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Tianzhou (spacecraft)

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The Tianzhou (Chinese: 天舟; pinyin: Tiān Zhōu; lit. 'Heavenly Ship') is a Chinese automated cargo spacecraft developed from China's first prototype space station Tiangong-1 to resupply its modular space station. It was first launched (Tianzhou 1) on the Long March 7 rocket from Wenchang on April 20, 2017[3] and demonstrated autonomous propellant transfer (space refueling).[4][5]

Tianzhou
Tianzhou 2 cargo spacecraft prior to launch
Tianzhou 2 cargo spacecraft prior to launch
ManufacturerCASC
Country of origin China
OperatorCMSA
ApplicationsTiangong Space Station resupply
Specifications
Spacecraft typeAutomated cargo spacecraft
Launch mass13,500 kg (29,800 lb) (basic);
14,000 kg (31,000 lb) (improved)
Payload capacity6,900 kg (15,200 lb) (basic);
7,400 kg (16,300 lb) (improved)
Dimensions10.6 m × 3.35 m (34.8 ft × 11.0 ft)
Volume40 m3 (1,400 cu ft)[1]
Production
StatusActive
On order1
Built8
Launched8
Operational1
Maiden launchTianzhou 1
Last launchTianzhou 8
Related spacecraft
Derived fromTiangong-1
Powered by4× 490 N main engines, 32 attitude control engines (25, 120, 150 N thrust)[2]

The first version of Tianzhou has a mass of 13,500 kg and can carry 6,500 kg of cargo. Tianzhou-6 is the first improved version of the spacecraft to be launched into orbit; it has a mass of about 14,000 kg and can transport 7,400 kg of cargo.[6]

Function

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Based on the Tiangong-1 space station, the Tianzhou functions as the main automated cargo spacecraft for the Tiangong space station. It has pressurized, semi-pressurized and unpressurized cargo capabilities, and is able to transport airtight cargo, large extravehicular payloads and experiment platforms. It was first launched on the new Long March 7 rocket from Wenchang on April 20, 2017.[4][7]

Name

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The China Manned Space Engineering Office opened a consultation for the naming of the prospective cargo ship on April 25, 2011. By May 20, it had received more than 50,000 suggestions.[8] On July 8, Yang Liwei, China's first astronaut and deputy director of the Chinese Academy of Sciences revealed that they had a short list of ten names.[9] On October 31, 2013, it was revealed that the spacecraft had been named Tianzhou (Chinese: 天舟; pinyin: Tiān Zhōu; lit. 'Heavenly Boat'), combining the Chinese names of the Tiangong (Chinese: 天宫; pinyin: Tiān Gōng) space stations and the Shenzhou (Chinese: 神舟; pinyin: Shén Zhōu) spacecraft. They also stated that they would use the two letter identification TZ.[10]

Missions

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Tianzhou spacecraft were initially flown to the Tiangong space station every 6 months. From Tianzhou 6 onward, missions have been flown with the new version of Tianzhou with increased cargo capacity, allowing the launch frequency to be reduced to three ships every two years.[11]

Mission Launch (UTC) Carrier
Rocket 		Launch
Pad 		Docking (UTC) Deorbit (UTC) Remarks
Station/
Port 		Docking Undocking
Tianzhou 1 20 April 2017, 11:41 Long March 7 Wenchang, LC‑201 Tiangong-2 forward 21 April 2017, 04:16 22 September 2017, 08:15 22 September 2017, 10:00 Maiden flight of the Tianzhou spacecraft. Only Tianzhou flight to Tiangong-2. [12]
Tianzhou 2 29 May 2021, 12:55 Long March 7 Wenchang, LC‑201 Tianhe aft[a] 29 May 2021, 21:01 27 March 2022, 07:59 31 March 2022, 10:40 First Tianzhou flight to the Tiangong space station. [13][14][15][16]
Tianzhou 3 20 September 2021, 07:10 Long March 7 Wenchang, LC‑201 Tianhe aft[b] 20 September 2021, 14:08 17 July 2022, 02:59 27 July 2022, 03:31 [17][18][19]
Tianzhou 4 9 May 2022, 17:56 Long March 7 Wenchang, LC‑201 Tianhe aft 10 May 2022, 00:54 9 November 2022, 06:55 14 November 2022, 23:21 [20]
Tianzhou 5 12 November 2022, 02:03 Long March 7 Wenchang, LC‑201 Tianhe aft 12 November 2022, 04:10 11 September 2023, 08:46 12 September 2023, 02:13 [21]
Tianzhou 6 10 May 2023, 13:22 Long March 7 Wenchang, LC‑201 Tianhe aft 10 May 2023, 21:16 12 January 2024, 08:02 19 January 2024, 12:37 [22]
Tianzhou 7 17 January 2024, 14:27 Long March 7 Wenchang, LC‑201 Tianhe aft 17 January 2024, 17:46 10 November 2024, 08:30 17 November 2024, 13:25 [23]
Tianzhou 8 15 November 2024, 15:13 Long March 7 Wenchang, LC‑201 Tianhe aft 15 November 2024, 18:32 TBA TBA [24]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Initially docked to aft port, moved to forward port on 18 Sep 2021, and then again to portside port on 6 Jan 2022
  2. ^ Initially docked to aft port, moved to forward port on 20 Apr 2022
  1. ^ "天舟货运飞船到底长啥样 40立方米的货物舱共有208个货格" (in Simplified Chinese). 新華網. 2021-05-31. Retrieved 2022-11-13.
  2. ^ Lei, Jianyu; Jia, Dongyong; Bai, Mingsheng; Feng, Yong; Li, Xingqian (2023). "Research and Development of the Tianzhou Cargo Spacecraft". Space: Science & Technology. 3. doi:10.34133/space.0006. ISSN 2692-7659.
  3. ^ Barbosa, Rui C. (25 June 2016). "China successfully debuts Long March 7 rocket". NASASpaceflight.com.
  4. ^ a b Ping, Wu (June 2016). "China Manned Space Programme: Its Achievements and Future Developments" (PDF). China Manned Space Agency. Retrieved 2016-06-28.
  5. ^ Clark, Stephen (17 September 2017). "Chinese space station freighter concludes refueling demo mission". Spaceflight Now. Retrieved 5 May 2018.
  6. ^ Jones, Andrew (10 May 2023). "Tianzhou-6 cargo spacecraft reaches China's Tiangong space station". spacenews.com. Retrieved 10 May 2023.
  7. ^ Barbosa, Rui C. (19 April 2017). "Tianzhou-1 – China launches and docks debut cargo resupply". NASASpaceFlight.com. Retrieved 5 May 2018.
  8. ^ "中国货运飞船征名超5万个" [Chinese cargo ship over 50,000 new name] (in Chinese (China)). China Network Television. 2011-05-20. Archived from the original on 2013-12-06. Retrieved 2016-06-27.
  9. ^ "中国货运飞船征名结束 龙舟等10个名字入选" [Chinese cargo ship sign name ends dragon boat 10 names selected] (in Chinese (China)). 163.com. 2011-07-09. Retrieved 2016-06-27.
  10. ^ "中国载人空间站命名"天宫"货运飞船为"天舟"" [China's manned space station cargo spacecraft to be named Tianzhou] (in Chinese (China)). China News. 2013-10-31. Retrieved 2016-06-27.
  11. ^ "《面对面》专访白明生总师：陪伴"天舟家族"走过的日子-中国空间技术研究院" [Bai Mingsheng: The days of accompanying "Tianzhou family"]. www.cast.cn. Archived from the original on 2023-03-06. Retrieved 2023-03-06.
  12. ^ Clark, Stephen (22 April 2017). "China's Tianzhou 1 cargo carrier docks with space lab in orbit". Spaceflight Now. Retrieved 24 April 2021.
  13. ^ "长征七号遥三火箭 • 天舟二号货运飞船 • LongMarch-7 Y3 • Tianzhou-2". spaceflightfans.cn (in Chinese). 21 April 2021. Archived from the original on 11 June 2021. Retrieved 25 May 2021.
  14. ^ Jones, Andrew (13 April 2021). "China preparing Tianzhou-2 cargo mission to follow upcoming space station launch". SpaceNews. Retrieved 24 April 2021.
  15. ^ Graham, William (29 May 2021). "China launches Tianzhou 2, first cargo mission to new space station". NASASpaceFlight.com. Retrieved 29 May 2021.
  16. ^ Jones, Andrew (29 May 2021). "Tianzhou-2 docks with China's space station module". SpaceNews.com. Retrieved 29 May 2021.
  17. ^ "China rolls out rocket for Tianzhou 3 cargo mission ahead of Monday launch (Photos)". Space.com. 17 September 2021.
  18. ^ "Tianzhou-3 spacecraft docks with Chinese space station". spacenews.com. 20 September 2021. Retrieved 21 September 2021.
  19. ^ "【2021年9月待定】长征七号 • 天舟三号货运飞船 • LongMarch 7 Y4 • Tianzhou-3". spaceflightfans.cn (in Chinese). 21 April 2021. Archived from the original on 26 April 2021. Retrieved 24 April 2021.
  20. ^ China Spaceflight [@CNSpaceflight] (16 March 2022). "According to a travel agency, Long March 7 Y5 will launch Tianzhou 4 on MAY 10" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  21. ^ "【2022年10月待定】长征七号 • 天舟五号货运飞船 • LongMarch 7 Y6 • Tianzhou-5". spaceflightfans.cn (in Chinese). 21 April 2021. Archived from the original on 4 August 2021. Retrieved 24 April 2021.
  22. ^ "关于招募首颗中国高职科普卫星"金陵号" 暨中国青少年科普卫星（八一08星）工程研制团队的通知" [Notice on Recruiting the Engineering Development Team of the First Chinese Higher Vocational Science Satellite "Jinling" and the Chinese Youth Science Satellite (August 08)] (in Chinese). 9 May 2022. Retrieved 9 May 2022.
  23. ^ "Tianzhou 7". 17 January 2024. Retrieved 17 January 2024.
  24. ^ "Tianzhou 8". Retrieved 14 November 2024.
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