. 24/7 Space News .
DRAGON SPACE
China unveils new 'Heavenly Palace' space station as ISS days numbered
by Staff Writers
Zhuhai, China (AFP) Nov 6, 2018

China unveiled on Tuesday a replica of its first permanently crewed space station, which would replace the international community's orbiting laboratory and symbolises the country's major ambitions beyond Earth.

The 17-metre (55-foot) core module was a star attraction at the biennial Airshow China in the southern coastal city of Zhuhai, the country's main aerospace industry exhibition.

Outside, China's J-10 fighter jet and J-20 stealth fighter wowed spectators as they zoomed across Zhuhai's sky. Back inside, the country displayed its fleet of drones and other military hardware.

Crowds gathered around the cylindrical space station module representing the living and working quarters of the Tiangong -- or "Heavenly Palace" -- which will also have two other modules for scientific experiments and will be equipped with solar panels.

Three astronauts will be permanently stationed in the 60-tonne orbiting lab, which will enable the crew to conduct biological and microgravity research.

Assembly is expected to be completed around 2022 and the station would have a lifespan of around 10 years.

The International Space Station -- a collaboration between the United States, Russia, Canada, Europe and Japan -- has been in operation since 1998 but is due to be retired in 2024.

China will then have the only space station in orbit, though it will be much smaller than the ISS which weighs 400 tonnes and is as large as a football pitch.

- Billions spent -
The country announced in May that the lab would be open to "all countries" to conduct science experiments.

"There is no doubt that China will use its station in a similar way as the ISS partners are using their outpost: research, technology and as a stepping-stone for deep-space exploration," said Chen Lan, analyst at GoTaikonauts.com, a website specialised in the Chinese space programme.

Research institutes, universities, and public and private companies have been invited to propose projects. Some 40 plans from 27 countries and regions have been received, according to state media.

The European Space Agency has sent astronauts to China to receive training in order to be ready to work inside the Chinese space station once it is launched.

"I'm sure over time China will be successful developing partnerships," said Bill Ostrove, space analyst with US-based Forecast International consultancy.

"Many countries, and increasingly private companies and universities, have space programmes, but cannot afford to build their own space station," he said.

"The ability to put payloads and experiments on a human spaceflight platform is extremely valuable."

Beijing is pouring billions into its military-run space programme, with plans to send humans to the Moon in the near future.

Citing China as a threat, US President Donald Trump has launched plans to create a new "Space Force" to give his country dominance over rivals in space.

- Diverse space market -
But China's space programme has encountered some glitches.

A space lab dubbed Tiangong-1 disintegrated as it plunged back to Earth in early April, two years after it ceased functioning.

Chinese authorities denied that the lab -- which was placed in orbit in September 2011 as a testing ground for the permanent station -- was out of control.

A second lab, the Tiangong-2, was launched into orbit in 2016.

"Despite a lot of talk of the opposite, the United States remains the most dominant power in space right now," Ostrove said.

"The most likely scenario for the future is that China will emerge as one of the major space powers," he said.

But Russia, the European Space Agency, Japan and India will continue to play "major roles" in space exploration, while private firms are becoming increasingly important in the sector, Ostrove added.

"The space market is becoming more diverse," he said, "so it will be difficult for one or two countries or companies to dominate the field in the way the US and Soviet Union did during the Cold War."


Related Links
The Chinese Space Program - News, Policy and Technology
China News from SinoDaily.com


Thanks for being there;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5+ Billed Monthly


paypal only
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal


DRAGON SPACE
China's commercial aerospace companies flourishing
Moscow (Sputnik) Oct 19, 2018
Many new companies have entered the commercial aerospace industry in China, supported by the government. Most of the CEOs come from government aerospace agencies or national scientific institutions. These companies still have a long way to go to catch up with Elon Musk's SpaceX. The aerospace industry used to be a battleground for superpowers. Space agencies were all sponsored by governments. However, commercial upstarts have joined the competition since the beginning of this century. Now, c ... read more

Comment using your Disqus, Facebook, Google or Twitter login.



Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle

DRAGON SPACE
'Dust up' on International Space Station hints at sources of structure

Experience high-res science in first 8K footage from space

Roscosmos, NASA to adjust ISS program to fit with lunar missions

Russia plans first manned launch to ISS Dec 3 after accident

DRAGON SPACE
Hole in Soyuz MS-09 hull could have been drilled before launch

Russia plans to carry out 17 space launches in 2018

Russia to hold 2 new space launches in wake of Soyuz failure

Soyuz launch failed due to assembly problem: Russia

DRAGON SPACE
Evidence of outburst flooding indicates plentiful water on early Mars

The Mars InSight Landing Site Is Just Plain Perfect

Water cycle along the northern rim of Hellas Basin throughout Mars' history

Five things to know about InSight's Mars landing

DRAGON SPACE
China's space programs open up to world

China's commercial aerospace companies flourishing

China launches Centispace-1-s1 satellite

China tests propulsion system of space station's lab capsules

DRAGON SPACE
Telstar 18 VANTAGE satellite now operational over Asia Pacific

How Max Polyakov from Zaporozhie develops the Ukrainian space industry

SpaceFund launches the world's first space security token to fund the opening of the high frontier

ESA on the way to Space19+ and beyond

DRAGON SPACE
NASA team investigates ultrafast laser machining for multiple spaceflight applications

NUS researchers turn plastic bottle waste into ultralight supermaterial

Physicists name and codify new field in nanotechnology: 'electron quantum metamaterials'

Bose-Einstein condensate generated in space for the first time

DRAGON SPACE
Laser tech could be fashioned into Earth's 'porch light' to attract alien astronomers

Laboratory experiments probe the formation of stars and planets

NASA retires Kepler Space Telescope, passes planet-hunting torch

Rocky and habitable - sizing up a galaxy of planets

DRAGON SPACE
SwRI team makes breakthroughs studying Pluto orbiter mission

ALMA maps temperature of Jupiter's icy moon Europa

NASA's Juno Mission Detects Jupiter Wave Trains

WorldWide Telescope looks ahead to New Horizons' Ultima Thule glyby









The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.