mission and was controlled to deviate from orbit and re-enter the atmosphere, with a small amount of debris falling into the intended safe waters of the South Pacific.

11. By the end of 2022, there are eight more launch plans for the construction of the space station.

Blessed are those who like spaceflight. In 2021 and 2022, the rockets building the space station carried out 11 launches. So far, 3 launches have been carried out and 8 launches have been carried out. These missions are carried out by the long March 5B rocket that launches each cabin of the space station, the long March 7 rocket that launches the cargo spacecraft, and the long March 2F rocket that launches the manned spacecraft. Among them, long March 5 B and long March 7 were launched from Wenchang launch Center, and Shenzhou manned spacecraft was launched from Jiuquan Satellite launch Center. at that time, qualified friends will remember to watch at the scene.