Manufacturer | CASC |
---|---|
Country of origin | China |
Operator | CMSA |
Applications | Tiangong Space Station resupply |
Specifications | |
Spacecraft type | Automated cargo spacecraft |
Launch mass | 13,500 kg (29,800 lb) (basic); 14,000 kg (31,000 lb) (improved) |
Payload capacity | 6,900 kg (15,200 lb) (basic); 7,400 kg (16,300 lb) (improved) |
Dimensions | 10.6 m × 3.35 m (34.8 ft × 11.0 ft) |
Volume | 40 m3 (1,400 cu ft) [1] |
Production | |
Status | Active |
On order | 1 |
Built | 8 |
Launched | 7 |
Operational | 1 |
Maiden launch | Tianzhou 1 |
Last launch | Tianzhou 7 |
Related spacecraft | |
Derived from | Tiangong-1 |
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 [2] and demonstrated autonomous propellant transfer ( space refueling). [3] [4]
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. [5]
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. [3] [6]
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. [7] 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. [8] 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. [9]
No. | Spacecraft | S/N | Launch (UTC) |
Carrier Rocket |
Launch Pad |
Docking (UTC) | Deorbit (UTC) | Remarks | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Station/ Port |
Docking | Undocking | |||||||||
1 | Tianzhou 1 | — | 11:41, April 20, 2017 (UTC) | Long March 7 | Wenchang LC-2 | Tiangong-2 Forward | 04:16, April 21, 2017 (UTC)[10] | 08:15, September 22, 2017 (UTC) | 10:00, September 22, 2017 (UTC) | Maiden flight of the Tianzhou spacecraft. First Tianzhou flight to Tiangong-2. | [10] |
2 | Tianzhou 2 | — | 12:55, May 29, 2021 (UTC)[11] [12] | Long March 7 | Wenchang LC-2 | Tianhe Aft [a] [11] | 21:01, May 29, 2021 (UTC)[11] [12] | 07:59, March 27, 2022 (UTC) | 10:40, March 31, 2022 (UTC) | First Tianzhou flight to the Tiangong space station. | [13] [14] |
3 | Tianzhou 3 | — | 07:10, September 20, 2021 (UTC)[15] | Long March 7 | Wenchang LC-2 | Tianhe Aft [b] | 14:08, September 20, 2021 (UTC)[16] | 02:59, July 17, 2022 (UTC) | 03:31, July 27, 2022 (UTC) | Second Tianzhou flight to the Tiangong space station. | [17] |
4 | Tianzhou 4 | — | 17:56, May 9, 2022 (UTC) | Long March 7 | Wenchang LC-2 | Tianhe Aft | 00:54, May 10, 2022 (UTC) | 06:55, November 9, 2022 (UTC) | 23:21, November 14, 2022 (UTC) | Third Tianzhou flight to the Tiangong space station. | [18] |
5 | Tianzhou 5 | — | 02:03, November 12, 2022 (UTC) | Long March 7 | Wenchang LC-2 | Tianhe Aft | 04:10, November 12, 2022 (UTC) | 08:46, September 11, 2023 (UTC) | 02:13, September 12, 2023 (UTC) | Fourth Tianzhou flight to the Tiangong space station. | [19] |
6 | Tianzhou 6 | — | 13:22, May 10, 2023 (UTC) | Long March 7 | Wenchang LC-2 | Tianhe Aft | 21:16, May 10, 2023 (UTC) | 08:02, January 12, 2024 (UTC) | 12:37, January 19, 2024 (UTC) | Fifth Tianzhou flight to the Tiangong space station. | [20] |
7 | Tianzhou 7 | — | 14:27, January 17, 2024 (UTC) | Long March 7 | Wenchang LC-2 | Tianhe Aft | 17:46, January 17, 2024 (UTC) | TBA | TBA | Sixth Tianzhou flight to the Tiangong space station. | [21] |