This morning (April 29), the Long March 5B rocket launched a Tianhe module from the Wenchang spaceport into space.
This is a historic event as it is the first segment of a large Chinese Space Station.
The object will orbit at an altitude of about 380 kilometers above the surface of our planet, which is similar to the International Space Station. The Chinese are already planning the first supply missions to their new space home.
In two weeks, the cargo ship Tianzhou-2 will depart for Tianhe, and a month later the station will be visited by the first crew of three, who will stay there for some time.
CNSA is also planning the first spacewalks using the Lapp robotic arm. The first module of the Chinese Tianhe Space Station weighs 22 tons, is less than 17 meters long and 4.4 meters in diameter.
The segment has as many as 6 docking ports and 4 ports for station expansion.
The Chinese Space Agency boasts that the module has been equipped with the most modern life support systems for Earth observation and conducting experiments, and the Tianhe module has also been equipped with maneuvering engines, thanks to which it will be possible to keep the entire station in proper orbit.
There was also an efficient power supply system, in the form of solar panels with an area of 30 square meters, with a capacity of approx. 27 kW. CNSA revealed that this and next year, more called Wentian and Mengtian will be connected to the Tianhe module.
The station is to be permanently inhabited by astronauts (taikonauts).
They are to conduct research there, among others
related to the colonization of the Moon and Mars. In fact, the Tianhe module is a modernized version of the well-proven Russian Sightseeing module, which is one of the elements of the International Space Station.
Experts indicate that it is more advanced than it, but China's entire space program is based on technologies from the Russian Mir Station.