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October 10th, 2022
Next up! China’s Mengtian lab for the country’s space station.
Credit: CCTV/Inside Outer Space screengrab
China’s next step in building out the country’s space station is nearing launch.
The Mengtian space lab has been fueled up for upcoming launch stated the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) on Monday.
Scientific equipment carried in the Mengtian lab will be utilized for studying microgravity and carrying out experiments in fluid physics, materials science, combustion science and fundamental physics.
In-construction: China’s space station.
Credit: CMSA/CCTV/Inside Outer Space screengrab
According to the state-run Xinhua news agency a pre-launch operation was conducted on Sunday.
Launch date
The CMSA added that assembly and tests of the spacecraft were completed after its arrival at the Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Site in the southern province of Hainan.
Prior to launch, a joint check of system functions with the lab’s Long March-5B Y4 carrier rocket will be carried out.
Wrapped up Mengtian Laboratory Module.
Credit: CMS
Credit: The Aerospace Corporation
Reportedly, launch of the Mengtian module is slated for October 31, 2022. As was the case for the Wentian lab module launch, the Long March-5B Y4’s core stage is apparently headed for an uncontrolled re-entry – a fall of hardware that can cause worries to populations below.
At this moment, China’s in-construction Tiangong space station complex is composed of the Tianhe core module, the Wentian lab module, the Tianzhou-4 cargo vessel and the Shenzhou-14 crewed spaceship.
If all goes according to plan, China’s orbital space complex is to be completed by year’s end.
Go to this China Central Television (CCTV) video spotlighting the soon-to-fly lab module at:
Posted in Space News
