Tag: chinese space station

China to double size of space station, touts alternative to NASA-led ISS
Technology

China to double size of space station, touts alternative to NASA-led ISS

[ad_1] China plans to expand its space station to six modules from three in coming years, offering astronauts from other nations an alternative platform for near-Earth missions as the NASA-led International Space Station (ISS) nears the end of its lifespan.The operational lifetime of the Chinese space station will be more than 15 years, the China Academy of Space Technology (CAST), a unit of China's main space contractor, said at the 74th International Astronautical Congress in Baku, Azerbaijan, on Wednesday. That would be more than the 10 years previously announced. China's self-built space station, also known as Tiangong, or Celestial Palace in Chinese, has been fully operational since late 2022, hosting a maximum of three astronauts at an orbital altitude of up to 450 km (280 miles)....
China’s new space station opens for business as space race heats up
Technology

China’s new space station opens for business as space race heats up

[ad_1] China’s new space station opens for business in an increasingly competitive era of space activity The International Space Station is no longer the only place where humans can live in orbit.On Nov. 29, 2022, the Shenzhou 15 mission launched from China's Gobi Desert carrying three taikonauts – the Chinese word for astronauts. Six hours later, they reached their destination, China's recently completed space station, called Tiangong, which means “heavenly palace” in Mandarin. The three taikonauts replaced the existing crew that helped wrap up construction. With this successful mission, China has become just the third nation to operate a permanent space station. China's space station is an achievement that solidifies the country's position alongside the U.S. and Russia as one of the...