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China’s Tianzhou-2 cargo spacecraft has docked with the Tianhe space station module

May 30, 2021 / Leave a comment

Tianzhou2-Cargo-Spacecraft-Docks-with-chinese-space-stationChina’s Tianzhou-2 cargo spacecraft docked with the Tianhe space station module in low Earth orbit Saturday, eight hours after launch from Wenchang spaceport.

The uncrewed Tianzhou-2 spacecraft completed automated rendezvous and docking maneuvers with Tianhe at 5:01 p.m. Eastern May 29.

Tianzhou-2 is tasked with delivering propellant and supplies ahead of a first crewed mission to Tianhe in June.

Earlier on Saturday a Long March 7 medium-lift rocket lifted off from the coastal Wenchang spaceport at 8:55 a.m. Eastern. The roughly 13-metric-ton Tianzhou-2 cargo spacecraft entered its intended orbit and deployed its solar arrays at 9:17 a.m., the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp. (CASC) confirmed within an hour of liftoff.

Tianhe, the first module for China’s space station, launched late April 28 and passed on-orbit testing May 18, according to the China Manned Space Engineering Office (CMSEO).

Tianzhou-2 matched its 343 by 371-kilometer orbit for rendezvous. Now docked, Tianzhou-2 will conduct an automatic transfer of 1.95 tons of propellant to the 22.5-ton Tianhe module.

This is another important step in China’s race for dominance in space.