CHINA LAUNCHES SHENZOU 15 MISSION

TO HIS SPACE STATION

China is launching the Shenzhou-15 space mission to China's space station today, the first since the structure's assembly was completed three weeks ago. Its launch takes place on November 29, 2022.

Shenzhou 15 (simplified Chinese: 神舟十五号; pinyin: Shénzhōu shíwǔ hào; lit. "Godship 15") is the tenth Chinese manned space mission and the fourth to the China Space Station (SSC). Long March 2F is expected to take place from Jiuquan Launch Base

The Shenzhou spacecraft is launched by a CZ-2F or Long March 2F rocket from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center. This launcher is 62 meters high and weighs 477 tons. It can place 8.5 tons to an orbit of 500 km.

Three taikonauts will take place on board to replace the three occupants of the station. The trio, led by Mission Commander Fei Junlong accompanied by two space newcomers, Deng Qingming and Zhang Lu, will transfer directly into orbit with the crew of Shenzhou-14 to the China Space Station currently under construction, which will mark a first in Chinese aerospace history.

Goals.

The mission should last six months, during which its members will be able to take full advantage of the three modules of the Chinese space station to carry out experiments. According to the mission plan, the Shenzhou-15 spacecraft will perform rapid and automated rendezvous and docking with the space station at the front port of the Tianhe core module, and then form a new combination of three spacecraft and three modules.

It will be the largest structure of the Chinese Space Station to date, with a total mass of nearly 100 tons. For comparison, the international space station can accommodate seven people and has 16 modules.

The Chinese Space Station is the first of its kind to be open to all UN member states. So far, several scientific experiment projects from 17 countries, including Switzerland, Poland, Germany and Italy, have been included in the selected projects of the Chinese Space Station, Zhao said.

Like the United States, China has great space ambitions. Behind, Russia is left behind. “For Beijing, space is above all a vector of prestige.

China aspires to become the world's leading power in all areas by 2049,” explains Marc Julienne, head of China activities at the French Institute for International Relations.