China News Service, Beijing, October 31 (Liu Huan and Wu Xinru) According to official news from the China Manned Space Office, the Mengtian experimental module has been successfully launched at the Wenchang Space Launch Site.

  The Mengtian experimental module is the second experimental module of the Chinese space station. After being launched into orbit and successfully docked, the three modules of the Chinese space station will form a "T" basic configuration, and the construction of the space station will be completed.

1992, "Three Steps"

  This year is the decisive year for the construction of China's space station, and it is also the 30th anniversary of the establishment and implementation of China's manned space project.

  On September 21, 1992, China's manned space project was officially approved for implementation, code-named "Project 921".

According to the plan, the project will be implemented according to the "three-step" development strategy:

  The first step is to launch a manned spacecraft, build a preliminary supporting experimental manned spacecraft project, and carry out space application experiments;

  The second step is to break through the technology of astronauts' out-of-vehicle activities and the rendezvous and docking technology of space vehicles, launch a space laboratory, and solve the space application problems of a certain scale and short-term care;

  The third step is to build a space station to solve large-scale, long-term care of space applications.

China Space Station Design: Wang Ying Source of poster material: China Manned Space Engineering Office

  Before the manned spaceflight project was established, in 1964, China's biological rocket carrying mice was successfully launched, which was the first important achievement of my country's aerospace industry.

  Wang Zhaokui, an expert and deputy leader of the China Manned Space Engineering Orbit Expert Group, and a tenured professor at the School of Aeronautics and Astronautics of Tsinghua University, introduced to Chinanews.com that manned space engineering is very difficult.

  "This is mainly reflected in the high safety requirements of manned engineering, particularly large systems, and heavy organization and coordination tasks." He said that the project involves eight major sub-systems, "especially when astronauts are sent into space, it is necessary to ensure safety and ensure There can be no problems with the close cooperation of various systems.”

In 2022, a space "mansion" with three bedrooms and two halls

  The Chinese Space Station, also known as the Tiangong Space Station, is based on the Tianhe core module, the Wentian experimental module and the Mengtian experimental module. .

The three-cabin combination will be able to carry more than 10 tons of load equipment and support 3-6 people at the same time.

  An aerospace expert once likened the Chinese space station to a "mansion" with three rooms, two halls and a storage room.

The "three rooms" refer to the Tianhe core module and the Wentian and Mengtian experimental modules, while the "two halls" refer to the Shenzhou manned spacecraft and the Tianzhou cargo spacecraft.

China Space Station Design: Wang Ying Source of poster material: China Manned Space Engineering Office

  Since 2020, China's manned space project has implemented the first flight of the Long March 5B carrier rocket, the Tianhe core module of the space station, the Shenzhou 12 and Shenzhou 13 manned spacecraft, and the Tianzhou 2 and Tianzhou 3 cargo. The spacecraft has a total of 6 missions.

  According to the mission arrangement, China has launched the Tianzhou-4 cargo spacecraft in May this year, the Shenzhou-14 manned spacecraft in June, and the space station Wentian experimental module in July.

The Mengtian experimental module was successfully launched at Wenchang Space Launch Site today.

  Hao Chun, director of the China Manned Space Engineering Office, said that after this, the Tianzhou-5 cargo spacecraft and the Shenzhou-15 manned spacecraft will be launched.

  It is worth noting that during the construction of China's space station, the manned space flight crew continued to carry out a series of on-orbit teaching activities such as "Tiangong Class".

On October 12, the third lesson of "Tiangong Classroom" was held at the space station. This is the first time that Chinese astronauts have taught in the Wentian experimental cabin.

  The new "space teachers" Chen Dong, Liu Yang, and Cai Xuzhe showed the working and living scenes of the Wentian experimental module of the space station, and demonstrated the capillary effect experiment in the microgravity environment, the water polo becoming "lazy" experiment, the interesting drinking water in space, and the wrench that can turn around. , focused on the research on rice and Arabidopsis planting carried out on the Chinese space station, and demonstrated the glove box cutting operation.

third country to build a space station

  According to foreign media reports, China is the third country in history to send astronauts into space and build a space station after the former Soviet Union and the United States.

  At present, in addition to the Tiangong space station, the only space station in service in the world is the International Space Station, which is operated by the United States, Russia, Japan, Canada and European space agencies.

  my country has repeatedly stated that it hopes to participate in the construction of the International Space Station, but has been repeatedly rejected by foreign parties on the grounds of technical secrecy and lack of funds in China.

  In 2011, U.S. legislation barred NASA from any scientific and technological exchanges with the China National Space Administration.

  In this context, my country began the process of self-experimental research and development of the space station system.

The development process of the independent research and development project of my country's space station Design: Wang Ying Poster Source: China Manned Space Engineering Office

  After unremitting efforts, my country will now have an important platform for long-term scientific and technological experiments, comprehensive development and utilization of space resources.

  International media have paid close attention to the latest progress in the construction of China's space station.

The BBC reported on the title of "Tiangong" Space Station: How China Plans to Become the Next Space Power, saying that "China's influence in the space field is constantly expanding."

  Time Magazine also reported: "China is opening the Tiangong space station to other countries in the world with space dreams."

  Hao Chun once said: "We are willing to build the Chinese space station into a platform to promote the building of a community with a shared future for mankind. Together with astronauts and aerospace technology teams from various countries, we will continue to explore the vast universe and benefit mankind."

  In 2019, the China Manned Space Engineering Office and the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs announced the selection results of the first batch of projects to carry out space science experiments around the Chinese space station. A total of 9 projects from 17 countries and 23 entities were successfully selected.

  The report of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China pointed out that the focus of economic development should be placed on the real economy, promote new industrialization, and accelerate the construction of a strong manufacturing country, a strong quality country, a strong aerospace country, a strong transportation country, a strong Internet country, and a digital China.

  Wang Zhaokui said that aerospace technology is the embodiment of a country's comprehensive national strength, especially its scientific, technological and industrial strength. "Aerospace technology is a cutting-edge technology that brings together multiple disciplines. If it develops well, it means the country's strength is strong."

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